Prisoners of War (POWs)

The treatment of Soviet POWs during World War II, especially by the Soviet government, highlights a significant aspect of the war's broader narrative. This article delves into the Soviet government's policies toward its own soldiers who were captured by German forces, and extends this framework to understand possible Soviet attitudes towards Jews interned in camps in Eastern-occupied territories as the war drew to a close.

Soviet Treatment of POWs

Order No. 270 and Soviet Policy Toward Captured Soldiers

Stalin's Order No. 270, issued on August 16, 1941, declared Soviet soldiers who surrendered to be traitors, subject to destruction by any means and the deprivation of state allowance and relief for their families. This harsh policy underscores the Soviet government's disdain for its captured soldiers.

• Soviet soldiers who surrendered were shot on the spot during long marches to POW camps, used open freight cars with no protection from the weather for transportation, and often provided no shelter from the elements in the camps.

• The camps' conditions often resulted in high death rates, with Russian POWs describing them as "pure hell."

Soviet Refusal of Aid to POWs

The Soviet government refused to cooperate with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) regarding the regulation of POW conditions.

The Soviet leadership's refusal to send food parcels or accept humanitarian aid from other nations such as Great Britain and Canada is indicative of a deliberate policy of neglecting captured soldiers.

The Soviet Union was not a party to The Hague Conventions. Nor was the Soviet Union a signatory of the Geneva Convention of 1929, which defined more precisely the conditions to be accorded to POWs. Germany nevertheless approached the Red Cross (ICRC) immediately after war broke out with the Soviet Union to attempt to regulate the conditions of prisoners on both sides. The ICRC contacted Soviet ambassadors in London and Sweden, but the Soviet leaders in Moscow refused to cooperate. [...]

Over the winter Germany made further efforts to establish relations with the Soviets in an attempt to introduce the provisions of The Hague and Geneva Conventions concerning POWs. Germany was rebuffed again.

Stalin's Direct Response to German Efforts

When Hitler appealed to Stalin for the establishment of postal services for POWs and urged Red Cross inspections of the camps, Stalin's dismissive response underlined the Soviet government's indifference to the plight of its soldiers.

• Stalin declared that there were no Russian prisoners of war and expressed no interest in a postal service for Germans.
• This refusal to engage was consistent with other instances where Soviet officials did not reply to communications from the ICRC regarding aid for Soviet POWs.

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's Critique

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn criticized the Soviet government's betrayal of its POWs, emphasizing their abandonment to die in captivity and the false promises of forgiveness upon their return.

Solzhenitsyn referred to the Soviet government’s actions as a "foul and terrible deed."

• He noted three phases of betrayal: on the battlefield, in captivity, and upon returning home.
• He argued that this betrayal was one of the most significant crimes in Russia’s history.

Implications for Jews in Eastern-Occupied Territories

Expected Soviet Treatment of Jews in Camps

Given the Soviet government's harsh stance on its own captured soldiers, a similar or even more punitive treatment could be expected for Jews captured by the advancing Soviet army in camps or collection sites in Eastern-occupied territories.

• Jews were likely viewed as traitors or collaborators for having been in German-controlled camps, receiving the same disdain or worse as Soviet POWs.
• The Soviet refusal to accept aid suggests a broader policy of neglect that could extend to Jews perceived as compromised by German association.

Conclusion

The Soviet government's treatment of its own POWs offers a framework for understanding its potential attitudes toward Jews in camps in the Eastern-occupied territories as the war ended.

• The same policies of disdain, punitive measures, and refusal of aid evident in Stalin's treatment of Soviet POWs could have logically extended to Jews under similar circumstances.