Georg Dertinger(25 December 1902-21 January 1968) was a German politician from the German Democratic Republic (East Germany).

He was born in Berlin into a traditional Roman Catholic family. Dertinger studied law and economy. After his study he became a journalist and later editor for the Magdeburger Volkszeitung and the nationalistic newspaper Stahlhelm. He was a member of the German National People's Party, a right-wing nationalist party that later shortly collaborated with Adolf Hitler.

Dertinger later became a member of the political circle around Chanchellor Franz von Papen.

Although not a Nazi sympathiser, he was a member of the German Catholic delegation to sign a Concordate between Nazi-Germany and the Vatican, shortly after Hitler became Chanchellor.

After co-signing the Concordate Dertinger worked as a journalist for different, provincial, newspapers.

After World War II Dertinger co-founded the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) in the SBZ (Soviet Occupied Zone) of Germany. From 1946 to 1949 he was General Secretary of the East-German CDU and from 1949 to 1953 Vice-Chairman of the party. He supported the official line of co-operation with the Socialist Unity Party (Communists).

Dertinger also joined the Cultural Association of the DDR (Kulturbund) and was a member of the Cultural Association's Presidential Council.

In October 1949 he became East Germany's first Minister of Foreign Affairs in Otto Grotewohl's cabinet and in 1950 he signed the Oder-Neisse Treaty with Poland, that arranged the borderline between East Germany and the Polish Republic.

In January 1953 Dertinger was arrested and in 1954 he was tried for espionage, found guilty and sentenced to hard labor (15 years). In 1964 he was amnestied. The years before his death he worked for the Roman Catholic St. Benno publishing house.

See also

• East Germany
• Anton Ackermann