In it the Soviet Union agreed in the period from 11 February 1940 to 1941, in addition to the deliveries under German–Soviet Commercial Agreement, signed on 19 August 1939 to deliver commodities (oil, raw materials, and grain) to the value of 420 to 430 million Reichsmarks.

Trade with Soviet Union, promoted by the first credit operations, led to a brisk exchange of goods, which reached its highest point in 1931.

[5]: 71  In October 1939, three German trade partners—Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania—were given no choice but to sign a so-called Pact of defense and mutual assistance which permitted the Soviet Union to station troops in them.

[5]: 63–64  The only remaining state capable of supplying Germany with the oil, rubber, manganese, grains, food fats, and platinum it needed was the Soviet Union.

[14] It included attempting to obtain 180 million additional Reichsmarks in raw material and discovering whether the Soviet Union "could and would compensate for the loss in Imports by sea" following the British blockade.

[14] Ribbentrop concluded that "The raw materials deliveries requested by us can only be carried out, in view of the unsatisfactory domestic supply situation of Russia, at the expense of their own Russian consumption.

"[14] The Soviet alliance resulted in a huge military benefit to Germany, which thereafter needed to station only four regular and nine territorial divisions on its eastern border, permitting it to commit the remainder of its forces westward.

[15] However, following the conclusions of the successful Polish invasions by both countries, German planners estimated that, as feared, they lacked the oil and rubber stockpiles necessary for a western offensive.

A confidential amendment to the letter stated that the Soviet Union would effectuate German transit traffic to and from Romania, followed by agreements for the same to and from Iran, Afghanistan and the Far East.

[3]: 99–100 In early October, German officials proposed a deal that would have increased Soviet raw material exports (oil, iron ore, rubber, tin, etc.)

German technical assistance in raw material production and industrial expansion, agricultural conversion (soybeans), forest leases, fisheries at Murmansk, etc."

Soviet negotiators stated that any deal must involve massive increases of up to 1.5 billion Reichsmarks in German war materiel and technology.

Aside from the hulls of the cruisers Seydlitz and Lützow, the final order list also included the delivery of the Prinz Eugen and the plans of the battleship Bismarck.

[4]: 44  Unlike with the 1939 agreement, Stalin used the term "mutual assistance" for the first time and discussed the direct provision of Soviet raw materials to Germany.

"[3]: 96 In January, Germany became worried that combating a potential major French campaign in western Europe or a Soviet failure to deliver allotted good totals would result in German oil stocks evaporating in a few months.

[5]: 101  A German foreign office report explained that Soviet raw material exports were "simply irreplaceable" and "the breakdown of a German-Soviet agreement must be avoided at all costs".

Hitler desired to delay as long as possible delivery of the "industrial goods" mentioned in the list of the orders to be placed, including the transmission of plans for the Bismarck class and of the Lützow to Russia in furtherance of his hope that Germany could avoid these altogether if the war developed favorably for it.

[5]: 103–105 [18] The agreement also contained a "Confidential Protocol" providing the Soviet Union would undertake purchases from third party countries of "metals and other goods" on behalf of Germany.

[5]: 237 Soviet goods were freighted through Brest-Litovsk[17] and occupied Polish territories where they were shifted to European gauge track for transport to Germany.

[2]: 668–669  The Soviets also granted Germany the right to transit traffic on Soviet-controlled rail lines to and from Romania, Iran, Afghanistan, and other countries in the east, while reducing by 50 percent freight rates to Manchukuo, which was under Japanese control.

[17] The agreement set out periods of operations under which the Soviet Union would send to Germany large quantities of raw materials, including food, oil and metals.

[18]: 108  It became a major supplier of vital materials to Germany, including petroleum, manganese, copper, nickel, chrome, platinum, lumber, and grain.

[18]: 110  The Soviets also provided Germany with a U-boat base at Basis Nord for refueling, maintenance location and a takeoff point for raids and attacks on shipping.

[3]: 105  Germany did initially deliver some floating cranes, five aircraft, an electrode shop, several gun turrets (with fire control apparatuses and spare parts), two submarine periscopes, and additional ship construction tools.

[9]: 212  While no concrete plans were yet made, Hitler told one of his generals in June that the victories in western Europe "finally freed his hands for his important real task: the showdown with Bolshevism",[5]: 129–130  though German generals told Hitler that occupying Western Russia would create "more of a drain than a relief for Germany's economic situation".

[5]: 138 In August 1940, the Soviet Union briefly suspended its deliveries after their relations were strained following disagreement over policy in the Balkans, the Soviet Union's war with Finland (from which Germany had imported 88.9 million Reichsmarks in goods in 1938[9]: 212 ), Germany falling behind in its deliveries of goods under the pact and with Stalin worried that Hitler's war with the West might end quickly after France signed an armistice.

[4]: 48–59  By the end of August, relations improved again as the countries had redrawn the Hungarian and Romanian borders, settled Bulgarian claims and Stalin was again convinced that Germany would face a long war in the west with Britain's improvement in its air battle with Germany and the execution of an agreement between the United States and Britain regarding destroyers and bases.

[17] Regarding a potential Soviet Axis entry, Ribbentrop wrote a letter promising Stalin that "in the opinion of the Führer [...] it appears to be the historical mission of the Four Powers-the Soviet Union, Italy, Japan and Germany-to adopt a long range-policy and to direct the future development of their peoples into the right channels by delimitation of their interests in a worldwide scale".

The Brazilian Foreign Minister stated that in all probability the Inter-American Neutrality Commission, which was due to meet shortly in Rio, would decide to protest against the tightening of British blockade regulations.

German agriculture had been fully mobilized by the Nazi leadership, haunted by memories of the blockade of Germany in World War I and later was able to maintain per capita foodstuff supplies to 1942, after which there was a steady deterioration in both the quality and quantity of the civilian ration.