JUDGMENT FOR £13,000,00

Taranaki Daily News, 5 September 1930, Page 9

JUDGMENT FOR £13,000,00

SOVIET RIDICULES TRIBUNAL. BREACH OF LENA CONCESSION. By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright. London, Sept. 3. The Soviet Embassy states that the Soviet Government will not recognise the validity of the Lena tribunal, and accordingly any award will not be enforceable. Soviet officials ridicule the arbitration as a puerile farce ,but still protest that they are willing to submit the matter to genuine arbitration.' The Arbitration Court, which has been considering the dispute between the Soviet Government and the Lena Goldfields, Limited, an English company, gave judgment that the company was prevented by the Russian Goveihment from carrying out its agreement. Ihc agreement was now ended and the Soviet Government ivas ordered to pay £13,000,000. , , , The company has long had large interests in Russia and employed about 15,000 men. It complained of various breaches of agreement, including tile failure of the Soviet Government to transfer to it the whole of the properties referred to in the concession, the prevention ffdm selling Lena products in Russian market, the failure to secure for the company the 'necessary transport facilities, the Withholding of permission for the transfer of the company’s money from Russia to other crnmtrics, and the failure to give protection io the company’s property from larceny, robbery and arson.