Conference files, lot 60 D 627, CF
197
No. 520
Proposal of the United States
Delegation1
confidential
FPM(54)63
Berlin, February 14, 1954.
Basis for Immediate Conclusion of
Austrian State Treaty
Considering that the draft Austrian State
Treaty was agreed by the Deputies of the United States, United
Kingdom, France and the U.S.S.R. in 1949, with the exception of
Articles 16, 27, 42, 48 and 48 bis;2 and
Convinced that the signing of this Treaty at
the present Conference is essential in justice to Austria;
The Four Foreign Ministers:
- 1.
- Confirm their acceptance, in the form agreed by their
Deputies, of the Preamble and Articles 1–7; 7 bis; 8; 10–15;
16 bis; 17–19; 21; 25; 26; 28; 30–34; 36; 38; 39; 44; 45;
49; 50; 52; 52 bis; 53–59; Annexes I; II; VIII; IX;
X.
- 2.
- Agree to accept Articles 9, 16, 27, 42, 48 and 48 bis; in
the form proposed by the Soviet Deputy in the course of the
negotiations and reproduced in the English version in the
Annex attached hereto.
- 3.
- Agree to Article 35, with the modification proposed by the
Soviet delegation, to authorize payment by Austria in goods
deliveries of the amount due to the Soviet Union for former
German assets under Article 35 of the draft State
Treaty.
- 4.
- Agree to sign the Treaty in the foregoing form on
Thursday, February 18, at 3 p.m.
- 5.
- Direct their representatives to prepare the final text of
the Treaty in the Russian, English, French and German
languages in time for such signature.
Note: This proposal is submitted as an
interdependent whole.
[Page 1196]
Annex
Text of Articles 9, 16, 27, 42,
48, 48–bis as Proposed by the Soviet Deputy
Article 9
dissolution of nazi
organizations
Austria shall complete the measures, already begun by the
enactment of appropriate legislation approved by the Allied
Commission for Austria, to destroy the National Socialist Party
and its affiliated and supervised organizations, including
political, military and para-military organizations, on Austrian
territory. Austria shall also continue the efforts to eliminate
from Austrian political, economic and cultural life all traces
of Nazism, to ensure that the above-mentioned organizations are
not revived in any form, and to prevent all Nazi and militarist
activity and propaganda in Austria.
Austria undertakes to dissolve all Fascist type organizations
existing on its territory: Political, military, para-military as
well as other organizations which carry on activity hostile to
any United Nation or which intend to deprive the people of their
democratic rights.
Austria undertakes not to let, under threat of penal punishment
which shall be immediately determined in accordance with order
established by the Austrian Laws, the existence and the activity
on Austrian territory of the above-mentioned organizations.
Article 16
displaced persons
- 1.
- Austria undertakes within the period determined by the
Allied Commission for Austria to take all necessary measures
to complete the voluntary repatriation of Displaced Persons
within its territory.
- 2.
- Austria undertakes to render full assistance to the Allied
and Associated Powers concerned in regard to the voluntary
repatriation of their nationals and will enter into direct
bilateral negotiations for this purpose.
- 3.
- Austria further undertakes:
- (a)
- to permit accredited representatives of any Allied
or Associated Power whose nationals are in camps or
assembly centers allotted to Displaced Persons now
in Austria to visit freely such camps or centers for
the purpose of conferring with its nationals;
- (b)
- to prohibit in such camps or centers any
propaganda hostile to the interests of the Allied
and Associated Powers and any activities
[Page 1197]
designed
to induce such Displaced Persons not to return to
the countries of which they are nationals;
- (c)
- to dissolve immediately any “committees,”
“centers” and other similar organizations existing
in those camps and assembly centers that may be
found to be engaged in activities opposed to the
interests of the Allied and Associated
Powers;
- (d)
- to prohibit the recruiting of Displaced Persons
into military or para-military organizations;
- (e)
- to provide the means of transportation necessary
for the transfer of repatriates to the frontier of
their countries of origin nearest Austria.
