I think its important to point out that although not to the extent of the west at all the soviets were also far from perfect at purging instead of “strategically using” Nazis.
The difference being the Soviet-captured Nazis were forced at gunpoint to contribute to their R&D projects, being treated as prisoners before either being imprisoned or executed. NATO made its first supreme commander an SS member, put so many Nazis in the West German government that there were actually a higher percentage of them there than in the actual Third Reich, and let von Braun live a long and comfortable life as a free man.
As @DefinitelyNotAPhone@hexbear.net said, there’s a huge difference between selectively using Nazis for their knowledge on R&D while keeping them on a tight leash, imprisoning, and even executing them, and what the West did, which involved giving them cushy jobs, erasing their crimes, and putting them in the highest seats of leadership of organizations like NATO. The West loved the Nazis (still does), the Soviets hated them.
I think its important to point out that although not to the extent of the west at all the soviets were also far from perfect at purging instead of “strategically using” Nazis.
The difference being the Soviet-captured Nazis were forced at gunpoint to contribute to their R&D projects, being treated as prisoners before either being imprisoned or executed. NATO made its first supreme commander an SS member, put so many Nazis in the West German government that there were actually a higher percentage of them there than in the actual Third Reich, and let von Braun live a long and comfortable life as a free man.
As @DefinitelyNotAPhone@hexbear.net said, there’s a huge difference between selectively using Nazis for their knowledge on R&D while keeping them on a tight leash, imprisoning, and even executing them, and what the West did, which involved giving them cushy jobs, erasing their crimes, and putting them in the highest seats of leadership of organizations like NATO. The West loved the Nazis (still does), the Soviets hated them.