Putin Comes Clean on Katyn

Vladimir Putin has finally acknowledged Russia's responsibility for one of WWII’s worst massacres: the execution of 20,000 Polish officers in the Katyn Forest.

Vladimir Putin, the real ruler of post-Soviet Russia, has acknowledged his country’s responsibility for one of WWII’s horrendous massacres – the execution of some 20,000 Polish officers in the Katyn Forest.

In the mid 1960s, when I was based in Moscow for the Toronto Telegram, the paper and I were criticized for saying the Katyn Forest massacre was the work of the Soviets and not the Nazis.

In those days, it was widely believed the Germans had killed between 16,000 and 25,000 Polish officers, each of whom had been shot in the back of the head, some with hands tied.

Mass graves held up to seven layers of those who were executed.

It was a monstrous war crime that, from my perch in Moscow, seemed obviously committed by the NKVD (predecessor to the KGB) on the direct orders of Stalin. That’s what I wrote.

Although Stalin had been repudiated by Nikita Khrushchev, the Soviets were still unable to admit that Katyn was their doing, and insisted the Germans did it. Extraordinarily, elements in Canada’s External Affairs department either echoed the Soviet line, or refused to concede that it was a Communist atrocity.

When Hitler invaded the USSR in 1941, the Katyn mass graves were discovered. Allied officers who were prisoners of war were taken to the site to confirm that the Poles were massacred by the Soviets.

British officers mostly refused comment; Stalin was, by then, an ally.

When the Red Army drove the Germans out, the Soviets brought journalists (including the New York Times) to the site to be persuaded that the Nazis did the killing in 1943. Perhaps fearful of being expelled if they annoyed the Soviets, Moscow-based journalists resisted challenging Soviet claims.

In the mid-1960s, debate still seethed as to whether Nazis or Soviets committed the unspeakable war crime. In my (relative) innocence, there was no doubt: An NKVD war crime. And so I wrote.

In 1989, Mikhail Gorbachev finally acknowledged, on behalf of his country, that yes, the war crime was committed by the Soviets.

For diplomatic reasons, there was reluctance by governments to make an issue of Gorbachev’s admission. Except by Poles, who have never forgotten – unlike everyone else -- nor ignored, the evils of the Soviet gulag.

And now Vladimir Putin, prime minister of the Russian Federation and the real power of the country, has attended memorial ceremonies at the Katyn memorial.

Over objections of the communist party, Russia’s parliament formally accepted responsibility for the massacre. The Polish government now wants Russia to pay compensation to the families of those who died.

Don’t hold your breath. Katyn happened 70 years ago. To put a price tag on those who were murdered not only diminishes what was done, but seems to atone for the horror.

Life goes on. We should be thankful that Russia is abandoning its bad old practice of pretending it commits no crimes.

Putin, for whatever criticisms may be made about him, seems a realist who is unafraid to be himself. One can respect his apparent dedication to animals, and his addiction to adventure and physical activities.

He doesn’t seem to care, and clearly is not one given to timidity. He has no trouble making tough decisions.

Churchill called Russia “a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.” It still is, but a little more honest now than it was then.