East Germans thus had a powerful incentive to move to the West, where they would enjoy greater freedom and economic prospects.[14] The East German government sought to define the country as a legitimate state in its own right[15] and portrayed West Germany as enemy territory (feindliches Ausland) – a capitalist, semi-fascist state that exploited its citizens, sought to regain the lost territories of the Third Reich, and stood opposed to the peaceful socialism of the GDR.[16]