863.20/8–149
Paper Prepared by the Foreign Assistance Correlation Committee1
Austria and the Military Assistance Program
At the recent Paris conference of the Council of Foreign Ministers, substantial agreement was reached in principle on the basic issues of [Page 1248] the Austrian treaty. The actual negotiation of the treaty was referred to the Deputies now meeting in London with the direction that the completed draft be submitted to the respective governments by September 1. It is possible that the treaty will be completed and signed in the near future. The rapid development in the Austrian treaty negotiations was made possible only by agreement by the Ministers after the Paris conference began that the subject of the treaty would be on the conference agenda.
The agreed portion of the treaty gives Austria the right to organize and equip an army of 53,000 men, including gendarmerie. This army is not in existence at this time. The gendarmerie does not possess sufficient equipment or arms to fulfill its police duties in Austria. The maintenance of internal security in Austria is at present carried out by the occupation forces of the Four Powers. They will continue to fulfill this duty until the treaty comes into force and for a 90-day period thereafter. At the conclusion of 90 days after the treaty comes into force, the occupation forces of the Four Powers will be simultaneously withdrawn.
Complete agreement exists between the Department of State and the National Military Establishment that a basic factor involved in concluding the Austrian treaty is the maintenance of internal security. This problem is particularly acute in view of the fact that the 90-day period provided for the maintenance of Four Power occupation forces after the conclusion of the treaty will not provide sufficient time for the Austrian Government to organize an army or to procure the necessary equipment.
Both the Austrian Government and people are staunch supporters of the cause of the Western states. The Communist vote in the last election was approximately 5% of the total vote. It is not likely in the forthcoming elections to be held on October 92 that the Communists will increase their strength. Both parties in the present government coalition have cooperated since the beginning of military occupation and have effectively opposed Communist infiltration into the government and have, with the assistance of the Western powers, opposed unwarranted demands by the Soviet authorities.
In the opinion of the Department of State and the National Military Establishment, which is shared by the National Security Council and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the urgent requirement for keeping Austria in the Western orbit after the conclusion of the treaty is to provide the equipment necessary for the government to oppose successfully any violent action which may be contemplated or attempted [Page 1249] by the Communist minority or by Soviet agents after the withdrawal of the occupation forces. The crucial time involved will be from the withdrawal of the occupation forces until such time that the Austrian Government can by its own means equip any army to the extent prescribed by the treaty. The Department of State and the National Military Establishment consider that this question of internal security is of such importance that the Western occupation forces should remain in Austria until there is some assurance that the Austrian security forces can function effectively.
Such a decision, however, would involve a delay in the ratification and implementation of the Austrian treaty and would seriously prejudice our political interests in Austria. It would also permit the Soviet authorities to maintain their troops in Austria as well. It is necessary, therefore, that sufficient funds be provided in order that the basic equipment which will be required may be procured and made available to the Austrian Government in such time as would not delay our withdrawal under the terms of the treaty.
The National Military Establishment has recommended that an Austrian army of approximately two divisions with appropriate equipment would be sufficient to fulfill the duty of maintaining internal security. It is estimated that the equipment to be made available for this army would cost approximately $88,000,000.
The Department of State is considering various means whereby Four Power approval may be obtained to permit Austria to begin organizing and equipping its armed forces prior to the coming into force of the treaty and the 90-day period therein prescribed. The seeking of such approval would not be feasible until the Deputies of the Ministers have concluded their negotiations and a final draft treaty has been submitted for approval. Until such time that a diplomatic approach is made to the Soviet Union on this question, it would not be desirable for the Austrian program to be debated publicly in connection with the Military Assistance Program as a whole.
- The Foreign Assistance Correlation Committee, composed of representatives from the Department of State, the National Military Establishment and the Economic Cooperation Administration, had come into existence at the end of 1948 as the result of an agreement among the three participants. For documentation relating to its activity and genesis, see vol. i. The source text bears the series indicator MAP D–G/42 Draft No. 1 and the handwritten interpolation “Approved by FACC on August 1, 1949.”↩
- For documentation relating to the Austrian National Elections on October 9, see pp. 1206 ff.↩