'Lay an iron ring': Krushchev order for Berlin Wall is finally uncovered

ALMOST 20 years after it fell, the Berlin Wall has given up its last secret. A German researcher has found in a Moscow archive the long-sought, conclusive evidence of the decision to build the hated structure on August 13th, 1961 – with the direct approval of the Soviet Union.

A yellowing protocol suggests that the decision was made on August 1st in a telephone conversation between Walter Ulbricht, head of the East German Politburo, and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.

The written record of their discussion, lasting from 3.40pm to 6pm, suggests that Ulbricht was anxious to close the border, but that the final nod came from Khrushchev. The 28-page protocol of the conversation, transformed this weekend into a two-hander play at a Berlin theatre, begins with discussion of butter and milk shortages in the GDR.

Read entire article here.