Russian Bronze Statue in Estonia

[tequila]

Wow. That sort of Nazi love makes me abandon any positive thoughts of Estonia I've had previously, for sure. The Estonians would be better off not publicizing this side of their nationalism in the West.

[kaur]

Stan, thanks for post and tequila reacts like normal foreigner. If you tell someone SS, then it is automatically bad, bad, bad. Why Estonians joined German troops? Little explanation by Wikipedia.

Estonia was occupied by the Soviet Union in June 1940, [5] [6] after Stalin gained Hitler's agreement to divide Eastern Europe into "spheres of special interest" according to the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and its secret protocol. [7] [8] On September 24, 1939, warships of the Red Navy appeared off Estonian ports and Soviet bombers began a threatening patrol over Tallinn and the nearby countryside.[9] The Estonian government was forced to give their assent to an agreement which allowed the USSR to establish military bases and station 25,000 troops on Estonian soil for "mutual defence".

Subsequently, the country was occupied by Nazi Germany from 1941 to 1944. Although initially the Germans were perceived as liberators from the USSR and its repressions by most Estonians in hope for restoration of the countries independence, it was soon realized that they were but another occupying power. Germans pillaged the country for the war effort and unleashed the Holocaust Estonia was incorporated into the German province of Ostland. That made many Estonians not willing to side with the Nazis join the Finnish army to fight against the Soviet Union. Finnish Infantry Regiment 200 AKA (Estonian: soomepoisid) was formed out of Estonian volunteers in Finland. Many Estonians were recruited in to the German armed forces (including Waffen-SS), the majority did so only in 1944 when the threat of a new invasion of Estonia by the Red Army had become imminent and it was clear that Germany would not win the war.[25] -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estonia...and_Annexation

Estonian joined German units as last attempt to avoid occupation by Soviet troops second time in 5 years.

Stan, there were 2 gatherings at the same time.
"Vabadusvõitlejate XV kokkutulekult Toilas ja Eesti Relvagrenaderide diviisi veteranide kokkutulekult Sinimägedes."

[tequila]

If you tell someone SS, then it is automatically bad, bad, bad.

Yes, pretty much.

To me the only proper response upon seeing German soldiers looting my country and murdering my countrymen would be to start killing German soldiers, not join their most murderous units.

[kaur]

It's sad fact that for Estonians there were no options to join western resistance organisations to resist German and Soviet (like France and other European countires had). So, after seeing Germans retreating and after experience of Soviet occupation in 1940-41, there was only 1 chance to resist Soviets. It was bad choice, that I should protect here and now. After II WW British intelligence tried to organise something here, but this failed because of different reasons. Local resistance waned in the 50s, after last hope of western help had gone.

[tequila]

The Soviets were gone in 1941. The Germans occupied Estonia from 1941-1945 and turned the place into Ostland. They had no intention of freeing Estonia and made that abundantly clear. Yet Estonians, rather than killing Germans, joined them.

It's sad fact that for Estonians there were no options to join western resistance organisations to resist German and Soviet (like France and other European countires had). So, after seeing Germans retreating and after experience of Soviet occupation in 1940-41, there was only 1 chance to resist Soviets.

There should have been a lot more killing of Germans going on between 1941-1943.

That Estonia chooses today to celebrate those who made the spectacularly wrong choice of joining the most genocidal military organization in European history doesn't reflect well on it. Tom Odom noted that the only proper use for the Lord's Resistance Army or the Hutu genocidaires in Africa was as fertilizer. There is no difference between those men and the SS in the 1940s, except the SS had prettier uniforms and better training.

[kaur]

tequila, here is reading about resistance if you take look at pages 16-17 "General Considerations"

http://www.historycommission.ee/temp...lusions_en.pdf

[tequila]

Your link doesn't provide any evidence of any Estonian resistance to the Nazis. Indeed, there seems to have been quite a bit of collaboration, including the creation of a full Estonian SS division and several police battalions which participated partially or in full in the Holocaust.

Even "passive resistance" surely beats active joining in with Nazism.

Regardless of the past, that present-day Estonian political figures choose to celebrate these Nazi collaborators does not reflect well on them or their nation.