- 4.
- Austria undertakes to grant to such Displaced Persons the
same rights in all respects as those normally accorded to
non-Austrians who have been legally admitted into
Austria.
- 5.
- No relief shall be given by Austria to persons who refuse
to return to their native countries, if these persons fought
on the side of the enemies of the Allied and Associated
Powers, or voluntarily collaborated with the enemies of
these Powers, or engaged in hostile activities against their
countries of origin, as well as against any of the United
Nations, or are members of organizations and groups which
encourage Displaced Persons not to return to their countries
of origin.
- 6.
- This Article shall be applied without prejudice to the
provisions of Article 11 of the present Treaty.
Article 27
prevention of german
rearmament
- 1.
- Austria shall co-operate fully with the Allied and
Associated Powers in order to ensure that Germany is unable
to take steps outside German territory towards
rearmament.
- 2.
- Austria shall not employ or train in military or civil
aviation or in the experimentation, design, production or
maintenance of war matériel:
persons who are, or were at any time previous to
March 13, 1938, nationals of Germany;
or Austrian nationals precluded from serving in the
Armed Forces under Article 18;
or persons who are not Austrian nationals.
Article 42
united nations property in
austria
- 1.
- In so far as Austria has not already done so, Austria
shall restore all legal rights and interests in Austria of
the United Nations and their nationals as they existed on
the day hostilities commenced between Germany and the United
Nation concerned, and
[Page 1198]
shall return all property in Austria
of the United Nations and their nationals as it now
exists.
- 2.
- The Austrian Government undertakes that all property,
rights and interests passing under this Article shall be
restored free of all encumbrances and charges of any kind to
which they may have become subject as a result of the war
with Germany and without the imposition of any charges by
the Austrian Government in connection with their return. The
Austrian Government shall nullify all measures of seizure,
sequestration or control taken against United Nations
property between the day of commencement of hostilities
between Germany and the United Nation concerned and the
coming into force of the present Treaty. In cases where the
property has not been returned within six months from the
coming into force of the present Treaty, application shall
be made to the Austrian authorities not later than twelve
months from the coming into force of the Treaty, except in
cases in which the claimant is able to show that he could
not file his application within this period.
- 3.
- The Austrian Government shall invalidate transfers
involving property, rights and interests of any description
belonging to United Nations nationals, where such transfers
resulted from force exerted by Axis Governments or their
agencies between the beginning of hostilities between
Germany and the United Nation concerned and May 8,
1945.
- 4.
- (a) In cases in which the Austrian Government provides
compensation for losses suffered by reason of injury or
damage to property in Austria which occurred during the
German occupation of Austria or during the war, United
Nations nationals shall in no event receive less favorable
treatment than that accorded to Austrian nationals; and in
such cases United Nations nationals who hold, directly or
indirectly, ownership interests in corporations or
associations which are not United Nations nationals within
the meaning of paragraph 8 (a) of this Article shall receive
compensation based on the total loss or damage suffered by
the corporations or associations and bearing the same
proportion to such loss or damage as the beneficial interest
of such nationals bear to the capital of the corporation or
association.
- (b) The Austrian Government shall accord to United Nations
nationals the same treatment in the allocation of materials
for the repair or rehabilitation of their property in
Austria and in the allocation of foreign exchange for the
importation of such materials as applies to Austrian
nationals.
- 5.
- All reasonable expenses incurred in Austria in
establishing claims, including the assessment of loss or
damage, shall be borne by the Austrian Government.
- 6.
- United Nations nationals and their property shall be
exempted from any exceptional taxes, levies, or imposts
imposed on their capital assets in Austria by the Austrian
Government or any Austrian authority between the date of the
surrender of the German armed forces and the coming into
force of the present Treaty for the specific purpose of
meeting charges arising out of the war or of meeting the
costs of occupying forces. Any sums which have been so paid
shall be refunded.
