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[–] 14 points 1 day ago (1 child)

A lot of the economic and developmental gap between the West and the East can be explained with the reparations as well. The DDR had to figure out how to pay it all (and get the USD to do so, and fund their own recovery), while the US had learned from its interwar foreign monetary policy mistakes and gave the GDR the USD required to pay off the reparations (Marshall Plan), which doubled as a recovery fund.

I hate that we have to celebrate annexation day here.

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  • [–] 10 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

    Jup, also helpful to remember how the western allies helped capitalists from the soviet zone move their capital(money, machinery and so on) to the other three zones), further depleting the future GDRs wealth and increasing the FDRs.

    Also an interesting tidbit is how reperation demands to the FDR were often unilaterally dropped, by the western allies and the FDR declaring them to be settled. The affected countries weren't asked. Greece got nothing, all of eastern europe did not see a cent. This also lifted a huge fincancial burden of the FDR.

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