Q. Well, you were certainly quite aware from the decision of the International Military Tribunal just how illegal and improper that was.
A. I took note of it there, and, after all, I received my punishment for it now.
Q. Well, could you not have followed the same line of reasoning adopted by the Tribunal, which, after all, was based upon international convention? You were a man of education, a man of great cultural attainments and of great technical ability, and it was because of these attributes that you were chosen by Hitler to become the Minister of Armaments. Could you not have reasoned that out by yourself? Wasn’t it very clear and obvious?
A. I believe that the general knowledge of the principles of international law can only be brought to the knowledge of a wider circle of legal laymen if after a war legal offenses committed during the war will be revealed by a public trial, and thereby a more general knowledge of offenses against international law becomes known. You know that I was an architect and that such knowledge as I had in the field of law I merely received from newspapers, and I knew, for instance, all about various legal commitments of architects which are fairly extensive as far as construction of buildings goes.
I would say that a great mistake has been committed here by omitting after the First World War to establish international legal conditions by trials, and at the same time to adjust it to the developments of technical warfare instead of which, after the First World War, the whole question of the deportation of labor, for instance, was decided by the highest German courts, and as far as I know, the decision of that court was not particularly lucid. This is how the basis of ignorance is laid in the field of international law, and I believe that many a mistake and many a violation in this war could have been avoided or at least mitigated if a general knowledge of international law had been prevalent.
Q. Would you say that had there been, following the First World War, trials such as those we are now conducting, that you then would have been aware of the illegality of the practices in which you were engaged; or rather, you would have been aware of the illegality of such practices and you then would not have participated in them?
A. I am of the opinion that trials against the responsible men for the First World War after its conclusion would have enlightened the public and myself on the tenets of international law. I do not wish to go as far as to say that I would not have committed these breaches of law, for it is very difficult to excuse one’s self after the event by saying one committed the act only through ignorance of international law. Nevertheless, I should say that the observance of international law would have been possible without losing much momentum in my armament drive. Of course only that part of international law is meant here which deals with the recruiting of labor, whereas the other factor, the so-called legal looting of occupied territories as it is called, there is no doubt that that would have been necessary for an increased output of armaments. Violations of international law as far as the assignment of labor was concerned were in my opinion not only unnecessary, but unreasonable. We would have achieved more if we had observed international law. This is a very complicated topic; I do not know whether you are interested why this should be so.
Q. Well, I merely want you to enlighten me, if you care to, on this specific angle. You are considered a specialist. Now, had there been an international trial following the First World War, and the decision in that trial had been very clear and specific—as was the decision in this trial—you would have then known the limitations very specifically on the conduct of war; and having then known that you couldn’t do certain things, would you then have refused to participate as you did in this World War as a specialist? Having been put on notice that you cannot take labor from other countries forcibly and throw them into the armament industries—knowing all that, would you then have refused to give your services to Hitler in the prosecution of this war?
A. As to the first part of the question I wish to say if a trial and a clear decision had been handed down after the First World War, then certainly somebody would have put the international laws and regulations on my desk; that is to say, he would have informed me of it. The second question—it is not possible to give a simple answer to the second part of the question for when I started my office in 1942 the war in all its aspects had already departed from all existing international regulations. Please don’t misunderstand me if I point out here that economic warfare was waged by the British and Americans with extreme concentration on bombing warfare, which was not a matter of national reprisal because it hit industries in occupied territories. On the other hand the war with Russia had gone beyond the normal limits, if I can call it that. It is difficult for me to say who was the guilty party.
Q. I do not refer to the time after the war had reached such a state that there were no restrictions. I am speaking of the period before the war started. I would like to know whether a man of your education could have been enlisted in a practice which you knew and would then have known was entirely illegal and contrary to international law as well as the precepts and dictates of humanity.