Lithuanian citizens in Norway during World War II
Many international ties have in recent years been established between Norway and Lithuania, through for instance business, migrant workers and various international programs. It is however a little known fact that there also were ties between these two countries during the Second World War. Some years ago, while reading a book about soviet prisoners of war, I came across a piece of information that sparked my interest. In the spring of 1945, a Lithuanian diplomat named Vladas Žilinskas was said to have contacted the Norwegian embassy in Stockholm claiming that about one thousand of his countrymen were being held as prisoners by the German occupants in Norway. He was concerned about what would happen to them after the war and emphasized that the vast majority of them were forced labourers working for Organisation Todt. I decided to investigate this information, and it turns out that Mr. Žilinskas was largely right in his claims. Zilinskas, seen here on the far left? Source: http:...