So far, little is known about the "Ingenieur-Technischer Außenhandel" (ITA). The GDR's state-owned foreign trade company, whose predecessors had already been active since the 1950s, imported and exported weapons and military equipment within the Warsaw Pact. In contrast to the GDR's self-image as a "peace state", its business partners also included dictators and so-called liberation movements in the "Third World".
Particularly piquant was the case of the First Gulf War in the 1980s, when the GDR supplied both war opponents, Iraq and Iran. In the later years, moreover, the goal of generating Western foreign currency for the SED regime became increasingly important for the ITA. When the Wall fell, the documents were largely destroyed, so that the nature and work of the ITA remained virtually unknown until today. After years of research, Wolfgang Klietz now presents the first comprehensive investigation of this organisation, which always worked in secret.
Group
Books (first-hand)
Author
Klietz, Wolfgang
Title
Waffenhändler in Uniform. Geheime Im- und Exporte der DDR
Details
Paperback. Around 395 pages.
State
new
W. Kohlhammer GmbH Heßbrühlstr. 69 70565 Stuttgart Deutschland
