The Secretary of State transmits herewith, for the information of the
Embassy, a press statement issued on June 23, 1930, as well
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as the Agreement between the
Governments of the German Reich and the United States of America,
relative to the complete and final discbarge of the obligations of
Germany to the United States in respect of the awards of the Mixed
Claims Commission, United States and Germany, and the costs of the
United States Army of Occupation.31
[Enclosure]
Statement Issued to the Press by the Secretary
of the Treasury (Mellon) on June 23, 1930
The Secretary of the Treasury announced the signing to-day of the
Agreement authorized by act of Congress approved June 5, 1930,
providing for the complete and final discharge of the obligations of
Germany to the United States in respect of the awards of the Mixed
Claims Commission, United States and Germany, and the costs of the
United States army of occupation.
In brief, the agreement provides that Germany agrees to pay
40,800,000 reichmarks ($9,700,000) for the period September 1, 1929
to March 31, 1930, and the sum of 40,800,000 reichmarks per annum
from April 1, 1930 to March 31, 1981, in satisfaction of mixed
claims, and for the period from September 1, 1929 to March 31, 1966,
an average annuity of 25,300,000 reichmarks ($6,000,000) in full
liquidation of our army costs. As evidence of this indebtedness
Germany is to issue to the United States, at par, bonds maturing
semiannually. Under the agreement the United States will receive on
account of army costs over a period of 37 years approximately
$250,000,000 and on account of mixed claims awards over a period of
52 years, approximately $505,000,000. The payments to be received on
account of army costs include interest at the rate of about 3⅝ per
cent per annum on all payments deferred over a period longer than
would have been necessary to liquidate the army costs under the
Paris agreement.32 The mixed claims awards bear interest
at the rates specified in such awards up to January 1, 1928, and the
settlement of war claims act specifies a rate of 5 per cent from
that date until paid.
The payments to be received on this account include, therefore,
interest which shall be paid on the awards. While the annuities are
stated in terms of reichmarks, payments are to be made in dollars,
either at the Treasury or at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
The exchange value of the mark in relation to the dollar shall be
calculated at the average of the middle rates prevailing on the
Berlin bourse during the half monthly period preceding the date of
payment. The German Government undertakes that the reichmark shall
have
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and shall retain its
convertibility into gold or devisen as
contemplated in the present Reichsbank law and that the reichmark
shall retain the mint parity defined in the German coinage law of
August 30, 1924.
