Conference on Nazi Gold Set

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook agreed Monday to convene an international conference in London later this year to try to resolve the disposition of gold and other valuables stolen by the Nazis during World War II.

In a joint statement, Albright and Cook said the conference “would allow interested parties and governments to establish a common understanding of the facts surrounding Nazi misappropriation of assets.”

U.S. State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns said the conference probably would be attended by representatives of Switzerland, Sweden and Portugal--nations that were neutral during the war and may have accepted looted gold and valuables--and Germany, in addition to the United States and Britain.