Page 339 - The Chief Culprit

284 y Epilogue

e document not only exposed Stalin and Hitler’s political goals, but it was staggering
evidence of their willingness to wage war and to share the spoils of war between themselves
by dismembering smaller countries.
Dr. Seidl had no illusions as to why he had been given access to the document by an
American officer who feared Stalin’s intentions in Eastern Europe and a Cold War in Western
Europe through the rise of Communist parties in France and Italy. But he was ready to carry
out his duty to his client, who sat in the dock reading a novel, appearing to have not the
slightest bit of interest in the proceedings.
On March 30, 1946, Dr. Seidl produced his astonishing surprise when he cross-ex-
amined Von Ribbentrop about the secret German-Soviet agreement in 1939. Reluctantly,
Von Ribbentrop admitted it existed. “If war broke out, occupation of these zones was to be
undertaken by Germany and Russia. At that time, I heard expressions—both from Stalin and
Hitler—that Polish and other territories thus delineated were regions which both sides had
lost in an unfortunate war.”
e shocked judges ordered Dr. Seidl to halt his cross-examination. He desisted, but
told the court that the secret pact was an essential element in his defense of Hess and if the
court did not allow the full details of the secret German-Soviet agreements to be called into
evidence he would demand that Molotov, the Soviet foreign minister, be called as a witness.
At least one of the prosecuting nations had been involved in the conspiracy that led to World
War II, Dr. Seidl charged.
e Soviet prosecutor, General Roman Rudenko, jumped to his feet to protest and
urged that the document be suppressed. “ e court is investigating the case of the major
German criminals. It is not investigating the foreign policy of the allies. is anonymous
document . . . can have no value.”
e judges conferred and upheld Rudenko’s objection to the document being entered
as evidence, but decided that Baron von Weizsäcker, a former secretary of state in the German
foreign ministry, could be questioned about it. His testimony confirmed the existence of a
secret pact and created a sensation when he told the court:

e secret protocol, of extensive scope, drew a line of demarcation between areas which
in certain circumstances would be of interest to the Soviet Union, and those which would
belong to the German sphere of interest. In the Soviet sphere were included Finland,
Estonia, Latvia, the eastern parts of Poland, and certain parts of Romania. Everything
west of that line was left to Germany. Later, in September or October 1939, amend-
ments were agreed upon by which Lithuania, or the greater part of it, was transferred to
the Soviet sphere, and the line of demarcation in Poland was moved considerably to the
west. Explicitly, or implicitly, the secret agreement was to create a completely new order in
Poland. And when it came into operation, this line of demarcation was followed closely.

When the British Lord Justice Lawrence asked Baron von Weizsäcker if he knew wheth-
er the secret pact existed in writing, the former foreign office official replied: “I kept a photo-
static copy of that pact in my safe and I will have no hesitation in recognizing it if it were put
to me.” Before Dr. Seidl could present his document to Von Weizsäcker its authenticity was
challenged, and Dr. Seidl could only reply that it had been given to him by an unidentified