East Germany stagnated as its economy was largely organized to meet the needs of the Soviet Union; the secret police (Stasi) tightly controlled daily life, and the Berlin Wall (1961) ended the steady flow of refugees to the west.
東德由於其經濟基本上是為了滿足蘇聯的需要而組織起來，因而停滯不前; 秘密警察（斯塔西）嚴密控制著日常生活，柏林圍牆（1961年）結束了向西部不斷湧入的難民。