11.07.1959
The German Embassy is honored to inform the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg that the German Federal Government has declared its agreement to the following agreements reached on May 30 in a meeting between representatives of the Grand Ducal Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the German Ambassador regarding the final burial of German war dead in Luxembourg.
1.) The Luxembourg government agrees that all German dead buried in Luxembourg shall be reburied in the already existing Sandweiler Cemetery, with the exception of the dead in the Clausen Cemetery.
2.) The German dead in these cemeteries are granted a permanent right to rest.
3.) For the exhumation of the dead and for the re-interment in Sandweiler, the Grand Ducal government will provide the necessary labor for the excavation work.
4.) It also takes over the transport of corpses from their original place of burial in Sandweiler.
5.) In Sandweiler, it takes over the dead for re-embedding and levels the terrain after the re-embedding is complete.
These services, in accordance with the above articles, are provided free of charge.
6.) The German government will provide the Luxembourg government, at its expense, with a team of workers of appropriate strength to undertake the recovery and identification of the dead.
7.) It will also provide, at its expense, the casings in which the remains will be recovered, transported and reburied.
8.) The German government will finally design the cemetery at its own expense after the completion of the reburials, and on the basis of the experience gained over many years, in such a way that the maintenance of the newly created facility requires the lowest possible costs.
9.) The German government will agree with the Luxembourg government on the design of the cemetery and submit the final plans for approval.
10.) The Luxembourg government will take over the maintenance of the cemetery free of charge for an initial period of one year after completion of the expansion.
Maintenance includes any replanting that is not necessary, as well as the upkeep of the crosses and any other structures. After this one-year period has expired, both governments will make final agreements regarding further arrangements.
This also applies to the cemetery in Clausen, which, like Sandweiler, is being restored.
11.) The German government is authorized to import to Luxembourg free of customs duties and other fees all materials necessary for the expansion of the cemetery, insofar as they cannot be procured in Luxembourg, as well as tools and works of art.
12.) The transfer of German war dead to Germany at the request of their relatives is subject to the approval of the Luxembourg Minister of the Interior. Approval shall only be granted upon presentation of a certificate issued by the German War Graves Commission, providing exact proof of the grave.
The German Legation avails itself of this opportunity to convey to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg the expression of its distinguished consideration.
Luxembourg, June 23, 1952
Copy: Kassel, January 6, 1953; B/-/K