Allied Control Councils and Commissions

Abstract

The Council of Foreign Ministers which met from March 10 to April 24, 1947, failed to produce an Austrian Peace treaty. It did, however, establish a Treaty Commission to meet in Vienna on May 12, 1947, for the purpose of studying unsolved problems which were blocking treaty negotiations.During April, 1947, allied occupation authorities in Austria were chiefly concerned with 1) a draft agreement on rights and immunities of the allied forces which was postponed by the four commissioners pending study of actions taken at Moscow regarding the Austrian treaty; 2) consideration and implementation by the Executive Committee of the Austrian Government's food plan for April and May; 3) a resolution, subsequently agreed upon, which recognized that the Austrian government had the responsibility for allocating all industrial goods with the exception of explosives, and directed that the government make allocations throughout the country, transmitting quarterly allocation plans in advance to the Allied Council; 4) the question of the Austrian dual price system for goods on sale in the internal market; 5) approval of a trade agreement between Austria and Norway; 6) consideration of 25 Austrian legislative measures; and 7) denazification of university students.In May, 1947, the question of civil aviation in Austria reappeared when efforts were made by American, British and French elements of the Allied Control Commission toward allowing Austria to plan for civil aviation development. The Soviet Commissioner, however, was not willing to discuss the creation of an air office until investigation revealed that air disarmament in Austria had been completed.