462.00 R 296/2323
The Ambassador in France (Herrick) to
the Secretary of State
Paris, July 19,
1928.
[Received July 30.]
Reparation
Sir: I have the honor to refer to my letter of
May 9, 1928, the Department’s Reparation telegram No. 53 of June 7,
1928, and other correspondence in regard to the draft protocol
concerning the disposal of the unused balances of the Rhineland High
Commission.
As a result of various meetings of the representatives of the interested
Powers, the last of which was held on June 14th, agreement was reached
on a final text, which conforms, with minor alterations, to that
transmitted with my letter of May 9th. Certain representatives not being
at that time in possession of authorization to sign, the Protocol, which
bears the date of June 14, 1928, was not in fact signed by all concerned
until within the last few days.
In this connection I am transmitting herewith copies of Annexes 3524
a–d1–3,35 as follows:
[Page 889]
- Annex 3524 a is a copy of a Note from the French Delegation to
the Secretary General of the Reparation Commission, dated July
17, 1928, communicating, on behalf of the French Government, a
certified copy of the Protocol of June 14, 1928;
- Annex 3524 b is a copy of the Protocol;
- Annex 3524 c is a report by the Finance Section resuming the
steps leading up to the signature of the Protocol, and attaching
a statement (Annex 3524 d1) giving
expenditures and savings of the Rhineland Commission to the
close of the Third Annuity Year. As will be noted, the amount
now available for distribution as Reparations as a result of the
Protocol of June 14th is 1,463,048.02 gold marks (the amount
given in my letter of May 9th last);
- Annexes 3524 d2–3 are draft
letters to be sent to the Agent General for Reparation Payments
and to the Rhineland Commission advising them of the signature
of the Protocol in order that the necessary arrangements may be
made for the unused balances to be distributed.
The Reparation Commission, at its meeting on July 18th, approved the
conclusions of the Finance Section in Annex 3524 c, i. e., took note of
the Protocol of June 14th, 1928, and decided to forward the letters
above mentioned (Annexes 3524 d2–3).
The changes which have been made in the Protocol as signed, as compared
with the draft36
transmitted with my May 9th letter, may be resumed as follows:
- 1.
- The final sentence in sub-paragraph (b)
of paragraph 1 of the old draft, reading “The provisions of this
paragraph do not modify any of the stipulations of the Agreement
of 14th January, 1925”, (which was added at my request, see top
page 3, my letter May 9th), has been changed to read “The
provisions of the present Protocol do not modify any of the
stipulations of the Agreement of 14th January, 1925”, and placed
as a sub-paragraph under paragraph 5 of the Protocol.
- 2.
- Paragraph 3 of the former text reads the same up to the words
“may be proved to be justified”. The new text following these
words now reads as follows: “These amounts will be made
available out of the Annuity current when the Interallied
Rhineland High Commission requests payment of the claims and
will rank with the annual charge fixed in Article 2 of the
Agreement of 13th January, 1927. Moreover the sums which can be
required for the payment of the claims of any given year or
years shall not exceed the amounts still available in respect of
that year or years.” This change reproduces the pertinent
wording in the first paragraph of the Protocol.
- 3.
- A new paragraph 4 has been added which reads: “The provisions
of this Protocol shall in no event have the effect of increasing
the annual allocation of any of the High Commissariats beyond
the limits thereto assigned by the 1st paragraph of Article 2 of
the Agreement of the 13th January 1927.” This is an additional
safeguard suggested by the Belgian Delegation.
- 4.
- Paragraph 4 of the old text is now paragraph 5.
[Page 890]
I will forward the certified copy of the Protocol as soon as I receive it
from the French Government.37
I have [etc.]
For the Ambassador,
Edwin C.
Wilson
[Enclosure—Annex 3524 B]
Protocol of June 14, 1928, Regarding the
Disposal of the Unused Balances of the Sums Allocated to the
Interallied Rhineland High Commission for Its Administrative
Expenses Under Article 2 of the Agreement of the 13th January
1927
In order to complete the provisions of the Agreement of 13th January
1927 regarding the disposal of the unused balances of the sums
allocated to the Interallied Rhineland High Commission for its
administrative expenses, the signatories to that Agreement have
agreed as follows:—
- 1.
- In addition to the annual charge fixed in Article 2 of the
Agreement of 13th January 1927 for the period up to 10th
January 1930, the Allied and Associated Governments will, at
the request of the Interallied Rhineland High Commission,
place at its disposal in the annuity current when the
request is made, an amount which will rank with the annual
charge referred to above and will not exceed the unused
balances of the administrative funds of the High Commission
for the second, third, fourth and fifth years of the
Experts’ Plan distributed as reparation, to meet:—
- (A)
- such of the outstanding claims of the German
Government against the Interallied Rhineland High
Commission under Article 6 of the Rhineland
Agreement for those years as may be proved to be
justified, and—
- (B)
- any difference in favour of Germany between the
provisional lump sums paid in respect of deliveries
and supplies made to the Interallied Rhineland High
Commission under Articles 8–12 of the Rhineland
Agreement for those years and the definite value of
those deliveries and supplies as fixed by the
competent Assessment Commissions.
- 2.
- In the event of an agreement being reached regarding the
amounts payable for the claims under 1 (A) and (B) above for one or
several of those years only, the amount which the Allied and
Associated Powers will make available for the payment of
these claims will not exceed the unused balances of the
Interallied Rhineland High Commission for the year or years
in question.
- 3.
- Should any of the claims in respect of the second, third,
fourth and fifth years be outstanding as at 10th January
1930, amounts not exceeding the difference between the
unused balances of the Interallied Rhineland High Commission
for those years and the sums already used [Page 891] for the settlement of claims
in respect of those years will be made available by the
Allied and Associated Powers after 10th January 1930 for the
payment of such of those outstanding claims as may be proved
to be justified. These amounts will be made available out of
the Annuity current when the Interallied Rhineland High
Commission requests payment of the claims and will rank with
the annual charge fixed in Article 2 of the Agreement of
13th January 1927. Moreover the sums which can be required
for the payment of the claims of any given year or years
shall not exceed the amounts still available in respect of
that year or years.
- 4.
- The provisions of this Protocol shall in no event have the
effect of increasing the annual allocation of any of the
High Commissariats beyond the limits thereto assigned by the
1st paragraph of Article 2 of the Agreement of the 13th
January 1927.
- 5.
- The provisions of paragraph 5 of Article 2 of the
Agreement of 13th January 1927 and the above provisions are
an undertaking between the Allied and Associated Governments
concerned and the Interallied Rhineland High Commission
which only becomes effective if and when the latter informs
those Governments that certain claims under Article 6 or
Articles 8–12 of the Rhineland Agreement have become
payable. It is the intention of the Powers signatory to the
present Protocol that these provisions shall not result in
the blocking of the funds in question pending the receipt of
the information referred to above.
The provisions of the present Protocol do not modify any of the
stipulations of the Agreement of 14th January 1925.
The present Protocol done in English and French (the English and
French texts both being authentic) in a single copy will be
deposited in the archives of the Government of the French Republic
which will supply certified copies thereof to each of the signatory
Powers.
Paris, 14 June,
1928.
- M. de
Pimentel-Brandao
- Mauclere
- D. Cavadias
- Gutt
- D. Ploj
- Edwin C. Wilson
- Tomas Fernandes
- W. A. C. Goodchild
- J. D. Conduraki
- Corsi
- J. Mrozoswki
- Shizuo Yamaji
- Stefan Osusky
