On 15 May 1955, the Austrian State Treaty was signed, thereby re-establishing Austria as a free, independent, and democratic sovereign state after World War II. The treaty was signed by the Allied occupying powers (the United States, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and France) and the Austrian government, and officially ended the joint foreign occupation of Austria. All of the participating nations would come to ratify the treaty on 27 July, and within three months, all Allied troops would have been withdrawn from Austrian soil.
Marshall Georgi Zhukov, at the time the Soviet Minister of Defense, had to submit a plan informing the Central Committee of the CPSU of the need to carry out the withdrawal of forces, but also offer an idea of what to do with the 40,000 or so troops. Austria was an important location for each of the Allies, not least of which the Soviets – it allowed them to maintain communications, supply, and intelligence lifelines within direct proximity to their Western counterparts. Additionally, Moscow also used its occupation zone in eastern Austria to leverage diplomatic concessions and counter Western influence in Central Europe. The withdrawal of the Soviet Central Group of Forces from Austria would create a significant gap that could shift the Cold War balance in its early days.
But Zhukov had a plan. By taking the Central Group of Forces out of Austria and logistically and politically restructuring them across strategic locations in the newly formed Warsaw Pact host countries, he could ensure that these new deployment locations would be permanent – well, as permanent as the Warsaw Pact itself. Just as important, however, the Soviets would be able to broaden its espionage footprint against the West while keeping a close eye on the leadership of the Warsaw Pact countries. Zhukov’s plan envisioned not only maintaining the Central Group of Forces, but also the creation of a Northern and Southern Group of Forces.
Zhukov sent his Top Secret missive to the CPSU on 6 June 1955 – a date of some significance, as it coincides with the day that the Warsaw Pact officially came into force. This letter, until today, has never been published in an official or mainstream English translation. While many declassified Soviet documents from this era have been translated by entities like the Wilson Center’s Cold War International History Project (CWIHP) or are referenced in the U.S. Department of State’s Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS) series, this specific internal letter has remained untranslated in the public domain until this version became available.
Enjoy!
Memorandum from G.K. Zhukov to the CPSU Central Committee Regarding the Withdrawal of Soviet Troops from Austria
6 June 1955
Top Secret
I hereby submit the views of the USSR Ministry of Defense regarding the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Austria.
The Central Group of Forces is currently stationed in Austria, comprising:
— Headquarters of the Central Group of Forces: 1,507 military personnel and 308 civilian employees;
— Ground Forces: one rifle division, one mechanized division, and one anti-aircraft artillery division, along with support units, rear-service units and establishments, and commandant’s offices. Total strength of the Ground Forces: 29,794 military personnel and 1,547 civilian employees;
— Air Force: Headquarters of the 59th Air Army, two fighter aviation divisions, an independent reconnaissance aviation regiment, and support and rear-service units. Total strength of the Air Force: 7,502 military personnel and 816 civilian employees.
The total authorized strength of Soviet troops stationed in Austria is 38,803 military personnel and 2,671 civilian employees.
In addition, there are currently Soviet units and establishments in Austria belonging to other ministries (special government communications units, State Bank offices), with a total strength of 1,817 military personnel and 35 civilian employees.
The USSR Ministry of Defense considers it necessary that Soviet troops withdrawn from Austria be stationed within the territories of the people’s democracies, in areas that allow for their deployment along the same operational axis.
This consideration is dictated by the following factors:
— first, under the Protocol of the Warsaw Conference, the Soviet Union committed to maintaining a specific number of divisions within the territories of the people’s democracies to bolster their defense; if our troops were to be withdrawn from Austria to the Soviet Union, the number of these divisions would decrease;
— second, the Central Group of Forces currently covers the vital Vienna–Lvov operational axis with its entire force. Diverting any portion of these forces away from this axis would sharply weaken the defensive capabilities of vital areas in the southwest of our country.
Accordingly, the USSR Ministry of Defense plans to withdraw the formations, units, and establishments of the Central Group of Forces stationed in Austria as follows:
— The Headquarters of the Central Group of Forces, one rifle division, one mechanized division, one anti-aircraft artillery division, as well as support units and the Group’s rear-service units and establishments, are to be withdrawn to the territory of Czechoslovakia. In doing so, the Headquarters of the Central Group of Forces is to be reorganized from a front-level to an army-level establishment.
In total, 29,518 military personnel and 1,546 civilian employees will be withdrawn from Austria to Czechoslovakia as part of our troops;
— One fighter aviation division, one independent reconnaissance aviation regiment, and aviation support and maintenance units are to be withdrawn to the territory of Hungary.
The Headquarters of the 59th Air Army is to be reorganized into the Headquarters of a mixed aviation corps—with the minimum necessary rear-service support—which will incorporate the fighter and bomber aviation divisions based in Hungary and the fighter aviation division being transferred from Austria. The corps headquarters is to be stationed in Hungary.
In total, 3,661 military personnel and 365 civilian employees will be withdrawn from Austria to Hungary as part of our Air Force;
— One fighter aviation division is to be withdrawn to the territory of Poland.
In total, 2,662 military personnel and 275 civilian employees will be withdrawn from Austria to Poland. The remaining 2,962 military personnel and 485 civilian employees will be transported from Austria to the Soviet Union.
The question of redeploying our troops from Austria to the territories of Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and Poland has been coordinated with the military commands of those countries.
I request that this be reviewed and approved.
G. ZHUKOV
AP RF. F.3. Op.64. D.21. Ll. 11-14. Original. Typescript.
Translation © 2026 by Michael Estes and TranslatingHistory.org
