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German national unity diminish further among East and West Germans and separation becomes more a reality.

Nonetheless, East Germany still has problems. At home, the regime must deal with the spiral of rising expectations, and it is problematical whether it can fulfill the demands of the populace both for a better life and increased contact with the outside world. Abroad, East Germany must be careful in several respects—to maintain the proper attitude of loyalty to the Soviet Union; to avoid the weighty embrace of West Germany; to exploit Western economies without falling prey to their ideologies; to keep the friendship of third world countries without paying an exorbitant price in terms of aid; and above all, to do these various things with slender diplomatic resources and little accrued experience in the international arena.

In the long run, Pankow will also not be able to rest worry-free. Hopes for reunification, as opposed to expectations, are unlikely to die out completely. Building on hope, Chancellor Brandt and his successors may be expected to pursue practical inter-German ties as the basis for some form of political union. In an era of detente, circumstances conceivably may arise which would break down the carefully erected barriers and make union the more possible. On a larger scale, West and East Europe may over time interact in a movement towards one Europe in which logic decrees that there will be one Germany. Thus, there is no guarantee in perpetuity that there will be an East Germany. At present, Pankow can only insist that such must be the case.

No matter what path the regime itself would take, it must in plotting its course accept two conditions as facts of life. The GDR will continue to be subordinate to the Soviet Union whose own national interests will define the broader aspects of East Germany's relationships abroad. Also, the West Germany Government has not abandoned the concept of reunification. Rather, it has switched to playing a long-term game on this paramount issue. Bonn has challenged East Germany to a competitive coexistence in the confident belief that ultimately its Western lifestyle and the spirit of German nationhood will win out. At present, it has acceded to East Germany's international recognition in an effort to lure the Communist regime into the arena. East Germany has accepted the challenge and now is fated to emerge from isolation into a world of change, with consequences as yet unknown.

Chronology (u/ou)

1945
 * April
 * First group of German Communist emigres, headed by Walter Ulbricht, returns from Moscow to take charge of civil affairs under Soviet auspices.
 * May
 * German High Command signs unconditional surrender.
 * June
 * Allied Control Council composed of United Kingdom, France, United States, and U.S.S.R. takes over government of Germany.
 * July-August
 * Tripartite (United States, United Kingdom, and U.S.S.R.) Potsdam Conference confirms division of Germany into four zones of occupation, while Berlin is divided into sectors occupied by four Allied powers. Germany not to be partitioned but to be treated as single economic unit with certain administrative departments following a common policy to be determined by Allied Control Council.

1946
 * April
 * Socialist Unity Party (SED) founded in Soviet Zone through forced merger of Communist Party and Social Democratic Party.
 * October
 * Elections held for parliaments in five Laender created in Soviet Zone, and coalition governments (SED, CDU, LDPD) formed. Number of central administrative departments created, directly responsible to Soviet occupation authorities.

1947
 * January
 * U.S. and British zones fused into the Bizone to cope with economic problems worsened by Soviet lack of cooperation. (French zone joined in October 1948.)

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