SECRET PAGE 01 SINGAP 01385 01 OF 02 271608Z 47 ACTION EA-14 INFO OCT-01 EUR-25 ISO-00 PM-07 NSC-07 SPC-03 SS-20 RSC-01 CIAE-00 DODE-00 INR-10 NSAE-00 PA-04 USIA-15 PRS-01 MC-02 ACDA-19 AEC-11 L-03 EB-11 DRC-01 /155 W --------------------- 106313 R 270725Z MAR 74 FM AMEMBASSY SINGAPORE TO SECSTATE WASHDC 0322 INFO AMEMBASSY LONDON AMEMBASSY CANBERRA AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON CINCPAC S E C R E T SECTION 1 OF 2 SINGAPORE 1385 E.O. 11652: GDS TAGS: MARR, SN SUBJECT: FACILITIES IN SINGAPORE FOR SOVIET SHIPPING REF: A. STATE 057157 (NOTAL); B. SINGAPORE 1267 (NOTAL); C. IR NO. 6 887 0031 73 (NOTAL); D. IR NO. 6 887 0153 73 (NOTAL) 1. SUMMARY. TWO SOVIET COMBATANT SHIPS CITED PARA 2 REF B WERE REPAIR SHIP AND SUBMARINE RESCUE VESSEL. ALTHOUGH THEY MOUNTED GUNS AND FLEW WHITE ENSIGN, THEY WERE ESSENTIALLY NAVAL SUPPORT SHIPS. EMBASSY ADVISED BY UK HICOM ON MARCH 25 THAT ANZUK REPS IN SINGAPORE BELIEVE RECENT USE PSA PIER IN ANZUK STORES BASIN BY FOUR SOVIET AND BLOC MERCHANT SHIPS REPRE- SENTED EXCEPTIONAL CASES, AND THAT THERE HAS BEEN NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN GOS POLICY IN RESTRICTING SOVIET AND OTHER COMMUNIST MERCHANT SHIP ACCESS TO COMMERCIAL FACILITIES IN STRAITS OF JOHORE. 2. HOWEVER, EMBASSY SUBSEQUENTLY INFORMED OF GOS DECISION TO ALLOW ONE EAST GERMAN AND ONE SOVIET FREIGHTER SECRET SECRET PAGE 02 SINGAP 01385 01 OF 02 271608Z TO DOCK AT SAME PIER IN STORES BASIN DURING PAST WEEK. THIS DEVELOPMENT RAISES SERIOUS QUESTIONS RE ACCURACY OF ABOVE ANZUK ASSESSMENT. THESE LATEST "EXCEPTIONS," AT LEAST ONE OF WHICH WAS WITHOUT ADVANCE NOTICE, HAVE FRAYED UK PATIENCE AND QUESTION WILL BE DISCUSSED AT ANZUK MEETING ON MARCH 28. ALTHOUGH SITUATION REMAINS TO BE CLARIFIED, GOS IS APPARENTLY PREPARED FOR COMMERCIAL REASONS TO ALLOW INCREASED NUMBER OF SOVIET MERCHANT SHIPS TO ENTER STRAITS OF JOHORE AND USE PSA BERTHS IN THE STORES BASIN. NAVATT STATED THAT ALL SOVIET MERCHANT SHIPS WHICH HAVE BEEN ALLOWED TO USE PSA BERTHS AT STORES BASIN APPEAR TO HAVE HAD LEGITIMATE COMMERCIAL REASONS FOR DOING SO. BELIEVE WE SHOULD AWAIT ANZUK REVIEW AND DECISION RE POSSIBLE ACTION BEFORE DECIDING WEHTHER US SHOULD EITHER JOIN OR MAKE SUPPLEMENTARY REPRESENTATIONS TO GOS ON THIS MATTER. END SUMMARY. 3. FOLLOWING INFO IS IN RESPONSE TO REQUEST FOR PARTICULARS PARA 1 REF A: SS-83 PRUT CLASS SUB- MARINE RESCUE VESSEL VISITED SINGAPORE 26 FEB - 1 MARCH 1973 BUT REMAINED AT ANCHORAGE. PM ";0 DNEPR CLASS REPAIR SHIP ENTERED KEPPEL SHIPYARD FOR REPAIRS 21 NOV - 1 DEC 1973. BOTH SHIPS ARE LISTED/PICTURED IN CURRENT EDITION DIA PUBLICATION ST-HB 08-41 A-73. SIMILAR VESSELS DEPICTED PAGE 64 JANES' 71/72 EDITION. 