Hess, in advocating rearmament in violation of treaty restrictions, stated in 1986 that “guns instead of butter” were necessary lest “one day our last butter be taken from us.” (2426-PS)
(2) To acquire the territories lost by Germany as the result of the World War of 1914-1918, and other territories in Europe asserted to be occupied by so-called “racial Germans.” Section I of the Nazi Party Platform gave advance notice of the intentions of the Nazi conspirators to claim territories occupied by so-called racial Germans. It provided:
“We demand the unification of all Germans in the Greater Germany on the basis of the right of self-determination of people.” (1708-PS)
While Rosenberg pointed out in 1922 that it was not possible at that time to designate “such European and non European territories which would be taken into consideration for colonization” he nevertheless stated that the following could be laid down as a basic objective, namely that
“* * * German Foreign Policy must make its most important primary goal the consolidation of all Germans living closely together in Europe in one state and to secure the territory of what today is the Polish-Czech East.” (2433-PS)
In his Reichstag speech of 20 February 1928 Hitler said:
“The claim, therefore, for German colonial possession will be voiced from year to year with increasing vigor, possessions which Germany did not take away from other countries, and which today are virtually of no value to these powers, but appear indispensable for our own people.” (2772-PS)
Again, in his Reichstag speech of 30 January 1939 Hitler declared:
“The theft of the German colonies was morally unjustified. Economically, it was utter insanity. The political motives advanced were so mean that one is tempted to call them silly. In 1918, after the end of the war, the victorious Powers really would have had the authority to bring about a reasonable settlement of international problems. * * *
“The great German colonial possessions, which the Reich once acquired peacefully by treaties and by paying for them, have been stolen—contrary indeed to the solemn assurance given by President Wilson, which was the basic condition on which Germany laid down her arms. The objection that these colonial possessions are of no importance in any case should only lead to their being returned to us with an easy mind.” (2773-PS)