Foreign Relations of the United States, 1951, European Security and the German Question, Volume III, Part 2

762A.0221/4–1951

Agreement Between the High Commissioners of France, the United Kingdom, and the United States¹

[IGG/P(51) 55 Final]

[Bonn–Petersberg, April 3, 1951.]

Agreement Concerning Industrial Controls

The High Commissioners of France, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, duly authorised thereto by their respective Governments, hereby conclude on behalf of those Governments the following agreement concerning industrial controls in the French, United Kingdom, and United States Areas of Occupation in Germany.

article i

1. The provisions of this Agreement shall be reviewed on the request of any two of the Governments parties to the Agreement and in any event not later than 31st December, 1951.

2. Except as may be subsequently agreed among the Governments parties to this Agreement, the prohibitions laid down in this Agreement shall remain in force until the peace settlement.

3. Except as may be subsequently agreed among the Governments parties to this Agreement, the limitations laid down in this Agreement shall remain in force until 1st January, 1953, or until the peace settlement, whichever is the earlier, and thereafter as may be agreed.

article ii

Except with the authorisation of the Allied High Commission the manufacture, production, installation, import, export, transport, storage, possession, ownership or use of any of the following articles or products is prohibited:

(a) items listed in Annex A to this Agreement;

(b) primary magnesium.

article iii

Materials, products, facilities and equipment relating to atomic energy shall continue to be subject to Allied High Commission legislation.

article iv

1. The manufacture of electronic valves shall be unrestricted in respect of types included in a list of permitted types as established, and modified as required, by the Allied High Commission. These permitted types shall not exceed 50 watts anode dissipation, or a frequency of 250 megacycles per second.

2. The manufacture of electronic valves included in the categories listed in Annex B to this Agreement is prohibited. This Annex is subject to review and revision by the Allied High Commission.

3. The manufacture of all other categories or specific types of electronic valves is prohibited except under licence from the Allied High Commission.

article v

1. Control shall be maintained over capacity in the following industries:—

(a) Steel

(b) Electric arc and high frequency furnace steel

(c) Shipbuilding

(d) Synthetic rubber

(e) Synthetic petrol, oil and lubricants, produced directly or indirectly from coal or brown coal

(f) Ball and roller bearings, except equipment only capable of producing non-precision bearings.

2. No enterprise shall be permitted, except under license from the Allied High Commission, to increase the productive capacity of any of its plant or equipment that is engaged or partly engaged in the industries listed in this Article, or of the industry as a whole, whether it is proposed to effect the increase by extension of existing facilities, the construction of new facilities, or the addition of new equipment. Such licences shall not be granted unless the Allied High Commission are satisfied with the arrangements made for the disposal of the capacity replaced.

article vi

1. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2 of this Article the production of crude steel shall be limited to 11.1 million tons a year.

2. The Allied High Commission will allow crude steel to be produced outside the foregoing limitation where this will facilitate the defence effort.

article vii

1. The construction and acquisition of ships which include the military features, characteristics and equipment listed in Annex C to this Agreement and the modification of ships to include such features, characteristics and equipment shall be prohibited except under licence from the Allied High Commission.

2. The term “acquisition” as used in this Article includes bare-boat chartering.

article viii

Nothing in this Agreement shall be interpreted as impairing or reducing the powers with which the Military Security Board is vested.

article ix

This Agreement shall come into force from the date of signature and shall replace the Agreement concerning Prohibited and Limited Industries approved by the Foreign Ministers of France, the United Kingdom and the United States and signed by the Military Governors of the French, United Kingdom and United States Zones of Occupation in Germany in April, 1949.

annex a

Group I

(a) All weapons including atomic means of warfare or apparatus of all calibres and natures capable of projecting lethal or destructive projectiles, liquids, gases or toxic substances, their carriages and mountings.

(b) All projectiles for the above and their means of projection or propulsion.

(c) All military means of destruction including but not limited to grenades, bombs, torpedoes, mines, depth mines, depth and demolition charges and self-propelled charges, all types of fuses therefor and all apparatus for the guiding, control and operation thereof including timing, sensing and homing devices.

(d) All military cutting or piercing weapons.

Group II

(a) All vehicles specially equipped or designed for military purposes including but not limited to tanks, armoured cars, tank-carrying trailers and armoured railway rolling stock.

(b) Armour of all types for military purposes.

Group III

(a) Instruments and devices of the following classes, designed for military purposes, irrespective of the form of energy or the part of the spectrum used:

(i) Range-finding apparatus of all kinds:

(ii) Aiming, guiding and computing devices for fire control;

(iii) Locating devices of all kinds;

(iv) Instruments for observation of fire;

(v) Instruments for the remote control of objects.

(b) All signalling and inter-communication equipment and installations specially designed for military purposes; all apparatus intended specifically for the purpose of producing radio interference.

Group IV

(a) Warships of all classes. All ships and floating equipment specially designed for war purposes including the servicing of warships. All ships designed or constructed for conversion into warships or for military use.

(b) Special machinery, equipment and installations which in time of peace are normally used solely in warships.

(c) Submersible craft of all kinds; submersible devices of all kinds, designed for military purposes. Special equipment pertaining to these craft and devices.

(d) All military landing devices.

(e) Material, equipment and installations for the military defence of coastal areas and harbours.

