Office of the Historian

740.00119 Control (Austria)/1–445: Telegram

The Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant) to the Secretary of State

London, January 4, 1945—5 p.m.
[Received 6:35 p.m.]

107. For the Secretary and for Assistant Secretary Dunn.11 This morning Mr. Eden12 expressed to me his grave anxiety over our continued delay in stating our views on the question of zones of occupation in Austria. He fears very strongly the long run effects of further delay in getting down to negotiations on Austria. He pointed out particularly the serious situation which will develop if the Russians secure effective control of Austria without our having made a prior agreement with them to share equally in control. In that case the influence of America and Britain may be excluded and their interests neglected in Austria as completely as in Bulgaria13 and Rumania,14 and this in spite of the Three Power Declaration on Austria signed in Moscow.15

The Soviet proposal for an American zone was foreshadowed in my 10348 of November 24, 7 p.m.16 A full summary was transmitted in my 1041 of November 27, 3 p.m.17 Some of the far reaching implications involved were set forth in my 10864 of December 8, 6 p.m.18 Your 10317 of December 9, midnight19 reported the favorable decision in principle by the President and the Department and stated that final instructions awaited action by the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Since then 26 days of valuable time have been lost. Negotiations for American and British participation in control of Austria prior to German surrender, which the Department raised in Moscow in October (Department’s 2453 to Moscow, October 17, 8 p.m.20), are in abeyance pending receipt of basic instructions concerning an American zone. I cannot urge too strongly the need for immediate action, since major interests affecting our position and our relations with our Allies are involved.

Winant
  1. Assistant Secretary of State, James C. Dunn.↩
  2. Anthony Eden, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.↩
  3. For documentation regarding the Allied armistice with Bulgaria on October 28, 1944. see Foreign Relations, 1944, vol. iii, pp. 300 ff.↩
  4. For documentation regarding the Allied armistice with Rumania on September 12, 1944, see ibid., vol. iv. pp. 133 ff.↩
  5. November 1, 1943; for text, see ibid., 1943, vol. i. p. 761.↩
  6. Ibid.. 1944, vol. i, p. 470.↩
  7. Ibid., p. 471.↩
  8. Ibid., p. 474.↩
  9. Ibid., p. 478.↩
  10. Ibid., p. 466.↩