Translated material
Payment in gold
Germany has not yet repaid its debt for the First World War
The German financial agency, which resolves the problems of loans and state debts, reported unexpected news. It turns out that Germany has not yet paid for its defeat in the First World War (1914-1918). According to the Treaty of Versailles, signed in France in June 1919, the Germans were required to pay 132 billion gold marks to the victors as reparations, a huge amount at that time. The main share of payments came from Germany to countries such as Great Britain, France, USA, Italy, Belgium, and a number of other countries.Russia also appeared on the list of recipients of reparations from Germany under the Treaty of Versailles. But in April 1922, in the Italian town of Rapallo, after signing an agreement with the Germans on the restoration of diplomatic relations, Soviet Russia refused reparations, and Germany recognized the legality of the nationalization of German property in Russia.
Recently, the official representative of the German Financial Agency, Boris Knapp, told the popular German newspaper Bild that Germany will pay all debts under the Treaty of Versailles by October 3, 2010. In the past, it was assumed that this would happen earlier, but after another war - World War II - Germany received a certain reprieve in 1953 as it had lost a number of territories and was forced to make new payments. Germany's remaining debt, including interest, amounts to 56 million euros, Mr. Knapp said.
True, claimants to German debt payments from the First World War insist that these debts be paid in gold, as was written in the obligations imposed on Germany at that time. If the courts confirm this provision, it will be costly for the German taxpayer. After all, the price of gold has increased significantly during this time and continues to grow. The head of the press and public relations department of the German Embassy in Moscow, Mr. Knighthart Hefer-Wissing, in an interview with Vremya Novostey, noted: “We are confident that our debts under the Treaty of Versailles will be paid before the specified date.”