Twenty-First Day: Monday, 17th December, 1945
[Page 4]
Under this directive, defendant Goering established the
Economic Executive Staff East, which was directly
responsible to him, and under it created the Economic Staff
East. The Economic Staff East, in turn, was subdivided into
four groups: The Chief of the Economic Staff, Group LA,
Group W, and Group M. I now quote from Page 2, Lines 7-9 of
the English text; in the German text it is at Page 7, Lines
7-9. I quote:--
The underscoring in the English text merely reflects the
underscoring in the original.
The document begins with a recitation of facts pertaining to
the production of agricultural products in the Soviet Union.
It states that the grain surplus of Russia is determined by
the level of domestic consumption and that this fact affords
the basis upon which the planners must predicate their
actions and economic policy. I now quote from the sixth and
seventh paragraphs of Page 2 of the English text. The German
text is the last three lines of Page 3, and the first five
lines of Page 4. I quote:--
Therefore, an isolation of the black soil areas will in
any case place greater or lesser surpluses in these
regions at our disposal. The consequences will be
cessation of supplies to the entire forest zone,
including the essential industrial centres of Moscow
and Leningrad."
1. All industry in the deficit area, particularly the
manufacturing industries in the Moscow and Leningrad
regions as absolute minimum necessary to supply the
bare needs of the people in these particular regions,
as well as the Ural industrial regions will be
abandoned. It may be assumed that these regions today
absorb an annual five to ten million tons from the food
production zone. [Page 5]
3. No further exception with a view to preserving one
or the other industrial region or industrial enterprise
must be permitted.
4. Industry can only be preserved insofar as it is
located in the surplus region. This applies, apart from
the above-mentioned oil field regions in the Caucasus,
particularly to the heavy industries in the Donesz
District (Ukraine). Only the future will show to what
extent it will prove possible to maintain in full these
industries, and in particular the Ukrainian
manufacturing industries, after the withdrawal of the
food surplus required by Germany.
(a) Production in the forest belt (the food-deficit
area) will become 'naturalised,' similar to the events
during the World War and the Communist tendencies of
the war, etc., viz: agriculture in that territory will
begin to become a mere 'home production.' The result
will be that the planting of products destined for the
market, such as, in particular, flax and hemp, will be
discontinued, and the area used therefor will be taken
over for products for the producer (grain, potatoes,
etc.). Moreover, discontinuance of fodder deliveries to
that area will lead to the collapse of the dairy
production and of pig-producing in that territory.
(b) Germany is not interested in the maintenance of the
productive power of these territories, except for
supplying the troops stationed there. The population,
as in the old days, will utilise arable land for
growing its own food. It is useless to expect grain or
other surpluses to be produced. Only after many years
can these extensive regions be intensified to an extent
that they might produce genuine surpluses. The
population of these areas, in particular the urban
population, will have to face most serious distress
from famine. It will be necessary to divert the
population into the Siberian spaces. Since rail
transport is out of the question, this too, will be an
extremely difficult problem.
(c) In this situation, Germany will only draw
substantial advantages by quick, non-recurrent seizure,
i.e., it will be vitally necessary to make the entire
flax harvest available for German needs, not only the
fibers but also the oleaginous seeds.
It will also be necessary to utilise for German
purposes the livestock which has no fodder base of its
own, i.e., it will be necessary to seize livestock
holdings immediately, and to make them available to the
troops not only for the moment but in the long run, and
also for exportation to Germany. Since fodder supplies
will be cut off, pig and cattle holdings in these areas
will of necessity drastically [Page 6]
I skip now to Line 29 of Page 4 of the English text,
beginning with the underscored words "in future", and quote
to Line 48. In the German text it is at Page 8, third line
from the bottom, continuing to Line 17 of Page 9.
