Foreign Relations of the United States, 1947, Council of Foreign Ministers; Germany and Austria, Volume II

740.00119 Control (Germany)/2–2647: Telegram

The Acting Political Adviser for Germany (Muccio) to the Secretary of State

secret
urgent

Berlin, February 26, 1947—8 p.m.

467. Control Council Fifty-sixth [Fifty-fifth] meeting Feb 25 approved and signed law abolishing Prussia along lines of draft mentioned my telegram 444, Feb 24.²⁶ Law will be promulgated March 1, 6 p.m. Section in report to CFM²⁷ dealing with Prussia simply contains text of law.

Control Council approved remaining sections of CFM report. Apparently out of pique Marshal Douglas absented himself from meeting and had Robertson read homily regarding haste and lack of consideration with which report was rushed through Coordinating Committee and ACC. Clay and Sokolovsky ironically thanked Robertson for his lecture but maintained ACC had acted correctly in completing work by date set by CFM. Sokolovsky thereafter read statement summarized in my telegram 461 Feb 26.²⁸

Ten copies of report, each weighing over six pounds, left by air courier for Washington evening Feb 25. OMGUS summary and critical analysis being forwarded today.

Report is historical document clearly recording failure of present quadripartite government of Germany as frequently stressed by General Clay in Coordinating Committee meetings and as tacitly acknowledged by General McNarney at his last Berlin press conference on Feb 21. (See also this mission’s despatch 8336 of January 6.²⁹) In effect ACA has not reached a single important decision since level of industry plan which in itself is not being implemented. Since deterioration of German situation and initial announcements last summer that Germany demanded attention of the Foreign Ministers, the ACA has taken no forward step but has actually retrogressed in relation to subsequent developments. This has occurred despite General Clay’s leadership and energetic efforts to assert ACA authority. Tendency and atmosphere of last few months has been to leave everything to CFM. Report presents vivid picture of separate zonal autonomies and will be found useful in delineating issues awaiting decision; it is impressive in foreshadowing magnitude of tasks facing Moscow Conference.

Sent to Dept as 467. Repeated Paris as 77 to Moscow as 93 and to London for Ambassador Murphy as 101.

Muccio

26. The telegram under reference is not printed. For the text of Control Council Law No. 46 on the abolition of the State of Prussia, see Germany 1947–1949, p. 151, or Ruhm von Oppen, Documents on Germany, pp. 210–211.
27. At the close of its Third Session in New York, November 4–December 12, 1946, the Council of Foreign Ministers agreed to instruct the Allied Control Council for Germany to submit by February 25, 1947, a report dealing with the work of the Control Council since its creation and the problems of the political, economic and financial situation of Germany; see Items II, 1 and III of CFM (46) (NY)74, December 12, 1946, Foreign Relations, 1946, vol. ii, p. 1557. The final version of the Control Council’s Report to the Council of Foreign Ministers was divided into the following major sections: I. Demilitarization, II. Denazification, III. Democratization, IV. Economic Problems, V. Reparations, VI. Central Administration, VII. Population Transfers, VIII. Territorial Reorganization, IX. Liquidation of Prussia. The complete text of the Report, which has not been printed, is included in CFM Files, Lot M–88, Box 69. For General Clay’s description of the circumstances attending the preparation of the Control Council’s Report, see Clay, Decision in Germany, pp. 143–145.
28. Supra.
29. Not printed.