(PJDBAD) wrote in message ...
The spin on the Finns is that they weren't allies of Germany but
cobelligerents against a common enemy, the Soviet Union. I'm willing to
buy into the idea that there is a difference between the two.

Yes, there is a distinction in international law between being an "ally" and
being a "cobelligerant".

As far as I know, Finland's official position today is that it was only a
cobelligerant of Germany. Some Finns did volunteer for the Waffen-SS, and
accordingly they fought in German uniforms. In 1944, President Mannerheim
was able to come to terms with Stalin to end hostilities. But Hitler regarded
Finland's separate peace agreement as a betrayal, and there were some violent
clashes with the Finns as the German forces withdrew from Finland.

By the way, Finland's air force, the Ilmavoimat, sported the Hakaristi
(a swastika) as insignia on its aeroplanes during the war. The Hakaristi
was not identical to the Nazi Hakenkreuz.

"Soldier Under Three Flags" by H.A. Gill III is the biography of Larry Thorne
(nee Torni) a professional soldier who fought for his native Finland, for
Germany (in the Waffen-SS), and for the United States (as a Green Beret) in
Vietnam.

--Nick