3
Dec. 45
to
be worked out in conjunction with OKW
and submitted to me for approval.
"5.
Missions for the branches of the Armed
Forces.
"a. Army. The
basic principle of the surprise attack
against Czechoslovakia must not be
endangered nor the initiative of the Air
Force be wasted by the inevitable time
required for transporting the bulk of
the field forces by rail. Therefore it
is first of all essential to the Army
that as many assault columns as possible
be employed at the same time as the
surprise attack by the Air Force. These
assault columns — the composition
of each, according to their tasks at
that time — must be formed with
troops which can be employed rapidly
owing to their proximity to the frontier
or to motorization and to special
measures of readiness. It must be the
purpose of these thrusts to break into
the Czechoslovakian fortification lines
at numerous points and in a
strategically favorable direction, to
achieve a break-through, or to break
them down from the rear. For the success
of this operation, co-operation with the
Sudeten-German frontier population, with
deserters from the Czechoslovakian Army,
with parachutists or airborne troops and
with units of the sabotage service will
be of importance. The bulk of the army
has the task of frustrating the
Czechoslovakian plan of defense, of
preventing the Czechoslovakian army from
escaping . . ."
THE
PRESIDENT: Is it necessary to read all this
detail?
MR. ALDERMAN: I was just
worried about not getting it into the
transcript. THE PRESIDENT: It seems to me that
this is all detail, that before you pass from
the document you ought to read the document on
Page 15, which introduces it and which gives the
date of it.
MR. ALDERMAN: I think so.
It is a letter dated:
"Berlin,
30 May 1938; copy of the fourth copy;
Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces;
most secret; access only through
officer; written by an officer. Signed
Keitel; distributed to C-in-C Army,
C-in-C Navy, C-in-C Air Force.
"By
order of the Supreme Commander of the
Armed Forces, Part 2, Section II, of the
directive on the unified preparations
for war of the Armed Forces dated 24
June 1937, (Ob. d. W)" — with
some symbols, including "Chefsache"
(top secret) — "(two-front war
with main effort on the
Southeast-strategic concentration Green)
is to be replaced by the attached
version. Its execution must be assured
as from 1 October 1938 at the latest.
Alterations in other parts of the
directives must be expected during the
next week.