Speech #810301691

Section 2 of this bill provides that the agreements must be made in accordance with the policy of the United States to eliminate German assets and enemy interests in these properties and see to it that these interests go to the countries involved. Section 3 involves a knotty problem. One of the problems in all these bills was to define the meaning of the words "enemy national." Article 21 of the Brussels agreement fixes a cutoff date of September 1. 1939. therefore. there are excluded those refugees who were required to leave Germany and Austria subsequent to September 1. 1939. These people were never enemies of the United States. they were never sympathizers of Germany. but they were required because of either religious or political beliefs to leave these nations. This paragraph does not make it mandatory. but directs the President of the United States in future negotiations to use every possible effort to accord these people equal treatment to that accorded United States nationals.