740.00119 Council/4–347: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Acting Secretary of State
us urgent
1188. Delsec 1390. For the President, Vandenberg, Connally and Acheson from Marshall. Twentieth CFM regular meeting, Molotov presiding, received and discussed the report of the Special Committee appointed to work out agreements on the questions of denazification, democratization, displaced persons and territorial reorganization.13 The Ministers did not accept Marshall’s proposal that the Council confirm the agreements reached by the Committee and refer the disagreements in the report to the Allied Control Council for further study. Several hours of discussion followed during which certain parts of the report were accepted, others were referred back to the Committee, and action on others was suspended until later.
The Council accepted the section of the report on denazification which directs the Control Council for Germany to hasten the process of denazification, to complete the removal of former active Nazis and militarists from public office and from positions of responsibility in important private undertakings, to ensure that judges and public prosecutors are politically acceptable, to hasten the trial of war criminals and to seek uniform treatment in all zones of former Nazis and militarists corresponding to their degree of responsibility.
In the section on democratization, the Council agreed on only one point—that of instructing ACC to ensure the carrying out and completion [Page 308] of land reform throughout Germany in 1947. The section on elections was referred back to the special committee after Molotov insisted that German elections be held under the system of proportional representation and Bidault reaffirmed his opposition to the functioning of political parties and trade unions on an all-German basis.14 Although the Committee had agreed on establishing freedom for the circulation throughout Germany of information and on the inclusion in the future German constitution of a guarantee of basic human rights, Molotov insisted that these clauses be returned to the Committee for redrafting.
Discussion of the section on population transfers prompted Bevin to urge again the fixing of a date for the return to Germany of prisoners of war. Marshall supported Bevin and urged that the date for return be not far distant. Molotov refused to discuss the question and when pressed by Bevin agreed to state later when he would be ready to speak on this subject. At Marshall’s suggestion the clauses on population transfers were set aside for further consideration at a later date.
During the discussion on the election system for Germany Molotov turned to Bevin and said that to refer to Greece as a democratic state when it is a dictatorship, is a difficult position to maintain. Bevin replied that the Greek Parliament was elected under a proportional representation system. Molotov answered that Greece was an example of what could happen when the proportional representation system was manipulated by skillful hands. He said he preferred the operation of the system in France to that in Greece.
The Council also discussed briefly and referred to the Committee for further study two proposals on the demilitarization of Germany referring to plants. During the exchange of views, Marshall and Bevin stated that demilitarization of plants should be completed as soon as possible, but that the fixing of exact dates when this work must be finished should be decided on when the necessary data are available. This discussion did not refer to purely war material making plants.
The Council agreed to meet two hours later than usual tomorrow in the hope that the Coordination Committee’s report on plans and procedures for the German constitution and organization of the German Government will be ready for the Ministers to discuss.
Department please pass to Vienna as 23, to Rome as 21, and to Paris as 104.
Repeated London 1261, Berlin 215.