"J. Barkley Rosser, Jr." wrote:
>
> Chris,
> Calling the former GDR a "developing country"
> is a bit of a stretch. Actually, in 1939 it was probably
> slightly ahead of the West in per capita income and
> in its level of industrialization.
> A major reason for the income gap that existed
> in 1961 was that during the late 1940s, the USSR
> extracted reparations payments from the GDR, including
> the literal carting off of capital stock in the form of factories
> and machinery and equipment.
I have a vague memory of an extensive study establishing that the U.S. not only approved but in some way forced this route by the USSR. It's awfully vague, however, but perhaps someone else knows something on the topic.
Carrol