Page:NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE SURVEY 18; CZECHOSLOVAKIA; TRANSPORTATION AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110013-9.pdf/25

 APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110013-9

Two 8-inch pipelines and one 11-inch pipeline carry refined products eastward from the Zaluzi refinery 35 miles to an underground storage facility in Hnevice, near Roudnice nad Labem. A pipeline from the Hnevice storage facility serves the Prague area. An 8-inch pipeline from Hnevice to Brno has been reported under construction, and a line of unknown diameter has been built from Bratislava to the Prague area. Although reported as separate construction projects, the latter two lines may have a common section between Brno and Prague and together constitute a single line. The total length of the refined product pipelines is about 500 miles.

The most significant natural gas pipeline system consists of two trunklines, the Bratstvo (Brotherhood) I and II, which bring gas from the U.S.S.R. The 28-inch Bratstvo I extends from the U.S.S.R. border to Bratislava. The Bratstvo II line has recently been completed. The first segment, with a 48-inch diameter, parallels the Bratstvo I to Zlate Moravce and then continues to Jablonica. At Jablonica the pipeline divides into two 36-inch lines. One branch goes to Austria via Vysoka pri Morave and will eventually be extended to Italy; the other branch goes to Zlonice. From Zlonice a 36-inch branch runs to West Germany via Rozvadov; another 36-inch branch extends from Zlonice to East Germany via Litvinov. Figure 10 gives details on selected pipelines.

G. Merchant marine (C)

The small merchant fleet of landlocked Czechoslovakia uses maritime port facilities in Poland, East Germany, West Germany, Yugoslavia, and Romania. The merchant marine was established in 1952 because of political pressures and a desire to reduce hard-currency expenditures through utilization of Czechoslovak skips for seaborne trade.

As of 31 August 1973 the merchant fleet consisted of 12 (all cargo types) ships over 1,000 gross register tons (g.r.t.)—totaling 107,223 g.r.t. and 156,912 dead-weight tons (d.w.t.). Although the number of ships remained the same, the fleet realized a 10% g.r.t. and 13% d.w.t. increase since 21 January 1971. The 1973 inventory includes the dry-cargo river-seagoing ship Lednice, which has been blocked in the Suez Canal since June 1967. More than 81% (127,428 d.w.t.) of the fleet's deadweight tonnage is represented by five ships, each of which is over 13,000 d.w.t.; the seven other ships are in the 1,200-6,000 d.w.t. range. The fleet is relatively new, no unit being over 10 years old. All ships are diesel powered, and nine have speeds which range from 15 to 18 knots; the others have speeds of 12 to 13 knots. All 12 ships were built in foreign shipyards: 6 in Poland, 2 in Hungary, and 1 each in Bulgaria, East Germany, Japan, and the United Kingdom. There are no known plans for expansion of the fleet; details on the fleet are given in Figure 11.

The government-owned merchant fleet is controlled administratively by three ministries: the Ministry of Transportation, which is responsible for the operation of the Czechoslovak Danube Navigation Co. (CSPD), in Bratislava, and also the technical operation and logistic support of the Czechoslovak Ocean Shipping Co. (COSCO), in Prague; the Ministry of Foreign Trade, which administers COSCO in matters other than those assigned the Ministry of Transportation; and the Ministry of Interior, which directs political and personnel matters related to inland-waterway and maritime shipping.

In addition to its membership in the Council of Mutual Economic Assistance (CEMA) with main offices in Moscow, and the International Shipowners Association (INSA) with its secretariat in Gdynia; Czechoslovakia is a member of the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization (IMCO), a specialized agency of the United Nations in London. The Czechoslovaks also hold a broker membership in the Baltic and International Maritime Conference (BIMCO), whose headquarters is in Copenhagen.

Operational control of the merchant fleet is exercised by two shipping companies: COSCO, which operates 10 (154,364 d.w.t.) of the fleet's vessels; and CSPD, which controls the remaining two vessels (2,548 d.w.t.), both river-seagoing craft.

The fleet is used primarily in tramp operations, being employed in international shipping to Cuba, Canada, the United States, South America, northern Europe, Africa, and the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean areas.

Czechoslovakia is a party to two joint-service shipping lines. One, the Cuban-Baltic Shipping Co. (CUBALCO), was established jointly by Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Poland, and Cuba in November 1962. The second line, the Czechofracht-Arab-Black Sea Joint Service Line, was established around March of 1967; additional details on its organization and operations are not available.

In 1972, Czechoslovak ships carried less than 10% of the 4.5 million tons total foreign seaborne trade. Of this total, almost 50% was shipped through Poland—Gdynia, Gdansk and Stettin; 25% through Hamburg, West Germany; the remainder through Rostock, East Germany; Constanta, Romania; and Rijeka, Yugoslavia. An estimated 10% of this trade moved via inland waterways to the maritime ports for further shipment. Having insufficient tonnage under its own

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APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110013-9