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from the U.S. point of view to seek arrangements with the Soviets 
to protect the traditional U.S. fisheries in the area. 
In November 1967, the United States negotiated a l-year agreement 
with the Soviet Union which provided for the establishment of a 
3,000-square-mile ‘‘no-fishing zone” straddling the 50-100 fathom 
curve 50 miles offshore extending for about 200 miles from off Vir- 
ginia to Long Island. The “‘no-fishing zone” (nicknamed the “banana 
zone” due to its configuration) was designed to protect hake, scup 
and flounders, species of importance to U.S. fishermen, which ag- 
gregated in this area during the winter prior to migrating inshore 
to spawn in the spring. In return, the Soviets were permitted to fish 
as well as to conduct loading and transfer operations in the U.S. 
9-mile fisheries zone in several small localities. 
The agreement subsequently has been modified and expanded in 
later negotiations to provide protection to additional species of interest 
to U.S. fishermen, such as menhaden, black sea bass and sea herring. 
In return, the Soviets were permitted to make port calls. The current 
agreement, signed at Washington, February 26, 1975, allows the entry 
of not more than four Soviet fishing, fishery research, and fishery 
support vessels each month into each of the ports of Baltimore, 
Philadelphia, New York, and Boston. This agreement extends to 
February 29, 1976, or until such time that a new agreement is 
negotiated, whichever comes earlier. 
U.S.-U.S.S.R. CLAIMS BOARD 
Since the appearance of foreign fishing vessels off the U.S. coast, 
there have been numerous reported cases of gear conflicts involving 
foreign mobile (trawl) gear and U.S. fixed gear (longline gear em- 
ployed in the Pacific halibut fishery, pots used in the Pacific crab 
and blackcod fisheries, and pots used in the Atlantic coast lobster 
fisheries). As described earlier, the occurrence of serious gear conflicts 
between U.S. and Soviet fishermen immediately adjacent to Kodiak 
Island resulted in an agreement being concluded in 1964 to minimize 
these conflicts. 
More recently, the expansion of the U.S. offshore lobster fisheries, 
beginning in the 1970’s, and the development of a new pot fishery 
for blackcod on the Pacific coast, also in the 1970’s, have resulted 
in an increase in conflicts between foreign mobile gear and U.S. 
fixed gear. Recent agreements negotiated with the Soviet Union and 
other foreign countries include provisions establishing areas where 
foreign fishing vessels are not permitted to trawl for certain periods 
(Pacific Coast) and for the daily dissemination of advisories to the 
foreign fleets regarding areas of concentration of U.S. pot gear 
(Atlantic lobster fishery) so that foreign vessels can take precautionary 
measures to avoid conflicts when fishing in the general area. 
Despite these arrangement, conflicts still occur. A most serious in- 
cident occurred in January 1975, when Soviet vessels trawled through 
an area of heavy concentration of U.S. lobster gear, causing severe 
losses to U.S. vessels from Massachusetts and Rhode Island. 
Losses suffered by individual U.S. vessels involve not only loss of 
gear but also loss of valuable fishing time and potential catch. Often- 
times, U.S. fishermen are unable to replace their gear immediately 
