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Ext 6116/46(S) 'Secret Weekly Political Intelligence Summaries, nos 356-416, August 1946-November 1947' [‎4r] (7/978)

The record is made up of 1 file (478 folios). It was created in 6 Sep 1946-14 Nov 1947. It was written in English. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .

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3
Communists, Schumacher has returned to
Germany with renewed insistence on the
importance of an independent attitude
despite the need for American economic
aid. The Socialist Unity Party has replied
to General Clay with abusive references to
‘ ‘ racial discrimination ’ ’ allegedly
practised in the General’s home State of
Georgia and with righteous indignation at
the ‘ k witch hunt ” in Hollywood.
The Bi-Zonal Authorities have had a
sharp Anglo-U.S. reprimand for their
unreliable food returns. A request for
increased fat imports has been turned down
since German figures are unacceptable. An
Allied letter stated that either an “ un
conscionable proportion ” of production
was going on the black market or else Ger
man statistics badly misrepresented the
situation. Little more than 50 per cent, of
last year’s butter supply was brought under
distribution control and in North Rhine-
Westphalia the figure was only 32 per cent.
The figures illustrate vividly an utter
inability on the part of Germans to help
themselves.” The Bi-Zonal Economic
Council announced on the 30th October
that it had secured a supply of consumer
goods from U.S. Army stocks. A member
pointed out however that part of the first
consignment to reach Bremen had already
turned up on the black market.
The French Government’s intention of
introducing French currency into the Saar
by mid-November was communicated to
H.M. Government on the 28th October.
This is a logical step after the introduction
of a special Saar mark in June of this
year, but it anticipates formal approval for
the economic union of the Saar with France
and there appears to be no valid economic
reason to taking it at this stage. H.M.
Government are not opposed in principle
to the transfer but have always made it
clear that it must be subject to agreement
on the questions of reparations and to the
exact delimitation of the present frontier.
The U.S. Government may perhaps react
unfavourably since they are understood to
have made their approval conditional on
French agreement to join the Bi-Zonal
fusion.
AUSTRIA
Assuming that they will be invited to
send a delegation to the forthcoming Con
ference of Foreign Ministers, the Austrian
Government have decided that their dele
gation shall be headed (as at Moscow) by
Foreign Minister Dr. Gruber. They have,
however, arranged that Dr. Gruber will be
34480
accompanied by Dr. Waldbrunner, one of
the leading politico-economists of the
Socialist Party who was the first Austrian
Political Representative in Moscow. The
Government are thereby avoiding any
repetition of the Socialist criticism of the
shortcomings of the Austrian delegation
to the Moscow Conference on the ground
of exclusive People’s Party leadership.
The U.K. and U.S. Governments have
protested to the Soviet Government against
the Soviet seizure in August of the Anglo-
U.S.-owned Lobau oil refinery (see Weekly
Summary No. 404). The British Note
denies the Soviet claim to regard the re
finery as a German asset either on the basis
of Law No. 5 of the Control Commission
for Germany or on the ground that the
funds used in its construction were a Ger
man instrument. The Note emphasises that
Law No. 5 is a purely vesting law placing
certain property under the control of the
German External Property Commission
and not having the purpose of allocating
property to any Allied Power. Further,
all the money used to finance the concern
came from the working funds of the
founding companies : the Anglo-Petroleum
Company and Socony Vacuum Oil Co. Inc.
The Note concludes that the action of the
Soviet Government in taking over the
properties of the Oesterreichische
Mineraloelwerke as German reparations
means in effect the payment of reparations
to the Soviet Union by British and
American, and not German, nationals.
From the 23rd to 26th October, the
Austrian Socialist Party (SPO) held its
third Congress since the end of the war.
The highlight of the proceedings was the
“Action Programme” outlined by Vice-
Chancellor Dr. Shaerf and frankly de
scribed by him as “ a programme for the
near future in which we have laid down
what we shall do when we get a majority
vote in elections and come to power.” The
programme called for economic and social
reforms, including the execution and ex
tension of the nationalisation programme
and a strengthening of the central ad
ministration at the expense of the pro
vinces. This last proposal has been
strongly criticised by the People’s Party
(OVP) as an attempt to pave the way for
a one-party dictatorship. According io an
unconfirmed report, Nationalrat Dr. Pitter-
mann (a prominent member of the SPO
Executive) told a closed session that his
Party intended to press for new elections
soon. Herr Pittermann is known to
represent a group within the SPO which,
since the June crisis (Figl-Fischer talks)
b 2

About this item

Content

This file contains a set of Weekly Political Intelligence Summaries published by the Foreign Office. The summaries are numbered, and begin from 356 at the back of the file, and end with number 416 at the front. The weekly reports contain military and political intelligence spanning all theatres of the Second World War and its immediate aftermath, and are divided in to sections by geographic region.

Extent and format
1 file (478 folios)
Arrangement

The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the front to the rear of the file.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 480; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio.A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.

Written in
English in Latin script
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Ext 6116/46(S) 'Secret Weekly Political Intelligence Summaries, nos 356-416, August 1946-November 1947' [‎4r] (7/978), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/1167, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100066445302.0x000008> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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