“1. General Purpose:
“The mass of the Russian Army in western Russia is to be destroyed in daring operations by driving forward deep wedges with tanks, and the retreat of intact battle-ready troops into the wide spaces of Russia is to be prevented.
“In quick pursuit, a line is to be reached from where the Russian Air Force will no longer be able to attack German Reich territory. The first goal of operations is the protection from Asiatic Russia from the general line Volga-Archangel. In case of necessity, the last industrial area in the Urals left to Russia could be eliminated by the Luftwaffe.
“In the course of these operations the Russian Baltic Sea Fleet will quickly erase its bases and will no longer be ready to fight.
“Effective intervention by the Russian Air Force is to be prevented through powerful blows at the beginning of the operations.”
Another secret document, captured from the OKW files. . . .
THE PRESIDENT: Mr. Alderman, perhaps that would be a convenient time to adjourn for 10 minutes.
[A recess was taken.]
MR. ALDERMAN: If it pleases the Tribunal, another secret document captured from the OKW files, we think establishes the motive for the attack on the Soviet Union. It also establishes the full awareness of the Nazi conspirators of the Crimes against Humanity which would result from their attack. The document is a memorandum of 2 May 1941, concerning the result of a discussion on that day with the state secretaries concerning the Case Barbarossa. The document is initialled by a Major Von Gusovius, a member of the staff of General Thomas set up to handle the economic exploitations of the territory occupied by the Germans during the course of the aggression against Russia. The document is numbered 2718-PS in our numbered series of documents. I offer it in evidence as Exhibit USA-32.
I shall simply read the first two paragraphs of this document, including the introductory matter: