The Safehaven program: The Allied response to Nazi post-defeat planning, 1944-1948

The Safehaven program aimed at eradicating the holdovers of Nazism in the neutral countries, as a precondition for resuming normal trade relations with the Allied powers. The most important Safehaven negotiations involved Sweden, Spain, Switzerland, Portugal, and Argentina. Sharp disagreements between the United States and Great Britain over post-war planning interfered with the proper execution of Safehaven at the diplomatic level. Basic agreements were signed with the neutrals between 1946 and 1948 which did not satisfy the initial objectives of Safehaven, but which ensured the resumption of commercial relations between the Allies and the neutrals. Primary sources for this thesis were derived from American government records at the National Archives in Washington, DC, and in Suitland, MD.