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Translation.
No. 41-A
Received in the Foreign Office March 16, 1948.
The Embassy of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics present their compliments to the Foreign Office and, on the instructions of the Government of the U.S.S.R., have the honour to communicate the following:
The Soviet steamers "Simferopol" and "Svirs troi" were, during their stay in Hong kong insured against war risk by the British War Risk Insurance Office from the 12th December 1941 to the 12th January 1942 for a sum of £55,000 sterling each.
After the occupation of Hong Kong by the Japanese armies the above vessels were seized on 18 th December 1941 by the Japanese military authorities. On the orders of the Command of the Japanese army the crews of the Soviet vessels were forcibly removed from the vessels. At the same time Japanese Naval flags were raised on the vessels in place of the Russian flags Boards bearing Japanese stencilled inscriptions analogous to those fastened by the Japanese military authorities to buildings, warehouses, banks and other industrial objects seized by them, were attached to the bridges of the vessels.
The repeated protests of the Embassy of the U.S.3.R. in Tokio to the Japanese Government against the seizure of the vessels, and demands for the release of the said vessels, did not lead to positive results.
In connexion with the seizure of the said ships the British war Risk Insurance Office was informed that the owners of the vessels were abandoning the insured vessels "Simferopol" and "Svirs troi" in favour of the insurers and requested that the insurance compensation should be paid out to them. However, the British war Risk Insurance Office demanded additional proof of the seizure of the said ve sels.
In/...