Office of the Historian

740.019 Control (Austria)/4–2545: Telegram

The Acting Secretary of State to the Chargé in the Soviet Union (Kennan)23

Washington, May 3, 1945—noon.

995. After concerting with your British colleague please inform the Soviet Government as follows:

Following Marshal Stalin’s suggestion (your no. 1162 April 13, midnight) and Vyshinski’s confirmation (your no. 1348, April 25, 7 p.m.) that American, British and French representatives proceed immediately to Vienna to settle the respective zones of occupation, the British and American Governments made plans for their representatives to proceed from Caserta and the French Government sent representatives to join them there en route to Vienna. We were therefore greatly surprised to receive the Soviet Government’s subsequent intimation that the arrival of American and Allied representatives in Vienna would be undesirable until after the zones have been agreed to in the European Advisory Commission (your no. 1413 April 29, 6 p.m. and your no. 1431 May 1, 10 p.m.) and are unable to understand the reasons for this change in attitude.

The European Advisory Commission has been unable to agree on the zoning of Vienna, partly through lack of information about conditions there. The Soviet representative has already had occasion to alter his own recommendations in the European Advisory Commission because of the discovery that part of the proposed Soviet zone had been destroyed in battle. It is equally important that we examine on the spot the factors bearing on our own proposals in the European Advisory Commission. Soviet unwillingness to permit this thus is blocking rapid conclusion of the agreements in the European Advisory Commission.

We therefore hope that appropriate instructions will be issued to Marshal Tolbukhin that the Allied representatives may fly to Vienna immediately.

Sent to Moscow as Department’s no. 995; repeated to London as no. 3451; to Paris as no. 1827, and to AmPolAd, Caserta for Erhardt as no. 425.

Grew
  1. Handwritten marginal note reads: “Admiral Leahy telephoned the President’s approval of this message. H F[reeman] M[atthews]”↩