In February p>1945, the heads of the United States, Britain and the Soviet Union, Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin, held a meeting in Yalta, Crimea, the Soviet Union, but the issue of German compensation was not resolved.

Different opinions

From the summer of 194 to May 1941, Germany and Italy fought for Europe with Britain and invaded the Balkans. When Hitler invaded Yugoslavia, he launched an attack on Greece. German troops entered Greek territory along the south of Vardal River in Yugoslavia. On April 27th, 1941, Athens fell. On May 2th, German airborne troops occupied Crete after ten days of fierce fighting.

It was not until the end of 1944 that Athens ushered in the dawn of liberation. The Greek people made great sacrifices for this, with 45, people killed and 3, invading troops pinned down in Greece.

At the end of the Second World War, the allied powers began to build a post-war world system. At the Yalta Conference held in February, 1945, the leaders of the allied countries discussed such major issues as the post-war settlement of Germany, Poland, the Far East and the establishment of the United Nations.

When considering the issue of German compensation, the politicians of the Allies did not forget the dramatic changes that took place in Germany in the 2 years after World War I.. Therefore, how to deal with Germany's compensation is faced with a dilemma: on the one hand, it is necessary to weaken the production level of German industry as much as possible, so as to ensure that Germany will not rise again and threaten world peace.

On the other hand, if the degree of punishment and compensation is so heavy that the industrial level of Germany is simply not enough to meet the needs of the German people, it will probably lead to social unrest, push Germany back to the crisis-ridden situation after World War I, and once again become a huge hidden danger of world security.

On the balance of this issue, the attitude of the United States and Britain towards compensation tends to be tolerant. At the Yalta Conference, Churchill made it clear: "The ghost of starving Germany came to my mind ... Shall we sit there and say,' You deserve to starve' or try to keep them alive? If they are allowed to live, who will pay for it? If you have a horse and want it to pull, you have to feed it some food and grass. "

The Soviet Union tends to pay severe compensation. The reason is that the Soviet Union suffered more losses in the war. According to official statistics, 7 million people died in the war in the Soviet Union, and millions more were disabled. Most towns are in ruins, and a large part of villages in the Soviet Union and Europe are in ruins. For example, the coal mines in Donetsk were completely flooded, and 25 million people were completely homeless, living in caves, trenches and mud huts.

Therefore, as early as 1942, Stalin put forward the scheme of compensation in kind, especially with machine tools. At the Yalta meeting, the Soviet delegation formally raised the issue of compensation for the first time. They demanded that Germany pay a total of $2 billion, of which 5% should go to the Soviet Union, half of the compensation should be paid by the demolished factory, and the other half should be paid by the products of that year within ten years. In response to the metaphor of Churchill's horse and hay, Stalin retorted: "Don't let the horse kick you."

The attitude of the United States towards German compensation has always wavered. The United States has a strong national strength and has not been destroyed by the war. It does not expect to get a lot of compensation from Germany. It just agreed in principle to the amount of compensation of 2 billion US dollars in exchange for the support of the Soviet Union on the Polish issue.

When the British were firmly opposed to setting any specific compensation figures, Hopkins, the special assistant to the President of the United States, handed Roosevelt a note saying, "Since the Soviet side made such a big concession at this meeting, I think we should not let them down. If the British don't agree, just let them. "

After the Yalta Conference, the Allies set up a compensation committee in Moscow, which was composed of Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union, and was responsible for working out specific plans, taking the figures put forward by the Soviet Union as the basis for discussion in the initial study.

zonal compensation

The outstanding German compensation problem at Yalta Conference was solved after five months. In July 1945, the leaders of Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union held the Potsdam Conference, which established the principle of "regional compensation".

The so-called "regional compensation" principle means that the United States, Britain and the Soviet Union get war compensation from their respective occupied areas in Germany. The Soviet occupation area is small, and the territory is mainly agriculture and light industry; The western occupation area has a more developed economy and has the Ruhr area, a heavy industry base.

In fact, before and after the Potsdam Conference, four occupying countries, especially the Soviet Union, began to demand compensation in different forms, such as asking Germany to pay the occupation fee, dismantling factory equipment, confiscating German property abroad, and using German labor.

Although post-war Germany was a mess, many important machinery and equipment were still intact under a pile of rubble. In 1945, the daily output of coal industry in Ruhr area was only 25, tons, while the average daily output before the war was 4, tons.

Furthermore, before 1944, Germany made a windfall by plundering European countries, and other countries suffered more losses than Germany. During the war, 2, machine tools were removed to Germany. The industrial production capacity of Germany was greatly improved during the war. In Europe, including Britain and the Soviet Union, only Germany's total industrial output value in 1944 was higher than that in 1938.

