REPLY OF THE SOVIET DELEGATION TO

THE STATEMENT OF THE U.S.A. DELEGATION

ON THE TREATY WITH AUSTRIA

Made at the Sitting

of the Council of Foreign Ministers

April U, 1947

Throughout the discussion of the Austrian treaty the
Soviet delegation has exerted its efforts to achieve agree-
ment. This explains why the Soviet delegation withdrew
a number of fully warranted proposals which it had put
forward. It also stated that it was prepared to seek agree-
ment upon the other points of the treaty which still
remained unsettled.
Al the same time the Soviet delegation has repeatedly
stated that Article 35, dealing with German assets in Aus-
tria, and Article 42, which is connected wdth it, are of
particular importance to the Soviet Union.
Article 35 and the issues connected with it are impor-
tant because it has a bearing on Germany's reparation
obligations. For the Soviet Union, a great part of whose
territory suffered German occupation, attended by tremen-
dous devastation and the plundering of millionls of families,
the receipt of reparations from Germany |s extremely
important and reflects the lawful demand of the entire
Soviet people.
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