In fact, arguments over responsibility for this area were to continue until the end of the war; indeed, it is quite clear that Hitler deliberately left unresolved certain questions of authority so that, if necessary, he would have the opportunity to intervene personally. These conflicts over authority, often fought out in bitter personal arguments between the leading figures, typified the Nazi state. By August 1939, a new dispute had already flared up between the Foreign Ministry and the Propaganda Ministry, when State Secretary Ernst von Weizsäcker, once again citing an oral command from the Führer, requested permission from the Wehrmacht High Command for his ministry, instead of that overseen by Goebbels, to be allowed to convey to the press certain directives, which had been drawn up in readiness for mobilization.13 When State Secretary Dietrich proved obstructive, Ribbentrop again brought in Hitler and rapidly demonstrated that his recent diplomatic successes in Moscow had reinforced his position at Hitler’s court.
