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Volume VI · Page 968
| to turn to page 4 of this expert opinion, page 60? It is under Roman
number II and is headed, "Actual Proposals for Distribution According to
Plants," page 59. You will find there the basis principle according to which
the Supervisory Office proceeded when they worked out these proposals. It is
said here, "The ultimate purpose of this distribution was to insure that each
of the German concerns should have a share in the acquisition of the
Luxembourg-Lorraine pig iron production capacity in the same proportion as
their share in the pig iron production capacity of the total German iron
industry. The pig iron production capacity of the individual German plants was
established according to the present ownership or participation ratio in the
Greater German Reich * * *" From this proposition which was the fundamental
suggestion you will see that the Reich Office for Iron and Steel was of the
opinion that every German concern was to be included in this task. That is, not
only the previous owners, not only us, but all of them were to be included so
that was a general task which had to be fulfilled. In a conversation with a
chief of this office, a senior government counselor, Kiegel, and his deputy.
Dr. Kraft, I had pointed to Rombach, of course. Q. During these discussions with the Reich Office had the basic considerations shifted? That means were they only relevant in case of a peace treaty with France? A. No, this was of course the natural foundation for any of these arrangements, because after all you cannot count your chickens before they are hatched. |
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| Q. Now, what was the attitude of the Ministry of Economics to the
distribution list of 20 July, that is, the official suggestion made by the
Reich Office for Iron and Steel? A. From the documents which are available here, it can be seen that toward the end of August I went to see Hanneken again. We have a document to this effect. Q. You mean Document NI-3529, Prosecution Exhibit 526* is that correct? It is on page 101 of the German book, and Page 67 of the English. It is a memorandum about your consultation with Mr. Hanneken on 27 August. Is that what you mean? A. Yes, Your Honor, that is the note. Q. What was the reason for this discussion and what was the attitude of the Reich Ministry to the distribution proposition of the Reich office? A. The attitude of Hanneken was generally not opposed. He only asked me, for what reasons do you want to go to the west? |
* Reproduced in C above
