Russia Retains British Warships

Chronicle (Levin), 21 January 1949, Page 5

Russia Retains British Warships

Received Thursdav, 7 p.m. LONDON, -Jan. 20; Although the Admiralty has beeji advised by the Russians that the 29,0001 on l»at l leship Royal Sovereign whicb has Ix'eii on loan to the Russian Nav_v since tlig early years of the war, would >:tiJ i'roin Murmansk for Rosvth on .lanuary 15, the sailing has not been i-onlirmed and the Admiralty stated last night that it had no news of the -hip's whereabouts. It had been agreed by ihe Hussians thgt the Royal Sovereig.n, together with three British destroyers and three British submarines uhieh also had been ient to the Russians, would lie despatehed as soon as Italian warships wliich had been apportioned to Russia untfer the RussoItalian peace treatv, had been handed over. It has now been ascertained; huwever, that although tlie iirst of these ships, the 23,000-ton battleship (riulio Cosare, was to have sailed from Augusla, iSicily, for an Albajiian pori last Bsitunlay, the sliip is still -in lialian walers. It is therefore considered possible that the Russians have dclayed ihe return of the Roval So\ ereign. li was originallv agreed that the (riulio (Vsare, together with the ltaJian (•Miiser Duca d'Aosta, the training ship (Ti-tol'oio and three submarines, should be delivered to the Russians at Odessa b v lialian crews but wlien Turkey icl'iiscd to ailow Italian crews to pass tii rough the Dardanelles, it was agreed timi the ships should be delivered to ihe Russians at fhe Albanian port of Yaiona and sailed from there to Odessa by Russian crews. Ai together Britain lent 13 warships to ihe Red Fleet during the war. One of these, the destroyer Churchill, was sunk in .1945 and another destroyer was broken up for spare parts. The remaining eleven, of which the Royal So\ ereign and her six attendant vessel.s are the vanguard, are to be re turued to the Royal Navy during tlie next six months. Full ' arrangemeuts have alreadv been made for receiving the vossels at Rosvth and representalives of tlie Russian Embassy had agreed to take part in a handing over ceremony.