As countries start compensation activities without authorization, American leaders argue that fair distribution among allies has become impossible. In this case, the only satisfactory solution is to let the four countries each withdraw compensation from their occupied areas. Because about 4% of the available factories are located in the Soviet-occupied area, this makes it easier to solve the problem. If another 1% of the 6% factories in the western occupied area are given to the Soviet Union, then the Soviet Union's compensation share of half of the total can be met.

The Soviet Union did not agree with this principle at first, but the United States bound the issue of compensation to Germany with the issue of Poland's western border. Only when the Soviet Union agrees to "partition compensation" will the United States make concessions on the border issue of the Soviet Union. As a result, the Soviet Union had to accept "partition compensation".

It is estimated that by 195, the Soviets had taken away fixed equipment worth 4.1 billion marks, existing products worth 6.4 billion marks, and food worth 97 million marks, or 11.47 billion marks. According to the exchange rate of four marks equal to one dollar stipulated by the Allied War Compensation Administration, the Soviets received more than $2.8 billion in compensation.

In December, 1945, at the Paris Compensation Conference, 18 western allies stipulated the method and share distribution of obtaining compensation from the western occupied areas according to the losses in the war. In total, they got $52.3 million worth of materials from the western occupied areas, of which the United States, Britain and France got $124 million, $16 million and $87 million respectively.

debt relief

Greece also participated in the negotiation of the Paris compensation conference, and enjoyed 2.75% of Class A compensation and 4.35% of Class B compensation in the distribution plan. However, Greece and other countries insist that the Paris Agreement does not exclude Germany's other compensation obligations to its allies once and for all, and they have the right to apply for compensation separately for Germany.

Not long after the implementation of the "regional compensation" policy, Germany fell into division. With the advent of the Cold War, in order to revive Germany against the Soviet Union, the United States and Britain tried their best to cut the compensation plan for the western occupied areas and constantly adjust the industrial level plan. It is precisely because of the continuous reduction of the number of demolition factories that the production capacity of the western occupied area of Germany has not been seriously weakened, and even maintained and increased to a certain extent.

in may p>1952, the federal Republic of Germany and its western allies signed the Bonn treaty, ending the military occupation of the United States, Britain and France (except Berlin), stopping the demolition and exempting the federal Republic of Germany from all compensation obligations. In order not to leave the impression of insatiable greed in the west, and at the same time to avoid further riots in the GDR due to excessive exploitation, the Soviet Union also announced in 1953 that it would give up all claims for compensation from the GDR.

At the same time, in order to integrate into the international community as soon as possible, the Federal Republic of Germany started debt negotiations with 23 countries including the United States, Britain and France in London to discuss the total foreign debt that the Federal Republic of Germany needs to pay and the amount of foreign loans it can obtain. Whether the Federal Republic of Germany can restore its credit and obtain foreign loans is at stake.

in February p>1953, after a year of negotiations, countries including Greece signed the London Debt Agreement with the Federal Republic of Germany. The total foreign debt to be repaid by the Federal Republic of Germany was reduced from 29.3 billion marks to 14.5 billion marks, with a term of 1953-1994. The total amount of German pre-war debts dropped from 8.3 billion marks to 6 billion marks, and the interest arrears in pre-war debts dropped from 4.4 billion marks to 1.4 billion marks.

judging from the economic situation from 1951 to 1952, it seems that the Federal Republic of Germany can't afford this burden. However, a few years later, the facts show that the Federal Republic of Germany can easily pay the above amount with the increasing foreign exchange income from its prosperous foreign trade. The debt delivery period stipulated in the London Debt Agreement was originally extended to 1994, but the Federal Republic of Germany repaid all the debts in advance in 1966.

At the same time, the London Debt Agreement also agreed to postpone the decision on the compensation for World War II until the reunification of Germany and the final peace agreement were finalized, but at the same time stipulated that the Federal Republic of Germany must pay compensation for the "personal and property losses" caused by Nazi Germany from 1953, and agreed to pay compensation of 6 billion marks.

From 1959 to 1964, the Federal Republic of Germany concluded a package compensation agreement with 12 countries. In 196, the Federal Republic of Germany and Greece reached a bilateral agreement to compensate 115 million marks for Nazi victims in Greece, on the condition that Germany would no longer accept claims from individuals from Greece.

In p>199, European countries including Greece signed the Paris Charter for Building a New Europe. The Paris Charter declared that the era of confrontation and division in Europe has passed, and Europe will move towards cooperation and unity from now on, and welcomed the Final Treaty on the Settlement of German Affairs. According to the treaty, the four World War II allies renounced all their rights previously held in Germany.

