The West German Government took formal notice today of the completion of the West German-Israel reparations agreement signed at Luxembourg, in 1952, with publication by the Ministry of Economics of a statement of the payments made to the State of Israel under that pact, and to former German nationals also resettled in Israel under various West German restitution and compensation laws.
The Government statement signaled completion of the reparations payments of three billion marks ($750,000,000) it had undertaken in the Luxembourg agreement. The Ministry reported payments to Israel in goods and services of 3,450,000,000 marks ($861,250,000). These payments, it said, had permitted resettlement of about 500,000 Jewish refugees in Israel.
In addition to the reparations payments to Israel, the Ministry reported, West Germany had provided goods and services to the value of 2,400,000,000 marks ($600,000,000) on account of compensation and other claims of former German citizens resettled in Israel.
The Ministry noted that, of the reparations to Israel, 1,500,000,000 marks ($375,000,000) was paid to Britain by West Germany out of German sterling credits, to cover the shipment of oil to Israel. The balance of the reparations payments covered delivery of 60 ships, machinery and other capital goods and equipment and services.
The Ministry of Economics pointed to a considerable increase in German-Israel commercial trade following the signing of the reparations agreement. Israeli exports to West Germany went from 400,000 marks ($100,000) in 1953, to 206,000,000 marks ($51,500,000) in 1965. German exports to Israel rose from 20,600,000 marks ($5,150,000) in 1953 to 256,000,000 marks ($64,000,000) in 1965. These figures do not include arms deliveries to Israel made under an undisclosed arrangement.
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