“The Führer wants to speak at the Party convention about economic policy and wants to emphasize there that we now want to get free from foreign countries with all our energy by production in Germany.
“Schacht requests urgently that the Reich Minister of War warn the Führer from this step.”
And three paragraphs farther down:
“If we now shout out abroad our decision to make ourselves economically independent, then we cut our own throats, because we can no longer survive the necessary transitory period.”
Nevertheless, Hitler announced the Four Year Plan of self-sufficiency a few days later in Nuremberg, and against Schacht’s wishes Göring was named Plenipotentiary of the Four Year Plan.
At this point I refer the Tribunal again to the interrogation of Schacht on 16 October 1945, being Exhibit Number USA-636; and I wish to read beginning near the bottom of Page 9 of the document:
“Q: ‘And the Four Year Plan came in when?’
“A: ‘It was announced in September ’36, on the Party Day.’