740.00119 EW/1–845: Telegram
The Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Harriman) to the Secretary of State
[Received January 9—1:15 a.m.]
75. We met again today to discuss Hungarian armistice terms. Molotov consented to restore the clause envisaging possible reparations claims by other countries, as proposed in paragraph 3 of the Department’s 37, January 6, 7 p.m. I emphasized again our insistence on participation in a committee of the Control Commission on reparations. While Molotov gave no encouragement as to a favorable reception of our views he said he would report them to the Soviet Government.
With respect to the Control Commission, we received from the Foreign Office shortly before the meeting a Soviet counter-draft of the statutes for that body. Our original draft had followed closely the lines of the statutes for the Rumanian commission (reEmbs 3651, September 23, 9 p.m.)4 adding such of demands brought out in the Department’s 2908, December 29, 8 p.m., as were not already included in that document. The principal change embodied in the Soviet counter-draft, as compared with our proposals, was that whereas we had provided for consultation of our representatives on policy directives during the first period and their concurrence in such directives [Page 966] during the second period, the Soviet draft merely provides that they should be informed of the issuance of such directives during the first period and should be consulted about them during the second. The Russian draft on this point read as follows:
“During the first period (i.e. from the moment of the entry into force of the armistice to the end of the military operations against Germany) the Chairman (or Vice Chairman) shall call meetings and inform the British and American representatives of policy directives (i.e. directives involving matters of general principle) being issued to the Hungarian authorities in the name of the Commission. During the following period (i.e. from the moment of cessation of hostilities with Germany until the conclusion of peace with Hungary), no policy directives (i.e. directives involving matters of general principle) shall be issued to the Hungarian authorities in the name of the Commission except after consultation of the Chairman (or Vice Chairman) with the British and American representatives.”
(Molotov explained at the meeting, in response to my inquiry, that this did not necessarily mean that during the first period our representatives would be informed in advance of the issuance of policy directives in the name of the Commission) saying that whether notification would precede or follow the issuance of the directive would depend on circumstances. In addition to this, the Soviets eliminated entirely from the draft statutes our proposed clause which would have assured to our representatives all facilities, including landing privileges for airplanes, for the entry and exit of members of their staffs and diplomatic couriers. Our proposal that our representatives on the Control Commission should be allowed to determine the size and composition of his own staff was watered down to a clause, similar to that contained in the Rumanian statutes, that this should be determined in agreement with the Chairman of the Commission. Our proposal that our representative should be permitted to move freely throughout Hungary was replaced by a clause which recognized his theoretical right to make journeys into the provinces but required him to apply to the Vice Chairman of the Commission with respect to the arrangements for the journey. All other points listed in the fourth paragraph of the Department’s 2806 [29081], December 29, 8 p.m., are satisfactorily covered in the Soviet draft.
I did not undertake to discuss this draft at today’s meeting, and merely said that I would study it myself and communicate further with my Government on the subject. I took occasion, however, to stress the unhappy nature of our experiences in Rumania and Bulgaria with respect to the Control Commissions and to emphasize the need for assurance of better treatment in the case of Hungary.
- Vol. iv, section under Rumania entitled “Post-armistice problems of occupation and control of Rumania ...”↩