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Commander Ralph W. Eustis (inset) reliquishes command of the USCGC Vigilant after being relieved for mishandling the defection of Lithuanian fisherman Simas Kudirka in 1970. "I have regretted the violation of his [Eustis'] rights ever since," the author laments.
On 23 November 1970, during a bilateral negotiations between the United States and the Soviet Union regarding fishing rights, he jumped from his ship, the trawler Sovetskaya Litva ('Soviet Lithuania'), onto the American coast guard ship, the USCGC Vigilant (WMEC-617).
Dec 1, 2005 · Fate of Simas Kudirka. Simas Kudirka is sent first to the Potma prison in the province of Moldova, 225 miles southeast of Moscow. There he engages in a series of protests, hunger strikes, work stoppages, and attempts to alert the West to conditions in Soviet prisons.
The collection contains transcriptions, court proceedings, correspondence, and secondary source materials concerning Simas Kudirka's attempted defection to the United States in 1970. The materials were collected by the donor for an article that appeared in Martha's Vineyard Magazine in 2005.
- RU 472
- 1971-2005, undated
- Dunlop, Tom
Oct 25, 2020 · But that same day, a Lithuanian-born sailor, Simas Kudirka, decided that he would make a daring attempt to defect from the Soviet Union to the United States. He would quite literally jump ship, clearing the three metre gap between the Litva and the Vigilant in order to escape.
Jan 13, 2022 · A radio operator on a Soviet fish-processing vessel, Kudirka jumped across icy waters off Martha’s Vineyard to the deck of an American Coast Guard ship on close-approach, and into the international spotlight.. Less than 12 hours later, the Americans allowed six Soviet sailors onboard to take Kudirka, wrapped in ropes and a blanket.
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The United States has for many years had a policy of granting political asylum to deserving refugees and defectors. On 23 November 1970, however, a Lithuanian seaman, Simas Ionovich Kudirka, attempted to defect to the United States via the Coast Guard cutter "Vigilant," and his request for asylum was denied.
