Secret Nazi Discussions What Awaited the Peoples of the Baltic States

Added: 2026-05-05

[00:00:00]After the introductory speech by Dr. Kleist of the Eastern Ministry, a discussion flared up again on the question of the percentage of Baltic inhabitants suitable for Germanization.

[00:00:08]Thus, Professor Schulz of Ruscha stated the need to distinguish between those parts of the Ostland population that are racially suitable for Germanization and those that need to be rejected.

[00:00:19]It followed from his statements, Dr. Wetzel wrote in the minutes, that he was clearly inclined to the opinion that the majority of the population was not suitable for Germanization.

[00:00:29]He advocated that racially undesirable sections of the population be evacuated to the East, while the racially acceptable ones would undergo Germanization in the core part of the Reich or perhaps in Ostland.

[00:00:40]Then Dr. Schubert of Ruscha spoke up expressing the same idea in an even more blunt manner, declaring that undesirable persons should be deported to Western Siberia.

[00:00:49]He proceeded from the fact that the examination of Poles revealed only 3% of people who were racially valuable and therefore suitable for Germanization.

[00:00:57]The decisive word in this discussion was spoken by Parteigenosse Girgenson from the NSDAP, or Girgenson.

[00:01:04]Girgenson sounds a bit more comical. He stated that it was impossible to create a territorial administration with the help of Russian personnel. Therefore, given the inadequacy of German forces, it would be necessary to act with the involvement of representatives of other peoples. He proposed introducing racially undesirable representatives of the Baltic peoples into the occupied Russian regions as a middle class.

[00:01:25]Schulz and Schubert agreed with him.

[00:01:27]"The Germans must play the role of the Spartans," said Schulz, recalling ancient Greece and his classical education.

[00:01:33]"The middle layer of Latvians, Estonians, and others, the role of the Perioeci, and the Russians will take the position of Helots." By the end of the meeting, Dr. Wetzel wrote in the conclusion of the minutes, it had become clear to everyone in any case that the settlement of Germans could only take place in such a way that the adjacent territories of the Warthegau district and the like had to be populated first.

[00:01:55]And that, as far as Ostland is concerned, it is necessary first to carry out an accurate check of the racial composition of the population, which should not be portrayed as a racial selection, but disguised as a hygienic examination or something of the sort, so as not to cause concern among the population.