The World - News from Feb. 12, 1989

The United States has “tentatively approved” de-flagging six Kuwaiti oil tankers, but the deal depends on the ships’ remaining available to the United States in a national emergency, officials said. The six ships are among 11 Kuwaiti tankers re-registered in July, 1987, entitling them to Navy protection in the Persian Gulf. The Pentagon announced Jan. 11 that it was preparing to de-flag six of the tankers, and the U.S. Maritime Administration gave its “tentative approval” of the move Feb. 7. But U.S. law stipulates the “emergency availability” as a condition for the agency to approve the sale or re-registry of American-owned and -flagged commercial ships abroad, and officials said it is unclear how Kuwait views that legal requirement.