ARTICLE 250.—Germany confirms the surrender of all material handed over to the Allied and Associated Powers in accordance with the armistice agreement of the 11th November, 1918, and subsequent armistice agreements, and recognizes the title of the Allied and Associated Powers to such material.

There shall be credited to the German Government against the sums due from it to the Allied and Associated Powers for reparation, the value, as assessed by the Reparation Commission referred to in Article 233 of Part VIII. (reparation) of the present treaty, of the material handed over in accordance with Article 7 of the armistice agreement of the 11th November, 1918, Article 3 of the armistice agreement of the 16th January, 1919, as well as of any other material handed over in accordance with the armistice agreement of the 11th November, 1918, and of subsequent armistice agreements, for which, as having non-military value, credit should, in the judgment of the Reparation Commission, be allowed to the German Government.

Property belonging to the Allied and Associated Governments or their nationals restored or surrendered under the armistice agreements in specie shall not be credited to the German Government.

ARTICLE 251.—The priority of the charges established by Article 248 shall, subject to the qualifications made below, be as follows:

  1. The cost of the armies of occupation as defined under Article 249 during the armistice and its extensions;
  2. The cost of any armies of occupation as defined under Article 249 after the coming into force of the present treaty;
  3. The cost of reparation arising out of the present treaty or any treaties or conventions supplementary thereto;
  4. The cost of all other obligations incumbent on Germany under the armistice conventions or under this treaty or any treaties or conventions supplementary thereto.

The payment for such supplies of food and raw material for Germany and such other payments as may be judged by the Allied and Associated Powers to be essential to enable Germany to meet her obligations in respect of reparation will have priority to the extent and upon the conditions which have been or may be determined by the Governments of the said powers.

ARTICLE 252.—The right of each of the Allied and Associated Powers to dispose of enemy assets and property within its jurisdiction at the date of the coming into force of the present treaty is not affected by the foregoing provisions.

ARTICLE 253.—Nothing in the foregoing provisions shall prejudice in any manner charges or mortgages lawfully effected in favor of the Allied and Associated Powers or their nationals respectively, before the date at which a state of war existed between Germany and the Allied and Associated Powers concerned, by the German Empire or its constituent States, or by German nationals on assets in their ownership at that date.

ARTICLE 254.—The powers to which German territory is ceded shall, subject to the qualifications made in Article 255, undertake to pay:

1. A portion of the debt of the German Empire as it stood on the 1st August, 1914, calculated on the basis of the ratio between the average for the three financial years 1911, 1912, 1913, of such revenues of the ceded territory and the average for the same years of such revenues of the whole German Empire as in the judgment of the Reparation Commission are best calculated to represent the relative ability of the respective territories to make payments.