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

740.00119 Control (Austria) /9–2245: Telegram

The Chargé in the Soviet Union (Kennan) to the Acting Secretary of State

Moscow, September 22, 1945—midnight.
[Received September 22—9:20 p.m.]

3349. ReDept’s telegram 1994, September 11.¹¹ Embassy has received note from Vyshinski dated September 22 reading as follows:

“Acknowledging receipt of your letter of September 14 re oil property in Austria, I hereby inform you that I must regard as unfounded your statement to effect that Soviet representatives in Austria allegedly intend to make efforts ‘to press Austrian Govt to make decisions with respect to such oil property before meeting of ACC’.

Negotiations which have been proceeding for some time in Vienna between representatives of Soviet oil organizations and Austrian plenipotentiaries by their mutual agreement are concerned exclusively with enterprises located in Soviet zone of occupation of Austria. Shares of these enterprises belonged to Germany and by virtue of decision of Berlin Conference they are included as part of German reparations account in favor of Soviet Union. It is the purpose of these negotiations to define juridically the right of Soviet Union to these shares by means of an appropriate agreement with Austrian authorities.

Moreover, conclusion of Soviet-Austrian agreement re joint exploitation of oil enterprises in eastern Austria is intended also to secure their quickest restoration in interests of supplying oil products for Austrian economic consumption.

Above mentioned agreement does not impair American rights and interests and is not in contradiction with Moscow Declaration re Austria and with Article V of agreement on control mechanism in Austria”.¹²

Kennan

11. See footnote 78, p. 585.
12. Telegram 277, October 2, from the Political Adviser in Vienna, informed the Department that a substantially similar reply had been received on September 28 by General Clark from Marshal Koniev. General Clark in a counter-reply to Marshal Koniev on October 2, expressed his satisfaction that reports that Soviet authorities were attempting to gain control of the Austrian oil industry were baseless, but he noted that negotiations had been taking place and he repeated the main points of his letter of September 10 to Marshal Koniev. (863.6363/10–245)