Did the Kriegsmarine recruit sailors from other Axis countries?

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RF
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Did the Kriegsmarine recruit sailors from other Axis countries?

Post by RF »

I have recently seen the crew member list for the blockade runner Ramses. Several members of the crew came from Finland, retaining Finnish names not German and I was wondering how such sailors would come to be in the Kriegsmarine.

Does anyone know if there was a policy, official or otherwise, of recruiting or training sailors from other Axis countries in the KM?
''Give me a Ping and one Ping only'' - Sean Connery.
Steve Crandell
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Re: Did the Kriegsmarine recruit sailors from other Axis countries?

Post by Steve Crandell »

Finland was an ally, so probably common. When I was in USN boot camp we had a Canadian guy in our company. Foreign nationals can't get the highest security clearances, but the US armed forces accept recruits from a number of nations.
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