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balances accrued in Germany during the occupation period)
should also be allowed as an admissible claim, but at a
lower weighting than property losses. The reparation
settlement should be considered as clearing finally all
outstanding claims against Germany arising out of the war.
3. Restitution:
The following policy recommendations are made:
(a) In principle there should be an unlimited
obligation on Germany to restore identifiable
stolen property. In practice, however, official
efforts to locate such property will have to be con-
fined to a limited number of categories such as art
treasures, securities, machinery, rolling stock
et cetera.
(b) Looted property should be returned by a
Restitution Commission to the Government having
jurisdiction over the territory where the property
had its situs and not to the former owners indi-
vidually. The Commission should not be burdened
with the task of deciding disputes with respect to
ownership, liens, etc. Such questions, whether
intra-national, or involving two or more countries,
should be adjudicated in the place from which the
property was taken.
(c) All property transferred to Germany during
the period of German occupation should be presumed
to have been transferred under duress and accor-
dingly treated as looted property.
The British Government has been pressing in the
European Advisory Commission for the early establishment
of a Restitution Commission to cope with the complex
problems of restitution which will arise as soon as enemy
territory is occupied to any appreciable extent. This
Government has indicated its general approval of the
British proposal, subject to certain reservations.
The French have also introduced a proposal for
restitution into the European Advisory Commission.
Their