Austrian state treaty and national socialism: an unevitable relationship

This article argues that the State Treaty should be understood as inextricably linked with National Socialism and that the attempt to blur this connection is itself an aspect of the evasions of post-war Austria. An analysis of the changes in the text of the treaty, including articles declared,obsolete" in 1955, seeks to demonstrate both the connections and the evasions. The article discusses in particular the clauses relating to the extradition of war criminals, the dissolution of Nazi organisations, and the protection of Slovene and Croat minorities.