At this time, it has been 45 years since the end of World War II when Germany was reunified, and it is obviously inappropriate to apply for compensation again. Therefore, the Charter of Paris declares that European countries should no longer be bound by history, but should unite and move towards the future together. Germany believes that the Final Treaty and the Paris Charter have ended all legal compensation obligations related to World War II.

Civil compensation

Although Germany completed its obligation of compensation for World War II as early as the 199s. However, compensation for individuals is still in progress.

Before the end of World War II, the allies began to discuss the compensation for Nazi victims by Germany, and authorized the new German government to confiscate all the property plundered by the Nazi government first. After the war, the Control Committee began to return the confiscated property to its original owner, but it was limited to property. At that time, the compensation had not extended to the victims who suffered Nazi persecution physically and mentally.

The list of this kind of property reads like the inventory list of a waste recycling shop in batches. The property rights handled include: 1,113 church clocks, 2, barges, 11 boats, 7 locomotives, 1,67 horses and 2,8 railway wagons ...

A martial law implemented in the United States in 1947 stipulated that these properties or things should be returned to their original owners or given. Since then, this law has become the guiding principle for the German federal government to formulate a series of compensation laws.

In p>1951, Premier Adenauer summarized the position of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany as follows: "The Nazi regime committed heinous crimes in the name of all Germans, for which we are obliged to make moral and material compensation." In the same year, the German Federal Parliament issued a statement saying that Germany would compensate Jews for the material losses suffered by fascist Germany during World War II "within the limits of Germany's solvency".

In March p>1952, Germany and Israel started talks in The Hague, and on September 1th of the same year, they signed the "Luxemburg Agreement" with Israel on the issue of reparations. According to the agreement, Germany paid 3 billion marks to Israel and 45 million marks to the "Jewish Association for Demanding Material Compensation from Germany". Although this compensation was completed in the form of state-to-state, Israel actually accepted Germany's personal compensation for persecuted Jews as a country.

The most common way to implement this compensation is that the Israeli delegation in Cologne issued an order to the factory in the Federal Republic of Germany according to the instructions of the Israeli government, and the federal government paid for it, and the goods were finally shipped to Israel by the German shipping company. The federal government allocates funds twice every year on April 15th and August 15th. With the consent of the Minister of Finance, the funds are remitted to the account of the Israeli delegation in the German Federal Bank.

In addition, German citizens or foundations paid about 75 million marks to wartime workers. According to the Federal Compensation Law enacted in 1954 and the Federal Compensation Termination Law enacted in 1965, Germany paid a total of 78.4 billion marks in compensation to individuals persecuted for reasons such as race, religion, origin and ideology during the Third Reich, especially Jews.

On May 1, 1992, two years after the reunification of Germany, the Law on Compensation for Victims in Nazi-occupied Areas Following the Federal Republic of Germany was promulgated. According to the new law, Nazi victims who could not get compensation for some reason during the former Federal Republic of Germany can reapply, especially those who previously lived in GDR.

During the Nazi period, some well-known big companies in Germany used the so-called "forced labor" in disgrace. Most of them are Jews, Gypsies and Eastern Europeans from the occupied areas. The total number of "Nazi laborers" was 1-14 million, and most of them were controlled in the military factories, mines, enterprises and farms of the Third Reich.

After the founding of the Federal Republic of Germany, former Nazi laborers began to sue the big German enterprises that had enslaved and squeezed them, demanding them to pay compensation. Strong pressure from public opinion at home and abroad also forced these large enterprises to wash away their sins in the form of compensation. In order to wash away their sins, these big companies also actively participate in compensation.

In p>1999, Chancellor Schroeder and Clinton jointly initiated a public foundation called "Commemoration, Responsibility and Future". The sponsors of the fund include Volkswagen, Ruhr Coal and BASF. The German government and German enterprises donated 1 billion marks to the Foundation to pay compensation to the workers enslaved by Germany in wartime, including the negligence compensation of German enterprises in wartime.

in January, 2, the cabinet of the german government began to discuss the formulation of a compulsory labor compensation law to regulate the operation of the memorial, responsibility and future foundation. In July of that year, representatives from Germany, the United States, Israel, Russia, Poland, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Belarus and other Eastern European countries signed the Nazi labor compensation agreement in Berlin, Germany. This is the final document signed by the German government and relevant countries on Nazi workers' compensation after a year and a half of negotiations.

German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said at the signing ceremony that the signing of the agreement marks the end of the last chapter of Nazi evil history, and Germany's historical and moral responsibilities can stand the test in this agreement.