“Generaloberst Von Fritsch mentioned that it was the purpose of a study which he had laid on for this winter to investigate the possibilities of carrying out operations against Czechoslovakia, with special consideration of the conquest of the Czechoslovakian system of fortifications; the Generaloberst also stated that, owing to the prevailing conditions, he would have to relinquish his leave abroad, which was to begin on 10 November. This intention was countermanded by the Führer, who gave as a reason that the possibility of the conflict was not to be regarded as being so imminent. In reply to statements by General Feldmarschall Von Blomberg and Generaloberst Von Fritsch regarding England and France’s attitude, the Führer repeated his previous statements and said that he was convinced of Britain’s non-participation and that consequently he did not believe in military action by France against Germany. Should the Mediterranean conflict, already mentioned, lead to a general mobilization in Europe, then we should have to commence operations against Czechoslovakia immediately. If, however, the powers who are not participating in the war should declare their disinterestedness, then Germany would, for the time being, have to side with this attitude.
“In view of the information given by the Führer, Generaloberst Göring considered it imperative to think of a reduction of our military undertaking in Spain. The Führer agreed to this, insofar as he believed this decision should be postponed for a suitable date.
“The second part of the discussion concerned material armament questions. (Signed) Hossbach.”—There are other notations.
In this connection I invite the Court’s attention to the allegation in Paragraph 3 (a) of Section IV (F) of the Indictment; Page 7 of the printed English text, relating to a meeting of an influential group of Nazi conspirators on 5 November 1937. The document just introduced and read in evidence gives the specific evidentiary support for that allegation.
The record of what happened thereafter is well known to history. The Anschluss with Austria, under military pressure from the Nazis, occurred in March 1938. We shall give you detailed evidence concerning that in due course. So will we as to details of the aggression against Czechoslovakia, including the pressure on Czechoslovakia that resulted in the Munich Pact of September 1938, and the violation of that Pact itself by Germany, on 15 March 1939. There is much of interest in the secret documents relating to those aggressions.
At this point, however, I desire to bring to the attention of the Tribunal one more captured document, which reveals in all its nakedness the truth concerning the deliberateness of the aggression against Czechoslovakia. This document consists of a file, a file kept by Colonel Schmundt, Hitler’s adjutant. The file was found by one of the units of the 327th Glider Infantry, in a cellar of the Platterhof, Obersalzberg, near Berchtesgaden. The file represents a work-file of originals and duplicates, incidental to the preparations for the annexation of Czechoslovakia. I should like to ask the Tribunal to examine particularly the photostat of the original German of this file. We have copies of those photostats. Something in physical form is lost in transcribing a translation. The picture of the original file, including photographs of the telegrams, gives a sense of the reality of the evidence that is lost in the transcribed translation. The file is Document Number 388-PS, in our numbered series of documents. I have here the original file, as found.
I thought perhaps I might read the German title. It is “Chefsache Fall Grün,” that is the main plan for “Case Green,” “Green” being a code word for the aggression against Czechoslovakia.
I offer the entire file in evidence as Exhibit USA-26 and will ask that photostats be passed to the Court. I offer the file, if the Tribunal please, with, of course, the understanding and realization that only such parts of it as I read will immediately go into evidence; but we shall refer to other parts from time to time later, in the presentation of the case. The material in this file will be dealt with in greater detail at a later point in my presentation. However, at this point, I desire to call attention to item number 2 in the file.
Item number 2 is dated 22 April 1938. It is the second sheet of the English translation. It is a summary, prepared by Schmundt, the adjutant, of a discussion on 21 April 1938 between Hitler and the Defendant Wilhelm Keitel. This item, like the other items in the file, relates to Fall Grün, or Case Green. As I said, Case Green was a secret code word for the planned operations against Czechoslovakia. This meeting occurred within approximately 1 month following the successful annexation of Austria. In the carrying out of the conspiracy, it became necessary to revise the Plan Grün to take into account the changed attitude, as a result of the bloodless success against Austria. I shall now read item number 2 of this file:
“Berlin, 22 April 1938. Bases of the Dissertation on ‘Grün.’