Council of Foreign Ministers

On January 24, 1948, the Soviet proposals for the settlement of Soviet claims against German assets in Austria were communicated to the permanent secretariat of the Council of Foreign Ministers in London. These proposals, which Secretary of State Marshall (United States) had urged the Soviet to submit during the Moscow session of the Council of Foreign Ministers (December 1947), although representing approximately a 50 per cent reduction in former Soviet claims, demanded for the Soviet Union 1) concession rights to two-thirds of current oil production and two-thirds of the exploitation privilegesin all undeveloped oil. areas in eastern Austria for a period of 25 years; 2) possession of oil refineries with a total annual capacity of 450,000 tons of crude oil; 3) possession of all assets of the Danube Shipping Company located in Hungary, Bulgaria, Rumania and Austria; 4) surrender by the four powers of all property rights to former German enterprises in Austria and payment by Austria in compensation of $200,000,000 in United States currency to the Soviet Union and of undetermined amounts to the other three powers; 5) transfer of such assets to the Soviet Union subject to alienation only with the consent of the Soviet Union, and free from obligations accrued prior to Soviet possession; and 6) settlement of disputes arising in connection with the application of treaty provisions relating to German assets on a bilateral basis between Austria and the Soviet Union. After receiving the Soviet proposals, Secretary Marshall proposed that the Foreign Ministers' Deputies meet in London in February to work for further progress on the drafting of the Austrian treaty.