Wartime diaries of President Risto Ryti to be released
Risto Ryti
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The diaries of Risto Ryti, the President of Finland during the last war, are being made public. This week’s edition of the news magazine Suomen Kuvalehti, which came out on Friday, contains Ryti’s account of the day that Adolf Hitler visited Finland on the 75th birthday of Marshal C.G.E. Mannerheim.
On the day of the visit, June 4th, 1942, Ryti wrote in his diary: "Hitler praised the Finns, saying that of all of Germany’s friends, they are the only ones who are truly trustworthy."
According to the diary, Hitler had told Finnish leaders about his plans for crushing Leningrad.
"St. Petersburg would be totally destroyed, and not just St. Petersburg, but also Moscow. As long as these large cities exist, peaceful conditions would not be possible in the east. St. Petersburg has been - and still is - a misfortune for Finland", Ryti wrote.
Ryti’s notes on the discussions are very detailed. The President also described his personal feelings.
In Ryti’s view, Hitler "would be a warm, heartfelt, well-meaning, and sensitive person", if he did not wear "the mask of a National Socialist leader and prophet".
However, according to the article in Suomen Kuvalehti, Ryti was not enthusiastic about the brotherhood of arms that existed between Finland and Germany. He emphasised that Finland was involved in a separate war, and that it therefore had no reason to take part in any attempt to take St. Petersburg. "The Germans can do that themselves", Ryti wrote.
Risto Ryti’s diaries remained hidden after the war. According to the article by journalist Jarkko Vesikansa, two copies were preserved. One version went to the United States after the war. The magazine used this material, which was found by historian Hannu Rautkallio, in its article. The other version, which researchers have not had access to, has been in the archive of the office of the Chancellor of Justice.
More information from the Ryti diaries is expected to come out in a couple of weeks, when the book Risto Rytin päiväkirjat 1940-1944 ("Risto Ryti’s Diaries 1940-1944") is published.
The publisher, Edita, was surprised at the publication of the article in Friday's Suomen Kuvalehti, as no extracts of the book were given to the press in advance. According to the publisher, the book contains "previously unpublished notes of President Risto Ryti from 1940-1944".
This suggests that the sources are the same as those quoted in Suomen Kuvalehti.
Helsingin Sanomat
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| 13.1.2006 - TODAY |
 Wartime diaries of President Risto Ryti to be released
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