4. BELIEVE SOME CONFUSION EXISTS WITH TERM "COM- BATANTS." DAO SINGAPORE APPLIES THIS TERM TO ALL WHITE ENSIGN SHIPS AND WHITE ENSIGN ONLY. TWO SHIPS CITED PARA 3 BOTH CARRIED GUNS AND NAVAL UNIFORMED CREWS. ALTHOUGH OTHER SOVIET VESSELS HAVE VISITED SINGAPORE WITH NAVAL UNIFORMED CREWS, THEY HAVE FLOWN NAVAL AUXILIARY ENSIGN AND HAVE NOT BEEN CLASSIFIED AS COMBATANTS. VISITS OF BOTH SHIPS FULLY REPORTED IN REFS C AND D. IN COMMENTING ON ABOVE VISITS TO DCM, DEPUTY UK HICOM WATTS POINTED OUT GOS HAD NEVER UNDERTAKEN NOT TO ALLOW SOVIET WARSHIPS TO VISIT SINGAPORE. HOWEVER, UK HAD MADE IT CLEAR TO GOS IN PAST THAT UK DID NOT APPROVE OF SOVIET WARSHIP VISITS TO SINGAPORE AND WOULD HAVE TO RECONSIDER ITS PARTICIPATION IN FPDA IF GOS SECRET SECRET PAGE 03 SINGAP 01385 01 OF 02 271608Z ALLOWED SUCH VISITS. IN ABOVE CASES, HICOM CONSIDERED SHIPS TO BE ESSENTIALLY NAVAL SUPPORT SHIPS AND DID NOT PROTEST. WATTS SAID HE WAS NOT PARTICULARLY WORRIED ABOUT THIS PROBLEM SINCE SOVIETS PROBABLY DID NOT WISH TO EXPOSE THEIR COMBATANT SHIPS TO FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE ACCESS. 5. WATTS CONFIRMED TO DCM ON MARCH 25 THAT 4 SOVIET/BLOC MERCHANT SHIPS HAD USED PSA PIER AT ANZUK STORES BASIN IN PAST 5 WEEKS. (TWO BERTHS WITHIN CONFINES OF BASIN ARE NOT UNDER ANZUK CONTROL BUT ARE USED AND SCHEDULED BY PSA.) WATTS SAID THAT CAREFUL REVIEW OF CIRCUM- STANCES WITH GOS DID NOT INDICATE ANY CHANGE IN SINGA- PORE'S POLICY. HE POINTED OUT THAT WHILE GOS POLICY DID NOT ALLOW ANY SOVIET OR COMMUNIST COUNTRY WARSHIPS TO SAIL NORTH OF CHANGI POINT INTO THE STRAITS OF JOHORE AND PROHIBITED ANY USE OF SEMBAWANG SHIPYARD BY SOVIET AND COMMUNIST MERCHANT SHIPS, IT DID NOT ABSOLUTELY PRECLUDE ALL MOVEMENT OF SOVIET MERCHANT SHIPPING IN STRAITS OF JOHORE OR IN SEMBAWANG AREA. WHEN PSA HAD TAKEN OVER CONTROL OF SHIP TRAFFIC IN THIS AREA FROM BRITISH FLEET COMMANDER IN 1972, GOS HAD GIVEN VERBAL COMMITMENT TO ANZUK POWERS THAT IT WOULD ALWAYS PROVIDE ADVANCE NOTICE WITH OPPORTUNITY FOR ANZUK REPS TO EXPRESS OBJECTIONS BEFORE ALLOWING SOVIET MERCHANT SHIPS TO PROCEED INTO THE STRAITS OF JOHORE, AND WOULD ENDEAVOR TO LIMIT THESE EXCEPTIONS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. 6. REVIEWING THE PARTICULARS OF THE 4 SOVIET/BLOC SHIPS WATTS SAID ADVANCE NOTICE HAD BEEN GIVE FOR 2 OUT OF THE 4. THESE 2 SHIPS WERE SOVIET FREIGHTERS WHICH HAD LOADED TIMBER AT THE PSA DOCK IN THE ANZUK STORES BASIN. GOS HAD EXPLAINED TO ANZUK REPS THAT CON- FERENCE RATES FOR SHIPPING TIMBER HAD GREATLY INCREASED AND THAT TIMBER MERCHANTS FOUND THAT ONLY SOVIET TRAMP FREIGHTERS OFFERED RATES WHICH MADE SHIPMENT ECONOMICALLY FEASIBLE. ANZUK REPS CONSIDERED MATTER AND DECIDED NOT TO MAKE ANY OBJECTIONS. OTHER TWO CASES INVOLVED AN EASTGERMAN AND A POLISH SHIP. WHEN UK HICOM INFORMALLY EXPRESSED CONCERN TO DIRECTOR OF SECRET SECRET PAGE 04 SINGAP 01385 01 OF 02 271608Z SECURITY AND INTELLIGENCE (MINDEF) S. R. NATHAN OVER FAILURE TO PROVIDE NOTICE, NATHAN EXPRESSED REGRETS BUT SAID THIS WAS RESULT OF ADMINISTRATIVE