ECONOMIC COORDINATION IN THE SOVIET ORBIT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00457R009300480006-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 2, 2011
• Sequence Number: 6
• Publication Date: December 6, 1951
• Content Type: REPORT

50X1-HUM
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COUNTRY
Germany (Russian Zone
)/S3/astern Europe
DATE DISTR.
6 DEC 51
SUBJECT
Economic Coordination
in the Soviet Orbit
NO. OF PAGES
4
NO. OF ENCLS.
ACQUIRED
DATE OF
INFO.
,1,'~~ATNS?INF IRMATION AFFECTING THE NATIONAL DEFENSE
OF`THE UNITED STATES W HIN`'iNE MEAN~'HF. ~OF~THE ES (SNAGS' ACT "S8 `~
U ,S. C.,97 AN 32, AS AMENDED. ITS TRANSMISSION OR THE REVELATION
{gyp' (Osf 1 c[t~ TO AN UTFAAtTHORTZED PERSON ISPRO-
~FtB1 D ax -,AW. , (.P 4 ._.. o aF THrs `F'b'~'fM` s.__PntfS~mift5`. "
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
1. The p :unary' dasCtissions of the Committee of Mutual Economic Aid (CM A)
in MMsdow hoe no t pro cessed as rapidly as had originally been hoped and
it now considered un ilzeiy that the eomnitteets find. recommendations
be avt.ilable lDef'or=e A6,g~.ist . A DDR delegation head ed' by Kurt Gregor,
Soretary -of State of he Ministry of Foreign: Trade, and Muth of the Stq.tis-
tieehes-Zentralamt (Central Statistics Office ) of the State Planning 6o? -
miaaion, which was to have left for ?,,Moscow in May for discussions on the
e-atablishment of a unified statistical and accounting, system among members
of the Soviet bloc, is still in Berlin awaiting instructions. ( An agree-
went' in this sphere is regarded as an indispensable prel minary to the suc-
cessful conduct of the actual trade ne otiations, members of the DDR trade
delegation do not expect to leave for. Moscow before late August.
2. The var-ioue officials who have been called to Moscow during recent months
to give advice on problems of a spec hlist or technical nature do not par-
ticipate in the deliberations of the committee, but carry on entirely in-
dependent discussions. When these are complete a summary of the proceedings
and the recommendations resulting therefrom is laid before the committee,
which may either accept them or refer them for further consideration. Any
information which individual experts may acquire on tho vie-,,Ts of the coilm.ittee
is therefore restricted to a single sphere.
3. The DDR trade delegation to Moscow will c6nsist of the following:
Head of delegation; Heinrich Rau
Geoff g Handke
President of the State
P timing C mm esion.
Minister of Foreign
and Domestic Trade.
inister of `envy Tn-
der f `inister of Machinery
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ARMY Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/06/04: CIA-RDP82-00457R009300480006-8
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/06/04: CIA-RDP82-00457R009300480006-8
SEC/ROL U.S. OFFICIALS ONLY
RMAT ION
CENTR#!L z W1Y AGENCY
Dr, Heinrich Bertsch
Dr. Lange (fnu)
Staatssekretariat
Ma.terialversorgung (State
Secretariat for Materials
Supply), State Planning
Commission.
Ha.uptahteilu.ngsleiter
Wissenschaft u_nd Technik
(Ohief, Scienco and Tech-
~ol.ogy Division), State
-ling Commission,
4, In addition to the above, several other officials have been provided i,ith
provisional travel permits and informed that they may be required to pay
brief visits to Moscow as advisers during the couzso of the negotiations.
These include:
Chief, Hatiptverwaltung
Schwermaschinenbau (Heavy
Na:hinery Construction
Di,ision), Ministry of
Macai.ne Construction. (2)
Wilhelm Friedel Deputy to Wolf.
Hotter (fnu)
Abtei; zngsleiter Chernie
(Secti7n Chief, Chemistry),
Staats;mkretariat Material-
versorg ng, State Planning
Commisston,.
Muth ?lT.ti s-c'hes Z tral..a:mt. (1)
Erich Kramer Gonera.ldirektor, '~eichsbahn. (I)
And' )
5. In accordance with the general trend of current economic policy within the
Soviet bloc, there is now a. regular exchange of information among the,alan-
ning nietries of Soviet bloc countries. The sole exception is the,U%R
itself, which releases no figures of planned and actual production or .ports.
From all other members the DDR receives monthly reports on imports and p;o_
duction, as well as details of planned production and imports (both short
and long term), current bottlenecks and other difficulties encountered, axd
a certain amount of information on technical and scientific development..
Within the State Planning Commission only Rau and his personal assistant Kur-,
Zinke?,-'who also heads the B:ro f1r Fragen der gegenseitigen Wirtschaftshilfe
SECRET/CO
OFFICIALS ONLY
I
Chief, Haiptverwaltung
Steine uni Erden (Stones
and Ceramics Division),
rTinistry o'.. Heavy Industry.
