Victims of Yalta

Victims of Yalta: The Secret Betrayal of the Allies: 1944-1947 by Nikolai Tolstoy, Pegasus Books, 2012. 

Forced Repatriation

This book describes the forced repatriation by Great Britain of Soviet citizens to the Soviet Union after World War II. The British made a formal agreement with the Soviet Union to return their nationals at the Yalta meeting of Britain, the Soviet Union and the United States. Many of these deportees  were Soviet soldiers held in German prisoner of war camps. There were also Soviet citizens who hated Stalin so much that they had fought with the Germans against the Soviet Union. Stalin was mistrustful of those who had lived in the West, because they could inform people back home how things were better in the West.

Pleasing Stalin

In order to please Stalin, during and after World War II, Great Britain forcibly repatriated Soviet citizens to the U.S.S.R. One British concern was the fact that Stalin held many British citizens, and the British were afraid that if they did not return Soviet citizens, then Stalin would not return his British citizens. The Soviets never put in writing that they wanted forced repatriations of their nationals. But the British went too far to please Stalin. They returned many more Soviet citizens than they needed to, to assure that their own citizens would be returned.

The Whites

For example, the British returned people who had fought with the Whites in the Russian Civil War, twenty years before World War II. The Soviets did not ask for old emigres from the Russian civil war, but the British sent them anyway. Many veterans of the 1939-1940 Winter War between Finland and the Soviet Union were also repatriated.

Anthony Eden

The primary British government official responsible for these mistakes was Anthony Eden, who liked Stalin.  

Cossacks and the Caucasus

Many of those repatriated against their will were Cossacks and peoples from the Caucasus. The Cossacks had fought for the Tsar against the Bolsheviks. Cossacks and Caucasians were sent East to Soviet Union on trains. There were many forced repatriations from Austria and Germany. The British military officers hated turning the Cossacks over to the Soviets. They were obeying orders from British politicians. Many civilians, women, children, displaced persons, asylum seekers, non-Soviet citizens, and refugees were repatriated to the Soviet Union.

Other Allies

The United States also forcibly repatriated some Soviet citizens back to the Soviet Union, but in much lower numbers than did Britain. France repatriated a hundred thousand Russians. Italy repatriated few Soviet citizens, although the British moved many Soviet citizens from northern Italy to Austria, and then sent them on trains back to the Soviet Union. The Allies tried to keep the forced repatriations secret from the press. For the most part, they succeeded. 

Russian Soldiers

Some westerners did not want Russian soldiers captured by the Germans to remain in the West, because of the reputation of Russian soldiers for raping and pillaging.  

NKVD

The NKVD and the Soviet Repatriation Commission visited Displaced Persons (DP) camps in Europe looking for Soviet citizens to acquire. 

Opposition

Among the allies, there was some opposition to forced repatriation. Lord Selborne, the British Minister for Economic Warfare, opposed forced repatriation. Sir James Grigg, the British Secretary of State for War, opposed forced repatriation. Belgium forbade the NKVD from entering DP (displaced persons) camps. Many military officers delayed and resisted forced repatriations. It was the politicians who promoted forced repatriations, not the military.

Death Over Stalin

Many repatriates asked to be shot by the British, rather than returned to the Soviet Union. Many committed suicide to avoid being sent back to the Soviet Union. 

Their Fate

Many of the officers repatriated to the Soviet Union were shot. Many of the repatriated enlisted men were sent to slave labor camps. In total, about two million people were sent back to the Soviet Union.