Archive/File: imt/tgmwc/tgmwc-06/tgmwc-06-56.14
Last-Modified: 1997/11/20

I should like, here and now, to draw the attention of the Tribunal to
the questions touched on in this part.

In the first place, I consider it essential to remind you of the
contents of this part by repeating it. Document 446-PS,  Case
"Barbarossa", is on Page 14 of the document book submitted to the
Tribunal. I consider it essential to read out Part 2 of this case:

     (1) On the flanks of our operation, we can count upon the active
     participation of Roumania and Finland in the war against Soviet
     Russia.
     
     The Supreme Command of the German Armed Forces will, at the
     appropriate time, settle and lay down in what way the Armed
     Forces of the two countries will be subordinated to the German
     Command on their entry into the war.
     
     (2) Roumania's task will be to tie down, in co-operation with the
     group of the Armed Forces advancing there, the enemy forces
     facing her, and, for the rest, to maintain the auxiliary services
     in the rear area.
     
     (3) Finland will have to cover the advance of the German Northern
     landing group (units of the XXI Group) due to arrive from Norway,
     and then operate together with it. In addition, it will be up to
     Finland to liquidate the Russian Forces in Hango.
     
     (4) It is possible to count upon the Swedish railways and coal
     being available for the movements of the German Northern group
     not later than the beginning of the operation."
     
In the speech of the Chief Prosecutor from the U.S.S.R. -- General
Rudenko -- attention was drawn to the opening sentence of this
section:

     "On the flanks of our operation, we can count upon the active
     participation of Roumania and Finland in the war against Soviet
     Russia."
     
This justified the chief prosecutor of the U.S.S.R. in pointing out in
his speech that on 18th December, 1940 (the date of the "Barbarossa"
document), Roumania and Finland were already following in the wake of
the predatory policy of the Hitlerite conspirators.

There is only one more document which was submitted by the American
prosecution and which mentioned Germany's presumed allies in her
aggression against the U.S.S.R.

This document, numbered S 39, is entitled "Provisional Case
Barbarossa." It is, as the defendant Keitel pointed out in his
covering letter, a time-table for the preparations of  Case
"Barbarossa" after June, 1941. This time-table was confirmed by
Hitler. The text of this plan is on Page 57 of the document book. In
Part 2 of this document, entitled "Negotiations with Friendly Powers,"
we read:

     "(a) A request has been sent to Bulgaria not to reduce to any
     large extent the units stationed, for security reasons, on the
     Turkish frontier.
     
     (b) The Roumanians have begun, at the instigation of the
     Commander-in-Chief of the German troops in Roumania, a partial,
     camouflaged mobilisation in order to be able to close their
     frontiers against a presumed attack by the Russians.
     
     (c) Hungarian territory will be used for the advance of the
     Southern Army Group only in so far as it would be expedient for
     introducing German units to link up the Hungarian and Roumanian
     forces. Until the middle of June, however, no representations on
     this subject will be made to Hungary.
     
     (d) Two German divisions have entered in the Eastern part of
     Slovakia; the next ones will be unloaded in the area of Prossy.
     
                                                            [Page 256]
                                                                      
     (e) Preliminary negotiations with the Finnish general staff take
     place as from 25 May."
     
Mr. President, in order to correlate the following documents with the
testimony given by Paulus, I shall merely refer to the fact that this
witness testified to the previous preparations for military aggression
in that fortress which was Roumania, thereby proving that
corresponding measures for the reorganisation of the Roumanian Army,
founded in the image and pattern of the German Army, were taken in
September, 1940, when a special military mission was sent to Roumania.
The chief of this mission was Cavalry General Hansen. His Chief of
Staff was Major General Bauffe, his Quartermaster General Major Merke.
Major-General von Rotkirch commanded the 13th Tank Division.

The task of this military mission was the reorganisation of the
Roumanian Army and its preparation for the subsequent attack on the
Soviet Union in the spirit of  Case "Barbarossa." The preliminary
trend of this task, as Paulus has testified, was indicated to Hansen
and his Chief of Staff by the Commander-in-Chief of the Land Forces,
Field Marshal Brauchitsch.

General Hansen received directives from two sources: from the O.K.W.
where his military mission was concerned, and from the O.K.H. in all
questions dealing with the Land Forces. Directives of a military and
political nature were received only from the O.K.W. The military
mission acted as liaison between the German and the Roumanian general
staffs.

The form assumed by the agreement and, even more, the publication of
the true aims of high-ranking Fascist leaders in the country did not
always suit the satellites.

I now present, as Exhibit USSR 233, the minutes of a conversation
between Ion Antonescu and the defendant Ribbentrop, which took place
on 12th February, 1942. This document was taken from the personal
archives of Marshal Antonescu, who was captured by the advance units
of the Red Army. This document, your Honours, figures on Pages 59-62
of your document book.

In connection with Ribbentrop's speech in Budapest on the subject of
Transylvania, Antonescu makes the following annotation in the course
of this speech (last paragraph, Page 2 of the Russian text of the
document), Page 60 of the document book:

     "Without hesitation, I stressed the point that as early as the
     beginning of September, when I took over the government of the
     country, supported only by Monsieur Mihai Antonescu, I declared,
     without asking the opinion of my people, that we must follow a
     policy of adherence to the Axis Powers; I said that this was the
     only example in the history of nations when two persons dare to
     make an open declaration and to call upon their people to follow
     a policy which no doubt could only appear infamous."

When making this cynical entry, Ion Antonescu could hardly have
expected it to receive such wide publicity.

Mr. President, I intend to read into the record a long document which
will take considerable time.

THE PRESIDENT: We will adjourn now.

   (The Tribunal adjourned until 10.00 hours, 12th February, 1946.)
                                   

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