A historical transcript documenting a 1974 visit by French existentialist philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre to Red Army Faction (RAF) leader Andreas Baader has been released. The meeting occurred at the Stammheim prison in West Germany, where Baader was being held for his role in the militant group responsible for a series of bombings, bank robberies, and assassinations during the 1970s.

Sartre’s visit was a significant event at the time, drawing international attention to the conditions of the RAF prisoners. The transcript provides a direct record of the dialogue between the intellectual and the militant, offering insight into their exchange regarding the RAF's ideology and the state of their incarceration. While the transcript is now available for public review, the historical context of the meeting remains a subject of debate, with some viewing Sartre’s visit as an act of solidarity with anti-establishment figures, while others characterize it as an endorsement of a group involved in violent extremism.

The release of this document allows historians and the public to examine the specific arguments used by both men during this period of intense political unrest in West Germany. The transcript highlights the friction between the radical left-wing movement and the West German state, providing a primary source for understanding the motivations and rhetoric of the era.