- 7.
- The owner of the property concerned and the Austrian
Government may agree upon arrangements in lieu of the
provisions of this Article.
- 8.
- As used in this Article:
- (a)
- “United Nations nationals” means individuals who
are nationals of any of the United Nations, or
corporations or associations organized under the
laws of any of the United Nations, at the coming
into force of the present Treaty, provided that the
said individuals, corporations or associations also
had this status on May 8, 1945.
- The term “United Nations nationals” also includes
all individuals, corporations or associations which,
under the laws in force in Austria during the war,
have been treated as enemy.
- Only those United Nations nationals who possessed
United Nations nationality prior to the date on
which their property suffered damage in Austria
shall, however, be entitled to compensation in
accordance with paragraph 4 of this Article.
- (b)
- “Owner” means the United Nation, or the United
Nations national, as defined in sub-paragraph (a)
above, who is entitled to the property in question,
and includes a successor of the owner, provided that
the successor is also a United Nation or a United
Nations national as defined in sub-paragraph (a). If
the successor has purchased the property in its
damaged state, the transferor shall retain his
rights to compensation under this Article, without
prejudice to obligations between the transferor and
the purchaser under domestic law.
- (c)
- “Property” means all movable or immovable
property, whether tangible or intangible, including
industrial, literary and artistic property, as well
as all rights or interests of any kind in
property.
- 9.
- The provisions of this Article do not apply to transfers
of property, rights or interests of United Nations or United
Nations nationals in Austria made in accordance with laws
and enactments which were in force as Austrian Law on June
28, 1946.
- 10.
- The Austrian Government recognizes that the Brioni
Agreement of August 10, 1942, is null and void. It
undertakes to participate with the other signatories of the
Rome Agreement of March 29, 1923, in any negotiations having
the purpose of introducing into its provisions the
modifications necessary to ensure the equitable settlement
of the annuities which it provides.
[Page 1200]
Article 48
debts
- 1.
- The annexation of Austria by Germany shall not be deemed
to have affected the obligations of the Austrian Government
in respect of external loans issued prior to March 13, 1938.
The Allied and Associated Powers recognize that the
Government of Austria has no obligation in respect of German
Government securities freely accepted by the holders thereof
in exchange for securities of the Government of Austria, or
in respect of these Austrian securities regarding which
after March 13, 1938, payment agreements were concluded
between Germany and the creditor States.
- 2.
- The Allied and Associated Powers recognize that interest
payments and similar charges on Austrian Government
securities falling due after March 12, 1938, and before May
8, 1945, constitute a claim on Germany and not on
Austria.
- 3.
- The Allied and Associated Powers declare their intention
not to avail themselves of the provisions of loan agreements
made by the Government of Austria before March 13, 1938, in
so far as those provisions granted to the creditors a right
of control over the government finances of Austria.
- 4.
- The existence of the state of war between the Allied and
Associated Powers and Germany shall not, in itself, be
regarded as affecting the obligation to pay pecuniary debts
arising out of obligations and contracts which existed, and
rights which were acquired before the existence of the state
of war, which became payable prior to the coming into force
of the present Treaty, and which are due by the Government
or nationals of Austria to the Government or nationals of
one of the Allied and Associated Powers or are due by the
Government or nationals of one of the Allied and Associated
Powers to the Government or nationals of Austria.
- 5.
- Except as otherwise expressly provided in the present
Treaty, nothing therein shall be construed as impairing
debtor-creditor relationships arising out of contracts
concluded at any time prior to September 1, 1939, by either
the Government of Austria or persons who were nationals of
Austria on March 12, 1938.
Article 48–bis
Austria acknowledges as a debt, payable by her, monetary loans
and also the value of all supplies and services delivered to the
Austrian Government by any of the Allied or Associated Powers
between May 8, 1945, and the coming into force of the present
Treaty.
