Letter to Richard Cooke, Head, PRT, Foreign
and Commonwealth Office from the Clerk of the Committee
As you know, members of the FAC visited Madrid
and Gibraltar last week to review progress following the Cordoba
Agreement between the United Kingdom, Spain and Gibraltar.
While the groups were in the region, a vessel—the
Ocean Alert—was intercepted by the Spanish authorities as
it left Gibraltar's territorial waters. This incident was discussed
by both groups, who not surprisingly received different explanations
from the authorities in Madrid and in Gibraltar.
The group in Madrid were left in no doubt about
the strong concern of the Spanish government about the activities
of the Ocean Alert in waters which Spain lays claim to, and in
relation to the alleged raising of artefacts from the wrecks of
Spanish ships. Members received strong protests about the berthing
of the Ocean Alert in Gibraltar, apparently in a Royal Navy area
of the dockyards, and about the removal by air of marine artefacts.
The Spanish claim to the waters between the 3-mile and 12-mile
limits off Gibraltar was made clear.
The group in Gibraltar were shown charts which
demonstrated that the waters in which the Ocean Alert was intercepted
are regarded by the Government of Gibraltar and by HMG as international
waters. They were told that neither GoG nor HMG had any responsibility
for Ocean Alert or its sister vessel.
The Committee wishes to receive a memorandum
on the Ocean Alert incident, including a full explanation of the
application of international law to the waters off Gibraltar;
responsibility of the British and/or Gibraltar authorities for
the activities of Ocean Alert while it was operating from Gibraltar
and for the removal of artefacts recovered from the seabed apparently
to the United States by air from Gibraltar; and confirmation of
whether the Odyssey vessels had the use of a RN berth or other
RN facilities in Gibraltar. The Committee hopes to receive this
memorandum not later than Monday 10 September.
20 July 2007
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