File No. 861.0145.

The Russian Embassy to the Department of State .

[Memorandum.]

The British Government contend that a law recently promulgated in Russia and subjecting to the Russian customs regulations the waters of the sea within 12 nautical miles from the Russian shores, is contrary to the principles of international law.

Sections 2760, 2867 and 3067 of the Revised Statutes of the United States provide for a zone of 4 leagues (equal to 12 miles) within which the authority of the United States customs officers is exercised.

In view of the above-stated contention of the British Government, the Imperian Russian Foreign Office is anxious to learn whether the British Government have ever protested against the enactment of the American law, either when it was originally passed or at a later date, and what was the nature of the reply offered by the United States to such a protest.