ERRORS AND CAUSED BY CONFUSION GENERATED BY REORGANIZATION IN PSA. HE INDICATED THAT APPROPRIATE DISCIPLINARY ACTION WAS BEING TAKEN AGAINST OFFICIALS INVOLVED. NATHAN REPORTEDLY SAID GOS BASIC POLICY ON ACCESS OF SOVIET AND OTHER COMMUNIST COUNTRY SHIPPING HAD NOT CHANGED. ANZUK REPS HAVE ACCEPTED NATHAN'S EXPLANATION AND DO NOT BELIEVE THERE HAS BEEN ANY EROSION IN GOS POLICY. HOWEVER, THERE IS SOME CONCERN THAT ECONOMIC CIRCUMSTANCES MAY CAUSE GOS TO GRANT MORE EXCEPTIONS. WATTS COMMENTED THAT IF THERE WERE ANY MORE ADMINISTRATIVE MISTAKES, UK HICOM WOULD PROBABLY EXPRESS OFFICIAL CONCERN TO GOS. SECRET NNN SECRET PAGE 01 SINGAP 01385 02 OF 02 272153Z 67 ACTION EA-14 INFO OCT-01 EUR-25 ISO-00 PM-07 NSC-07 SPC-03 SS-20 RSC-01 CIAE-00 DODE-00 INR-10 NSAE-00 PA-04 USIA-15 PRS-01 MC-02 ACDA-19 AEC-11 L-03 EB-11 DRC-01 /155 W --------------------- 112207 R 270725Z MAR 74 FM AMEMBASSY SINGAPORE TO SECSTATE WASHDC 0323 INFO AMEMDASSY LONDON AMEMBASSY CANBERRA AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON CINCPAC S E C R E T SECTION 2 OF 2 SINGAPORE 1385/2 7. SHORTLY AFTER WATTS PROVIDED EXPLANATION OF FOUR EXCEPTIONS DISCUSSED IN PARAS 5 AND 6 ABOVE, NAVATT ADVISED BY ANZUK SOURCES THAT PSA HAD ALLOWED ONE SOVIET AND ONE EAST GERMAN FREIGHTER TO DOCK AT PSA BERTHS AT ANZUK STORES BASIN DURING PAST WEEK. ACCOR- DING THESE SOURCES, GOS HAD NOT PROVIDED REQUIRED ADVANCE NOTIFICATION FOR EITHER VESSEL. WATTS SUBSEQUENTLY AD- VISED DCM THAT WHEN HICOM QUERIED GOS ON THESE LATEST "EXCEPTIONS," GOS MAINTAINED THAT ADVANCE VERBAL NOTIFICATION HAD BEEN GIVEN IN CASE OF SOVIET SHIP AND AGAIN REGRETTED THAT "ADMINISTRATIVE CONFUSION" HAD ACCOUNTED FOR FAILURE TO GIVE ADVANCE NOTIFICATION KBR EAST GERMAN SHIP. WATTS SAID THESE LATEST CASES HAD "FRAYED" HICOM PATIENCE, BUT THAT UK WOULD REVIEW MATTER WITH ANZUK REPS MEETING MARCH 28 BEFORE DE- CIDING ON FURTHER REPRESENTATIONS TO GOS. 8. COMMENT: ALTHOUGH WATTS AS WELL AS AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND HICOM SENIOR OFFICIALS WERE QUITE CON- FIDENT THAT THERE HAD BEEN NO CHANGE IN GOS POLICY, THESE TWO LATEST EXCEPTIONS OVER THE WEEK-END HAVE OBVIOUSLY RAISED SERIOUS QUESTIONS AS TO WHETHER THERE SECRET SECRET PAGE 02 SINGAP 01385 02 OF 02 272153Z IS SOME EROSION IN GOS POLICY. ALTHOUGH GOS FAILURE TO PRO- VIDE ADVANCE NOTICE IN SEVERAL OF THESE CASES MAY IN FACT BE DUE TO ADMINISTRATIVE CONFUSION, IT WOULD APPEAR FROM AVAILABLE EVIDENCE THAT THE GOS IS PREPARED TO ALLOW INCREASED NUMBER OF SOVIET MERCHANT SHIPS TO ENTER STRAITS OF JOHORE TO USE PSA BERTHS AT ANZUK STORES BASIN. DEPT SHOULD NOTE THAT THERE HAS BEEN NO EROSION IN GOS POLICY OF REFUSING TO ALLOW SOVIET USE OF SEMBAWANG SHIPYARD (SSY). WATTS SAID THAT PERMSEC MINDEF AND CHAIRMAN OF BOARD OF SSY, PANG TEE POW, HAD TOLD HIM RECENTLY THAT EVEN THOUGH SSY STANDS TO LOSE CONSIDERABLE