311.5754 Janko/5
The British Ambassador (Halifax) to the Secretary of State
Sir: I have the honour to inform you that the attention of His Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom has been drawn to a suit entitled “Pankos Operating Company S.A., New York, Libelant, against Motortank “Vessel “Janko” (otherwise called “Norsktank”), her engines, boilers, etc., and against O. Nygaard or John Doe, Respondents,” at present pending in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, as a result of which suit the motortank vessel Norsktank, flying the Norwegian flag and in the possession of the Kingdom of Norway, was on January 13th, 1944, seized in a possessory libel in rem.
- 2.
- The vessel concerned has been for two years in the possession of the Kingdom of Norway and is manned by Norwegian Master and crew employed by the Kingdom of Norway. His Majesty’s Government understand that the vessel was delivered to the Kingdom of Norway by the Prize Commissioner of the Government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands by an order of the Prize Court in Curaçao, Netherlands West Indies. The vessel was seized in Prize on October 7th, 1941, while lying in the Port of Aruba, Netherlands West Indies, within Netherlands territorial waters and the proceedings for Condemnation and Prize were thereafter duly instituted before a competent prize court in accordance with the laws of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
- 3.
- It is also understood that the Norwegian Ambassador has made representations to the Department, in accordance with the procedure established by the decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States in the cases of ex parte Muir, 254 U.S. 522 and ex parte Republic of Peru, 318 U.S. 578, and other decisions of that court, with a view to having a plea of sovereign immunity recognised by the Court in the case under reference and the suit vacated and quashed.
- 4.
- The concern of His Majesty’s Government in this case arises out of the fact that this vessel, while in the possession of the Kingdom of Norway, is now engaged under time charter to carry cargoes for His Majesty’s Government under the direction of His Majesty’s Minister of War Transport. The said vessel is a very large tanker of 14,460 deadweight tons. She has recently been undergoing repairs in New York and is now ready to sail. Her large size and capacity for carrying oil makes her immediate sailing of great moment in connection with the prosecution of the war effort of the United Nations. Any delay in her sailing would, in the opinion of His Majesty’s Government, be prejudicial to the successful prosecution of the war.
- 5.
- In these circumstances, His Majesty’s Government express the earnest hope that the United States Government will consider that the claim of immunity by the Kingdom of Norway is properly made and should be allowed, and will take action, as a matter of urgency, in the manner requested by the Norwegian Ambassador.
I have the honour [etc.]