865.30/40: Telegram
The Ambassador in Spain (Hayes) to the Secretary of State
[Received September 22—4:32 p.m.]
2695. Your 1957, September 16, 5 p.m. I reminded Jordana yesterday that Italian warships in Balearics had put in there to tend wounded and had requested fuel to enable them to proceed to an Allied port in fulfillment of one of the provisions of the armistice agreed to with our military authorities. I understood that no fuel was available.
I said that if ships were non-belligerent they clearly should not be interned but should be allowed to proceed whenever they can. If they are belligerent they are entitled to receive fuel under article 19 of the 13 Hague Convention. This clearly presupposes existence of a fuel supply and the framers of the article did not have in mind a case of inability at a neutral port to supply fuel. It was therefore inequitable to invoke the 24- or 48-hour provision in cases of vessels which could not obtain fuel through no fault of their own.
I said our Petroleum Attaché75 would cooperate with Spanish authorities if desired in seeing that fuel is provided so that within the [Page 715] 24 to 48 hours thereafter ships might depart. In the meantime I hoped no decision to intern the ships would be made.
Jordana said the situation was complicated and delicate and he was not sure he had the full story yet. According to his information the ships were under a commander who is stridently Fascist. The fact that two had scuttled themselves suggested to him they were not trying to get to Allied territory but to get somewhere else. He suggested merely as a possibility that it might be to our advantage to have the vessels interned. He was not sure of course and was investigating further. The first problem was to determine whether they were belligerent or nonbelligerent. If the latter, he would then have to determine the full meaning of the fuel clause in article 19 of the 13 Hague Convention. Meanwhile he will hold the matter open.
Naval Attaché informs me that Spanish naval authorities allege they would be glad to get rid of the ships as their presence in Balearics where only small Spanish forces are maintained is an embarrassment.
I shall pursue the subject and am hopeful that the Italian Ambassador,76 once he has received written instructions from his Government, will cooperate with me in the matter.
Repeated to Algiers.