RUSSIAN TRADE OFFICE Talks For Sydney Office Fail

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31128, 3 August 1966, Page 18

RUSSIAN TRADE OFFICE Talks For Sydney Office Fail

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright)

CANBERRA, August 2.

Negotiations between the Australian Government and the Soviet Embassy in Canberra over the opening of a Russian trade office in Sydney have broken down.

The commercial counsellor at the Soviet Embassy, Mr S. E. Treschenkov, said today there was a dispute over the number of Russians to work in the office and restrictions

on their movements. The Australian External Affairs Department had told the Embassy the maximum

number of employees allowed would be eight. “We say it is impossible to operate this new office with only eight people,” Mr Treschenkov said. Australia had also said it would apply the same travel restrictions on the office employees as it did not Russian diplomats in Canberra. The diplomats are restricted to a 45-mile radius of the national capital. This restriction has been Imposed because Australian diplomats in Moscow cannot travel more than 46 kilometres without official approval.

The Russians have told the External Affairs -Department

• that their trade officers in Syd- . ney would need unrestricted ' travel between Sydney and ; Canberra and greater freedom : of movement to other centres. But the department had re-

plied that the restrictions would not be lifted until Australian diplomats in Moscow were given free movement.

However, Mr Treschenkov said he would be continuing the negotiations and he hoped to be “open for business within a few months.”