POW's in Russian captivity Waffen SS?

[FrenchVolunteer]

Hi,

it should be noted that some planning officers of the various Kiev mass killings were also found guilty in other trials in Europe :

- Paul Blobel (Sonderkommando 4a / Einsatzgruppe C then Sonderkommando 1005) (Nuremberg, hanged on June 7, 1951)

- Friedrich Jeckeln (HSSPF Ostland) (Riga, hanged on February 3, 1946)

See You

Vince

[Paul.B.]

But surely politics was important?

Obviously I don't have the knowledge or emotion on the subject you have.

I see it as an enemy formation being returned to their homeland as agreed by the allies at the Yalta conference.

(I have briefly read some articles this morning on the subject which apply 21st century opinion and I don't disagree it wasn't the most honorable of events but still think it followed an agreement, with the intention to protect allied POW's in the USSR's area of occupation).

I agree with you it's all about politics.
I have read a bit on the subject and the way it was done is most disturbing and very undignified and I must say most un-British.
Also a lot of those returned had never been citizens of the Soviet Union and
A large proportion were non-combatants,women and children.
Britain danced for the new master I think.

[chrischa]

... and the way it was done is most disturbing and very undignified and I must say most un-British.

Agreed. Unfortunatley.

[Basil]

I must say most un-British.

Blindly sticking to the letter of an agreement despite good reasons not to strikes me as very British. I suppose, in mitigation, they felt disinclined to value captured enemy combatants over their then allies but it doesn't make it any less shameful. Fortunately we didn't repeat the process with the Ukrainians we were holding.

When I was at Sandhurst the Commandant was the son of the Corps Commander responsible for the Cossacks' repatriation. He used to get very excitable when the subject came up.

[areilley]

Pows

One should never forget what the Russians did to the Ukrainians prior to WWII and that the Russians were co-instigators of WWII in attacking Poland. They committed war crimes against the Poles just as their German Allies did. Stalin's Russia killed millions of more people than Hitler's Germany. Nor should one forget what the Russians did to the people of Warsaw.
The sorry fact that Roosevelt dealt with the Russians condemned millions of people to live under dictatorships for years after WWII. No decent human being should have felt bound to turn anybody over to the Russians, even the Russian POWs held by the Germans.

[NickG]

Well said Allen

[Paul.B.]

Blindly sticking to the letter of an agreement despite good reasons not to strikes me as very British. I suppose, in mitigation, they felt disinclined to value captured enemy combatants over their then allies but it doesn't make it any less shameful. Fortunately we didn't repeat the process with the Ukrainians we were holding.

When I was at Sandhurst the Commandant was the son of the Corps Commander responsible for the Cossacks' repatriation. He used to get very excitable when the subject came up.

I have heard one of the British officers involved called it the most shameful action the Army had ever been involved in.
The thing that really annoys me is the number of non combatants involved.

[robin morley]

I believe that the British were more concerned with recovering the British/Australian/Canadian/American etc POW's who had fallen into Soviet hands and were effectively being held hostage until Soviet nationals previously allied to the German forces were repatriated. After 6 years of warfare I understand why the safety of ones own countrymen would appear to be a greater priority than what at the time was considered to be the traitorous subjects of an allied power.