Extract from an article in the British journal The Economist, 11 August 1945

Transcript

…The Russians’ determination to loot Germany may not be unconnected with their failure to obtain reconstruction credits in the Western countries. Every possible means should be tried of getting them to change their attitude. But if they will not, then the pursuit of truth and justice is a surer guide than any calculations of future alliances. We may not be able to alter what happens in the Russian zone, but we can at least disclaim responsibility for it. And we can follow our own convictions in the West, where what is left of Germany can be given the prospect, in the fullness of time, of achieving liberty, equality and prosperity within a Western Europe that is conscious of its political and economic unity…

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