Q. Witness, what was the development after Stalingrad of your relationship to Hitler and Goering?
Presiding Judge Toms: Before you go on, will you ask for the date of this conference of Hitler’s again?
A. It was on 5 March 1943.
On the question of how my relationship to Hitler and Goering developed later on I have to say the following: It became worse and worse from time to time. It was due to a struggle which I had about the German air defense which contradicted Hitler’s idea of waging war, for this was the specific field of the Luftwaffe and I as Inspector General of the Luftwaffe was forced to make suggestions. I did not let this matter drop, and I repeatedly brought it to the front, in contrast with political proposals or proposals in the field of the army and navy, which were outside of my field of tasks and which I could not bring to anyone’s attention unless Hitler gave me his permission or if he wished me to.
Q. With respect to this conference, did you inform him of the fact that you wanted to have Goering gone?
A. Yes. I did. I told Goering about that. I did not want to stab him in the back.
Q. Then, what happened to your relationship with Goering?
A. I do not believe that this single incident had any influence on our relationship, which was bad anyway. Goering was not the kind of a man who would hold it against me. He had a certain understanding of the circumstances. There were other things that he did not like about me.