Allied Intrigue in the Low Countries: Further Documents concerning the Anglo-French Policy of Extending the War. Full Text of White Book No. 5

May 10, 1940

The Reich Government for a long time has known of the main aim of British and French war policy. It consists of the expansion of war to other countries and the misuse of their peoples as auxiliary mercenary troops by England and France. The last attempt in this direction was a plan to occupy Scandinavia with the aid of Norway in order to establish a new front there against Germany.

This attempt was frustrated at the zero hour through Germany's interference. Germany gave the world public documentary proof of that.

Immediately after the failure of the British and French action in Scandinavia, England and France resumed their policies for the expansion in other directions.

Thus, during the flight-like retreat of the British troops from Norway the English Prime Minister announced that England, because of the changed situation, was now in a position to transfer the main force of her fleet to the Mediterranean and the English and French units were already on the way to Alexandria.

The Mediterranean now became the center of the Anglo-French war propaganda. Partly this was intended to conceal the defeat in Scandinavia and the great loss of prestige thereby suffered in the eyes of their own people and of the world, and partly to make it appear as if the Balkans now had been selected as the next theater of war against Germany.

In reality, however, the ostensible shifting of Anglo-French war policy to the Mediterranean served an entirely different purpose: it was nothing more than a large-scale maneuver to divert attention in order to deceive Germany as to the actual scene of the next Anglo-French attack.

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