During this interim period it was intended that the 'New Europe' would be run by Germans alone.[5] According to Speer, while Himmler intended to eventually Germanize these peoples completely, Hitler intended not to "infringe on their individuality" (that is, their native languages), so that in the future they would "add to the diversity and dynamism" of his empire.[41] The German language would be its lingua franca however, likening it to the status of English in the British Commonwealth.[41]