Office of the Historian

360F.115 International Telephone and Telegraph Corp./9–1145: Telegram

The Acting Secretary of State to the Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Harriman)66

Washington, September 11, 1945—8 p.m.

1995. Mytel 1871, Aug. 20. Please request Soviet Govt to instruct its military commanders in Czechoslovakia to desist from removal of machinery equipment and other property in Czecho that is certified by AmEmbassy Praha to Czecho ForOff to be Amer property, also to desist from guarding such property against free access of Amer repr. For your info Amb Steinhardt reports67 “Soviet diplomatic and military authorities in Praha seem quite prepared to withdraw their guards from American property and to discontinue the removal of machinery and equipment providing appropriate instructions are received by them from Moscow.”

Case of Amer owned C. Lorenz A. G. plant at Vrchlabi, Czechoslovakia especially urgent to prevent removals. Amb Steinhardt reports68 reliably informed Russians preparing to remove 75 percent of equipment for shipment to USSR. Erhardt69 reports70 Gen Morosov ordered cessation dismantling factory at Vrchlabi for sufficient time for Moscow issue appropriate instructions.

Acheson
  1. Repeated to Prague as telegram 217 and to Vienna as telegram 104.↩
  2. Telegram 259, August 25, from Prague, not printed.↩
  3. See telegram 244, August 22, from Prague, supra. ↩
  4. John C. Erhardt, United States Political Adviser for Austrian Affairs, whose mission was moved from Salzburg to Vienna on August 23, 1945.↩
  5. Telegram 159, August 23, from Salzburg, not printed.↩