Foreign Relations of the United States: Diplomatic Papers, 1945, European Advisory Commission, Austria, Germany, Volume III

740.00119 Council/10–145: Telegram

The Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant) to the Secretary of State

London, October 1, 1945—3 p.m.
[Received October 1—2:02 p.m.]

10181. Delsec 86. From the Secretary. Please ask the Joint Chiefs to send the following to General Clark at Vienna.³⁴

The Council of Foreign Ministers has approved the following two telegrams to be sent by the Govts of the US, the UK, the USSR and France to their respective Commanders-in-Chief in Austria. The telegrams were approved Sept 29, and Sept 30, respectively.

Begin First Message

1. The following communication has been sent to the Allied Control Commissions in Rumania, Bulgaria and Hungary and to the Govts of Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia.³⁵

2. The Council of Foreign Ministers has decided to clarify through the Allied Control Commissions in Hungary, Rumania and Bulgaria and also with the Govts of Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia whether there are in the above listed countries surpluses of foodstuffs which could be used for supplying Austria.

3. Therefore by instruction of the Council of Foreign Ministers I request you to inform me whether blank country can set aside foodstuffs for supplying Austria. In case there are such surpluses the Council of Foreign Ministers would like to learn in what quantities they can be set aside for Austria now and from the proceeds of the next harvest.

4. The Council requests that the information in respect to the present surplus be made available within one month and as to the next harvest within three months.

5. On the basis of this information which will be communicated to the Allied Council and on the basis of a study to be made by the Allied Council of the possibility of obtaining the maximum quantity of food from Austria itself both at the present time and from the next harvest the Allied Council should examine the long term arrangements for food supplies to Austria and report the result to the Council of Foreign Ministers with such further information on the supply position in Austria as the Allied Council may deem useful.

Begin Second Message

1. With reference to the question of ration scales and consumption levels to which the Allied Council in Vienna referred in their reports on Austrian food supplies the Council of Foreign Ministers consider that the ration scales for the deficiency areas in Austria should be based on a per capita temporary minimum ration of 1,550 calories a day for the normal consumer which has been agreed by the Allied Govts for the present time maintaining the principle of differentiation for the various groups of the population on the basis of the type of labor performed.

2. It is for the Allied Council to estimate both the quantity of food which can be obtained from local production and the quantity which remains to be imported in order to reach the above standard.

3. This scale should be increased by the Allied Council to 2,000 calories or more as more local or imported supplies become available.

Winant

34. A marginal notation in the handwriting of Francis T. Williamson of the Division of Central European Affairs indicates that the following was given to the War Department for transmission to General Clark on October 1.
35. Paraphrases of this message were sent by the Department as telegram 584 to Bucharest, November 1; telegram 359 to Sofia, November 1; telegram 624 to Budapest, November 1; telegram 381 to Belgrade, October 31; and telegram 350 to Praha, October 31. For the Bulgarian response, see telegram 779; December 26, from Sofia, vol. iv, p. 416.