Office of the Historian
  1. Home
  2. Historical Documents
  3. Foreign Relations of the United States, 1948, Germany and Austria, Volume II
  4. Document 401

740.00119 Control (Germany)/12–1748

Notes Prepared by the United States Political Adviser for Germany ( Murphy ) of a Meeting Between the Military Governors of the Western Zones of Occupation of Germany, Frankfurt, December 16, 1948 1

secret
[ Undated .]

Military Security Board

The following are notes I made of a meeting of the three Military Governors at Frankfurt on December 16, at which the draft directive on the organization of the Military Security Board was agreed. Please see the attached papers, TEIB/P (48) 17 etc.2

There was a discussion of paragraph 10 and the addition of the following language at the beginning of the second sentence was agreed: “until tripartite commissions in the Laender are established” the Regional Commission etc. Koenig said that he thought he could agree but that he would have to refer this point to Paris for confirmation as he was strictly held by his instructions. He agreed ad referendum.

At this point General Koenig announced the appointment of General Paskevitch as a member of the Military Security Board; General Robertson announced the appointment of General Westropp, and General Clay the appointment of General Hodges.

[Page 668]

General Clay suggested December 21 as the effective date for the organization of the Military Security Board and this was agreed subject to French confirmation. It was also agreed that whatever the date might he, this would be announced by the Members of the Board. There was a brief discussion regarding the headquarters of the Board and it was decided that the Board itself should determine where it wants to sit. General Koenig reminded the meeting that he had offered Bad Ems in the French Zone. General Clay suggested and it was agreed that the initial announcement of the establishment of the Board should be made in Berlin for psychological reasons.

Robert Murphy
  1. The source text was transmitted as an enclosure to a letter of December 17 from Ambassador Murphy to John D. Hickerson, not printed. This meeting of the Military Governors was devoted to a number of subjects, General Clay made a complete report on the meeting in his message CC–7108, December 18. Extracts of General Clay’s message covering the discussion of the draft occupation statute and the Ruhr are printed at pp. 572 and 597, respectively.↩
  2. Regarding the document under reference here, see the editorial note, infra.↩