Foreign Relations of the United States: Diplomatic Papers, 1945, European Advisory Commission, Austria, Germany, Volume III

Department of the Army Files

The United States Deputy Military Governor for Germany (Clay) to the War Department

Berlin, 23 October 1945.
[Received 24 October.]

CC 17920. Reference is our cable CC 17817.⁷¹ Following is text of ad interim quadripartite restitution policy agreed upon in RD and R⁷² Directorate with a French reservation:

Interim restitution deliveries:

1. Many applications have been received for the return of equipment taken by the Germans from liberated territories. In many cases the return of the equipment is urgently needed for the rehabilitation of essential industry in the liberated territory.

2. Pending settlement of the outstanding problems of restitution it is proposed that interim measures for the return of certain property be put into force forthwith to assist the United Nations concerned with the rehabilitation of their industrial and economic life. These measures are of a purely temporary character and it is important that the whole question of restitution of looted property be settled as a matter of great urgency.

3. It is proposed that the interim measures be first applied to identifiable plant, equipment (other than shipping and inland transport units) and valuables (other than gold, silver, currency, and works of art) in respect of which there is satisfactory evidence that the property was located in the territory of the Ally concerned and was the subject of an act of dispossession by the enemy. Only property falling within this class and which

(a) is easily identifiable

(b) is urgently needed by the claimant country and

(c) can be moved without wasteful use of transport would be dealt with in this interim program. The excluded categories (including in particular works of art which are already the subject of restitution in certain zones) will be the subject of separate papers which will be submitted at a very early date.

4. Each Zone Commander in Chief should receive from the claimant country a list containing detailed information for example serial numbers and specifications or other identification marks where appropriate of the property which was stolen and removed by the Germans and which according to that country is now located in that particular zone. According to the information which the occupying authorities have in their possession or according to the declarations received from the Germans each Commander in Chief should also prepare his own lists. The restitution of property which has already been identified need not be deferred until these lists have been prepared.

5. The Zone Commander in Chief will check the lists received and will immediately permit visiting missions from Russia France Belgium Luxembourg the Netherlands Denmark Norway Czechoslovakia Yugoslavia Poland and Greece to visit their zone for the purpose of inspecting and identifying property of a nature covered by this proposal. These missions which on grounds of practicability must be limited in number and in size are to be organized by the respective governments and arranged direct with the Commander in Chief in each zone.

6. Requests for the visits of missions will be made through liaison officers to be established by claimant countries at the HQ of each Commander in Chief. These liaison officers will be responsible for making all necessary arrangements with the staff of the Commander in Chief including feeding, billeting and transportation etc of the missions during their stay in Germany and for ensuring that any rules issued by the Commander in Chief are observed.

7. The missions will visit Germany as representatives of the claimant governments and not as representatives of firms or any individuals of such countries.

8. If the Commander in Chief is satisfied that the property claimed falls within paragraph 3 and that identification has been established he will authorize its immediate return to the claimant country unless the property must be retained as a matter of military necessity. Each Commander in Chief will submit to the Reparations Deliveries and Restitution Directorate of the Control Council monthly reports of the property identified and of the restitutions completed in his zone during the previous month.

9. The claimant country through its liaison officers will make the necessary arrangements for packing, loading and transporting the property to be removed through the Military Government authorities. Where practical difficulties exist the Commander in Chief may assist with transport and packing. Costs of transportation within Germany and of labor and materials necessary for packing will be borne by Germany. The question of the responsibility for loss or damage in packing and transportation should be referred to the Finance Directorate.

10. The representative of the country concerned will at the time of transfer give an official receipt for the property on behalf of his government. This receipt will state

a. That in the event of the property coming within the ambit of any general restitution procedure that may later be established by the Allied powers his government will agree to the transfer being submitted for confirmation by a restitution commission or other international body which may be established to deal with these matters and will abide by its decision.

b. That in the event of such confirmation the transfer will be subject to all the conditions laid down for restitution deliveries generally and

c. That in the event of property not coming within the ambit of such restitution procedure the transfer shall be dealt with in accordance with such procedure as may be established for other deliveries.

New subject: The French reservation:

The French Delegation while recognizing that the above scheme is a valuable step towards the restitutions that the nations which have been plundered ardently desire to see carried out speedily, nevertheless considers that is [it] must make the following reservations:

1. The categories provided for in article 3 are far too limited and exclude or do not explicitly include property the return of which is most urgently necessary to the economic life of the plundered countries particularly means of transport animals and furniture.

The French delegate has however noted that the Directorate has decided to consider at its next meeting the possibility of increasing these categories of property.

2. The procedure laid down for identification and restitution of property would only allow of the recovery of a very limited number of plundered articles if it required as a first condition an exact knowledge of the place at which these articles are.

Appreciable results will only be arrived at if, while limiting the number of experts of the different nations, more extensive and more thorough inquiries are set on foot new subject as stated in our cable CC 17817. This proposal was sent by the Directorate to the Coordinating Committee and returned by them at Russian request for definition of restitution and clarification of categories referred to in paragraph 3. Discussion now proceeding on definition of restitution and clarification of paragraph 3.

Clay

71. Not printed; it stated that the text of the directive herein contained would be cabled separately. (Copy obtained from Department of the Army files.)
72. Reparation, Deliveries, and Restitution.