Hauptabteiltng (sic. Haupt
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Albert Binz
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/06/04: CIA-RDP82-00457R009300480006-8
SECRET/CONTROL - U.S. OFFICIALS ONLY
SE NFORMATICN
CENTRAL 1 J NCE AGENCY
(Office for Questions of Mutual Economic Aid), are entitled to see all. such
reports and are ffully conversant with economic developments in other sn.tel-
lite. t _I -.officials receive only such reports as are con-
sidered by Rau to be necessary for the satisfactory execution of their duties.
With the exception of scientific and technical data which have a much wider
circulation, such information is never distribut0d below Ilauptabteilungsleiter
level.
7. Outside the State Planning Commission, c
stricted to Georg Handke, Kurt Gregor, ar
as foreign trade adviser on CIEA question.
sions in.Berlin also receive a certain amount of information on
veiopment in the DDR and other satellites. Information on CMEA
passed except where considered to be of immediate interest 6nd
flirectly through the government of the country concerned.()
economic de-
is not normally
then only in-
Efforts of the DDR to obtain alternative sources of supplt,T for items unobtainable
in the West have been closely related to its general policy of achieving in-
dustrial self-sufficiency and of becoming as far as possible independent of all
supplies from the West whether previously obtainable or not. One reason for
the delay in the signing of the 1951 trade agreements with Czechoslovakia and
Poland was the DDR-s insistence on greatly increased deliveries of steel sheets,
fine sheets, special profile steel and plates for ships, all of which were prac-
tically unobtainable in the West. As additional supplies have now been promised,
the DDR is no longer dependent on the West for these items. Brown coal- and pig
iron requirements can also be satisfied entirely from within the Soviet, bloc.
9. In respect of all other materials, the DDR is still a long way from achieving
its aim, though some progress has been made in the manufacture of fine steels
and deliveries of steel for machine tools from Czechoslovakia are to be stepped
up considerably. It is also hoped that, as a result of the new agreement now
being negotiated, greatly increased supplies of hardening agents and other non-
ferrous metals will be forthcoming from China in 1952. During the current year,
however, a considerable proportion of the DDRts reauireme t his sphere will
have to be met, if at all, through trade with other countries
outside the Soviet bloc.
of effecting economies in the use of Russian personnel at the executive leve
These include:
50X1-HUM
10. Although there is no indication of any relaxation of Soviet control, a number
of organizational changes have been and are to be made, ~,,rith the apparent object
a. The dissolution of Soviet trading agencies in the DDR. The DDR offices of
the .vari~m4 3 rt encies are to be closed. Regiae:~t % for supplies will
.do : quAh -the Welsvertretung uer Uda SII (`I';?ade Fission
b. The dissolution of Techsnabs. There were originallu% four Techsnab in Berlin,
Halle, Dresden, and Erfurt, which were responsible for the a:l.locr.t hn of raw
materials to SAGs. Of these the Dresden and Erfurt offices have already been
closeQ and their functions transferred to Berlin and Halle. It i s- anticipated
that Berlin and Halle will also be closed whereupon ~Iistribution to tr~ SAGE
and VERB will become the responsibility of the DHZs ^.cting on instructions
from the.~taatssekro.ta.riat Materialversorgung, It is possible, however ,..that
Techsnab -'Berlin (Base Marten) will be retained. as P. purchasing agency for
urgently required materials,
c. Grant of increased powers to the Staatssekretari at 1:a terialversor ~_ng
The Staatssekretariat Ma.terialversorguanFl, now. has cam; le`-e control- over allo-
CQNT'ROL - U.S. OFFICIALS ONLY
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 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/06/04: CIA-RDP82-00457R009300480006-8
SEORET/CONTRj j U ,S . OFFICIALS ONLY
SECURITY ~f TION .
CENTRAL INTTEL~l7 AGENCY
-A.-
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(S)
50X1-HUM
cation of materials to both VEBs and SAGS, Individual SAGS may no longer
as hitherto appropriate urgently needed supplies from DAHAs or DHZs with-
out prior authority from Materialversorgung,
Corraent: 11uth is apparently Walter Muth, Gruppenleiter, Abteilung
Handel and Versorgung (Group Director, Trade ^.n Supply Section)} State
Planning Commission.
Comment : Kurt Wolf is Obq'referent Eiseninclustrie (Head, Iron In-
clu.stry Desks , HV P ietallur;ggie., . Ministry of Heavy Industry. (sic),
IComment: Dr. Dieter Zaulek is Technischer Leiter (Teoh.nical Director)
of HA (sic. IIV?) Metallurgie.
Comment: The name of the Generaldirektor of the Reichsbahn
Is reported as Erwin Kramer 50X1-HUM
Comment: This list is not complete.
50X1-HUM
Comment: The Bi1ro fitr Fragen aer gegenseitigen Wirt schaftshil.f+
only on paper.
Comment: Homelin is probably Kurt Homelin, Abteilunj Handel spolitik
(T ar Policy Section), Ministry of Foreign and Domestic Trade.
Coru ent: No direct communication between CThA representative's and
satellite missions could be observed. It, is dou.bcf l whether C1`EA in-
formation pe.aeed on by satellite governments would be clearly' recognizable
as such.
Q
~ U S . OFFICIALS ONLY
SECPET/CC~P
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/06/04: CIA-RDP82-00457R009300480006-8