Group V

(a) Aircraft of all types, heavier or lighter than air; with or without means of propulsion, and all auxiliary equipment, including aircraft engines and component parts, accessories and spare parts specifically designed for aircraft use.

(b) Ground equipment and installations for servicing, testing or aiding the operation of aircraft, including but not limited to catapults, winches and beacons. Material for the rapid construction or preparation of airfields.

Group VI

All drawing, specifications, designs, models and reproduction directly relating to the development, manufacture, testing or inspection of the war material, or to experiments or research in connection with war material.

Group VII

(a) Machine tools or other manufacturing equipment specifically designed for the development, manufacture, testing and inspection of weapons, ammunition or other war materials listed in this Annex.

(b) Attachments, devices, tools or other objects having no normal peacetime use and specifically designed to convert or adapt machine tools or other manufacturing equipment to the development, manufacture, testing and inspection of weapons, ammunition or other war materials listed in this Annex.

Group VIII

(a) (i) Explosives and accessories.

(ii) Double base propellants (i.e. nitrocellulose propellants containing nitroglycerine, diethyleneglycol dinitrate or analogous substances).

(iii) Single base propellants for any weapons.

(iv) Nitroguanidine.

(v) Chemicals particularly useful as poison war gasses (including liquids and solids customarily included in this term).

(vi) Hydrogen peroxide of 37% concentration or higher.

(vii) Hydrazine hydrate.

(viii) Alkyl nitrates.

(ix) Other chemicals particularly useful as rocket fuels.

(x) Highly toxic products from bacteriological or plant sources, with the exception of those bacteriological and plant products which are used for therapeutic purposes.

(xi) White phosphorous.

(xii) Incendiaries and incendiary compositions, including but not limited to thermites and gell fuels.

(b) All special means for individual and collective defense used in peace exclusively by Armed Forces.

Group IX

All apparatus, devices and material specially designed for training and instructing personnel in the use, handling, manufacture and maintenance of war material.

Group X

Spare parts, accessories and component parts of the articles and products listed in this annex.

annex b

Categories of Electronic Valves the Manufacture of which is Prohibited

(i) Velocity modulated valves, e.g. Klystrons.

(ii) Magnetrons.

(iii) Valves employing direct coupling of the electron stream to the output circuit.

(iv) Valves designed mechanically to fit wave guide, cavity, coaxial or parallel wire line resonant circuits or having such circuits built into the valves.

(v) Memory or storage valves.

(vi) Triggered spark-gap valves.

(vii) Subminiature valves (i.e. valves capable of being passed through a hole one-half inch in diameter, or specially designed to withstand great acceleration or the shock of departure of projectiles).

(viii) Cathode ray tubes, except those specifically designed and produced for television receiver purposes.

(ix) Germanium, silicon, and other semiconductor crystal rectifiers, or modifications thereof capable of operation at radio frequencies.

(x) Special purpose valves having no known commercial application or valves designed for optimum performance above 250 megacycles.

annex c

Features, Characteristics and Equipment which may not be Constructed or Installed in any Ship except under License from the Allied High Commission

(a) Any special features or characteristics which render it readily convertible:—

(i) for amphibious assault operations;

(ii) to an aircraft carrier or for operating aircraft;

(iii) to a repair or depot ship for submarines, aircraft or coastal forces craft;

(iv) to a fighter direction vessel;

(v) to any other combatant or naval auxiliary type of vessel.

(b) Any of the following weapons, equipment and material:—

(i) all items listed in Annex A of this Agreement (except radio direction and position finders and radar equipment of normal commercial marine type);

(ii) paravanes;

(iii) minesweeping gear of any description;

(iv) catapults for aircraft launching;

(v) rocket or missile launching devices, except such as may be in normal commercial usage for emergency signalling and rescue purposes;

(vi) smoke-making equipment or apparatus of special devices for concealment purposes;

(vii) high concentration hydrogen peroxide or special submarine fuels or supplies;

(viii) depth sounding gear and radio and gyrocompass equipment which do not conform to normal commercial marine types.

(c) Any special fittings or special structures readily adaptable for mounting, carrying or storing any of the items listed in paragraph (b) above.

(d) Any of the following machinery or features of ship design, and provisions therefor, which in relation to the type of vessel in which they are installed, do not conform to normal commercial marine practice, or which in time of peace are normally used solely in warships, and which in the opinion of the Military Security Board also constitute a security threat:—

(i) main and auxiliary machinery, notably that with characteristics such as would give abnormally long range in miles at speeds other than service speed or that which would result in speed substantially greater than that normal to the type of vessel and for the services intended;

(ii) gas jet propulsion or atomic propulsion;

(iii) auxiliary electrical generating machinery and equipment of capacity in excess of that normal to the type of vessel;

(iv) cargo lifting gear in excess of that normal to the type of vessel;

(v) subdivision significantly different from that normal to type of vessel;

(vi) evaporators of capacity in excess of that normal to the type of vessel and for the services intended;

(vii) fuel and fresh water capacity in excess of that normal to the type of vessel and for the services intended;

(viii) hull and deck openings in excess of those normal to the type of vessel;

(ix) unobstructed deck space in excess of that normal to the type of vessel.

1. The source text was sent as an enclosure to a circular airgram to American diplomatic offices at NATO posts, dated April 19, not printed (762A.0221/4–1951).