740.00119 Control (Austria)/12–2845
The Secretary of War (Patterson) to the Secretary of State
My Dear Mr. Secretary: Please refer to your letter of 24 November 1945 (file 740.00119 Control, Austria) and my interim reply of 4 December 1945,67 which agreed in principle to your proposals for the reduction of occupation forces in Austria.
Current strengths of the national occupation contingents in Austria are approximately as follows:
| U.S.: | 47,000, | including two divisions |
| France: | 40,000, | including one division |
| U.K.: | 65,000, | including two divisions |
| U.S.S.R.: | 200,000, | including 17 divisions |
Conditions in each of the national occupation zones, as for example, the amount of frontier responsibility, vary so that occupation force requirements in each zone are not now, and will not be in the near future, equal. United States proposals to equalize the forces in each national zone may be countered by this argument. I therefore recommend that agreement be sought among the four powers to reduce progressively the forces of occupation to the following maximum figures on the dates indicated:
a. In Vienna:
| 1 Feb 46 | 1 Jul 46 | 1 Nov 46 | |
| Each Power | 9,000 | 8,000 | 5,000 |
b. Outside Vienna:
| 1 Feb 46 | 1 Jul 46 | 1 Nov 46 | |
| U.S. | 31,000 | 16,000 | 12,500 |
| France | 28,000 | 16,000 | 12,500 |
| U.K. | 50,000 | 30,000 | 20,000 |
| U.S.S.R. | 60,000 | 40,000 | 28,000 |
Should you deem the principle of establishing equalized occupation force figures important, I recommend that the figures shown for U.S.S.R, be used. In either instance, the proviso must be made that the figures are maximum figures and that each power may, if it desires, maintain garrisons of lesser strength. In every case, the [Page 692] specified strengths should include the personnel of all ranks of ground, air, and sea forces.68
Sincerely yours,
- Latter not printed.↩
- In a letter of January 4, 1946, the Secretary of State replied to this letter by noting that in its original proposal the State Department had suggested that the question be taken up by addressing notes to each of the Governments concerned. “Since that time, however, considerable publicity has been given to this question in the press of the United States and Great Britain. In view of this public discussion and the delays which would necessarily follow any intergovernmental action, I recommend that the plan proposed in your letter be transmitted to General Clark for introduction into the Allied Council as a United States proposal. I consider that this proposal should be made as soon as possible after any action by the Allied Council or by the four powers in recognizing the new Austrian Government. (740.00119 Control (Austria)/12–2845)↩