MONEY BY KEEPING SOVIETS OUT, HE WILL NOT PERMIT SOVIET SHIPPING TO ENTER SSY UNLESS HE RECEIVES DIRECT ORDERS TO DO SO FROM MINISTER GOH. 9. GIVEN CONTINUED PRESSURE BY SOVIET SHIPPING AGENTS FOR GREATER ACCESS BY SOVIET MERCHANT SHIPS TO ALL COMMERCIAL FACILITIES IN SINGAPORE, IT IS QUESTIONABLE WHETHER ANZUK POWERS WILL BE ABLE TO REVERSE TREND TOWARD INCREASED USE OF PSA BERTHS IN ANZUK STORES BASIN BY SOVIET MERVDANT SHIPS. (THEY MAY HOWEVER SUCCEED IN OBTAINING MORE REGULAR ADVANCE NOTICE.) GIVEN IMPENDING DISSOLUTION OF ANZUK COMMAND AND EXISTENCE OF UNDERUTILIZED SHIPYARD AND DOCK CAPACITY, ANZUK POWERS WOULD APPEAR TO HAVE DECREASING LEVERAGE WITH GOS ON THIS ISSUE. BELIEVE US SHOULD AWAIT ANZUK REVIEW AND POSSIBLE DECISIONS ARISING FROM THIS REVIEW BEFORE DECIDING WHETHER US SHOULD EITHER JOIN OR MAKE SUPPLEMENTARY REPRESENTATIONS TO GOS ON THIS MATTER. CRONK SECRET NNN

--- Capture Date: 01 JAN 1994 Channel Indicators: n/a Current Classification: UNCLASSIFIED Concepts: NAVAL FORCES, SHIPS, TRANSPORTATION, MILITARY VISITS, PORT CLEARANCES, PORT FACILITIES Control Number: n/a Copy: SINGLE Draft Date: 27 MAR 1974 Decaption Date: 01 JAN 1960 Decaption Note: n/a Disposition Action: RELEASED Disposition Approved on Date: n/a Disposition Authority: GolinoFR Disposition Case Number: n/a Disposition Comment: 25 YEAR REVIEW Disposition Date: 28 MAY 2004 Disposition Event: n/a Disposition History: n/a Disposition Reason: n/a Disposition Remarks: n/a Document Number: 1974SINGAP01385 Document Source: CORE Document Unique ID: '00' Drafter: n/a Enclosure: n/a Executive Order: GS Errors: N/A Film Number: D740066-0659 From: SINGAPORE Handling Restrictions: n/a Image Path: n/a ISecure: '1' Legacy Key: link1974/newtext/t19740311/aaaaajuo.tel Line Count: '259' Locator: TEXT ON-LINE, ON MICROFILM Office: ACTION EA Original Classification: SECRET Original Handling Restrictions: n/a Original Previous Classification: n/a Original Previous Handling Restrictions: n/a Page Count: '5' Previous Channel Indicators: n/a Previous Classification: SECRET Previous Handling Restrictions: n/a Reference: A. STATE 057157 (NOTAL); B. SINGAPOR, E 1267 Review Action: RELEASED, APPROVED Review Authority: GolinoFR Review Comment: n/a Review Content Flags: n/a Review Date: 25 JUN 2002 Review Event: n/a Review Exemptions: n/a Review History: RELEASED <25 JUN 2002 by kelleyw0>; APPROVED <04 FEB 2003 by GolinoFR> Review Markings: ! 'n/a US Department of State EO Systematic Review 30 JUN 2005 ' Review Media Identifier: n/a Review Referrals: n/a Review Release Date: n/a Review Release Event: n/a Review Transfer Date: n/a Review Withdrawn Fields: n/a Secure: OPEN Status: NATIVE Subject: FACILITIES IN SINGAPORE FOR SOVIET SHIPPING TAGS: MARR, SN To: STATE Type: TE Markings: Declassified/Released US Department of State EO Systematic Review 30 JUN 2005