It follows from all that has been said that the German
administration in these territories may well attempt to
mitigate the consequences of the famine which
undoubtedly will take place, and to accelerate the
return to primitive agricultural conditions. An attempt
might be made to intensify cultivation in these areas
by expanding the acreage under potatoes or other
important food crops giving a high yield. However,
these measures will not avert famine. Many tens of
millions of people in this area will become redundant
and will either die or have to emigrate to Siberia. Any
attempt to save the population there from death by
starvation by importing surpluses from the black soil
zone would be at the expense of supplies to Europe. It
would reduce Germany's staying power in the war and
would undermine Germany's and Europe's power to resist
the blockade. This must be clearly and absolutely
understood."
Germany's food situation in the third year of war
demands imperatively that the Wehrmacht, in all its
provisioning, shall not live off Greater German
territory or that of incorporated or friendly areas
from which this territory receives imports. This
minimum aim, the provisioning of the Wehrmacht from
enemy territory in the third year, and if necessary in
later years, must be attained at any price. This means
that one-third of the Wehrmacht must be fully
provisioned by French deliveries to the army of
occupation. The remaining two-thirds (and even slightly
more in view of the present size of the Wehrmacht) must
without exception be provisioned from the Eastern
territory." [Page 7]
It is impossible to state this alternative in
sufficiently hard and severe terms." [
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(Part 2 of 16)
[CAPTAIN SAM HARRIS continues]
"Group LA. (Functions of nutrition and agriculture, the
economy of all agricultural products, provision of
supplies for the Army, in co-operation with the army
groups concerned.)"
I next offer in evidence Document EC-126, which is Exhibit
USA 316. This is a report dated 23rd May, 1941, which was
before the invasion of the Soviet Union. It was found among
the captured files of the O.K.W. It is entitled, "Economic
Policy Directives for Economic Organisation East,
Agricultural Group." It was prepared by the Economic Staff
East, Group LA, the Agricultural Group, which, as shown by
the exhibit introduced a moment ago, was an important part
of the organisation which defendant Goering established to
formulate plans for the economic administration of Russia.
"The surplus territories are situated in the black soil
district (that is in the South and South-East) and in
the Caucasus. The deficit areas are principally located
in the Forest Zone of the North.
Next, I quote from the last 11 lines of Page 2 and all of
Page 3 of the English text. The German text begins in the
middle of line 6 of Page 5 and continues through to line 29
of Page 6. I quote:
"This -- the cessation of supplies -- means:
2. The Trans-Caucasian oil district will have to be
excepted, although it is a deficit area. This source of
oil, cotton, manganese, copper, silk and tea must
continue to be supplied with food in any case, for
special political and economic reasons.
The following consequences result from this situation, which
has received the approval of the highest authorities, since
it is in accord with the political tendencies (preservation
of the Little Russians, preservation of the Caucasus, of the
Baltic provinces, of White Russia, to the prejudice of the
Great Russians):
"I. For the forest belt:
decline in the near future. If they are not seized by
the Germans at an early date, they will be slaughtered
by the population for their own use, without Germany
getting anything out of it."
That is the end of that particular quotation. Our next
quotation is from the first paragraph of Page 4 of the
English text. The German text is at Page 7, the last two
words of line 26 down to the beginning of line 31:--
"It has been demanded by the Fuehrer that the reduction
of the meat ration should be ended by the autumn. This
can only be achieved by the most drastic seizures of
Russian livestock holdings, particularly in areas which
are in a favourable transport situation in relation to
Germany."
In the interests of expedition, your Honour, I am omitting
some sections from this last exhibit, which I had originally
intended to quote.
"In future, southern Russia must turn its face towards
Europe. Its food surpluses, however, will only be paid
for if it purchases its industrial consumer goods from
Germany or Europe. Russian competition from the forest
zone must, therefore, be abolished.
I next quote from Page 5, Lines 18 to 30 of the English
text. The German text is at Page 12, Lines 1 to 11.
"I. Supplies for the Army:
I now quote from Page 8 of the English text, the last nine
lines. The German text is at Page 18, Lines 15 to 22:
"Thus it is not important under any circumstances to
preserve the status quo, but what matters is a
deliberate turning away from the
existing situation and introducing Russian food
resources into the European framework. This will
inevitably result in an extinction of industry as well
as a large part of the people in what so far have been
the food-deficit areas."