20 May 1941
Decree of the Fuehrer
Concerning the Economy in the Newly Occupied Eastern Territories
(1) In the newly occupied eastern territories Reichsmarshall Hermann Goering as the Plenipotentiary of the Four Year Plan shall issue all orders concerning matters within his jurisdiction which are essential to the highest utilization of existing stocks, to the highest increase of the industrial capacity, and to the further building up of all economic resources that can be utilized for the German war economy,
(2) In order to accomplish his task, he may also give orders to Wehrmacht agencies.
(3) This decree becomes effective to-day. It may only be published after special authorization.
Fuehrer's Headquarters
The Fuehrer,
The Chief of the German High Command The Reichsminister and Chief of the Reich Chancellery
832
1188-PS
Remarks
Reichsleiter Rosenberg wants to see no limitations applied to the principle that civil agencies of the newly occupied eastern territories should get orders and directives from nobody else but him. He therefore desires that within these territories he should also be authorized to give orders concerning measures with regard to the Four Year Plan. He is willing, however, to follow those directives which the Reich Marshall, in his capacity as a delegate for the Four Year Plan, has given personally. Rosenberg, therefore, suggested that the delegate for the Four Year Plan should use the Reich Minister for the Occupied Eastern Territories as his Plenipotentiary General for carrying out his tasks in the newly occupied eastern territories. The latter should then receive orders from him (Goering) for that purpose. The Reich Marshall turned down such an arrangement.
In the event that Reichsleiter Rosenberg's suggestion is disapproved by the Fuehrer, Rosenberg at least wants to be able to coordinate measures taken by him as the Reich Minister for the Occupied Eastern Territories with those measures taken by the delegate of the Four Year Plan. In order to make sure of that he desires to insert after the word "jurisdiction" [Befugnisse] in Paragraph 1 the words "via the Reich Minister for the Eastern Occupied Territories".
Reichsleiter Rosenberg, furthermore, has misgivings relative to the publication of this decree, since it left no doubt that Germany was only interested in the occupied eastern territories for purposes of extreme economic exploitation. If that became known in these territories the political reaction there will be disastrous.
TRANSLATION OF DOCUMENT II88-PS
Date: Date Unknown
Total Pages: 1
Language of Text: English
Source of Text: Nazi conspiracy and aggression (Office of United States Chief of Counsel for Prosecution of Axis Criminality. Washington, D.C. : U.S. Government Printing Office, 1946.)
Evidence Code: PS-II88
HLSL Item No.: Unknown