Manfred Poehlich of Halle in East Germany was sentenced to life imprisonment Monday, for complicity in the murder of thousands of Jews while serving in the Nazi SS, the official East German news agency ADN reported.
Poehlich was found guilty by an East German court of having participated in the mass shootings of Jews in the Ukraine in 1941.
The sentence and its announcement in the official media was seen in Western circles as another move by the East German Communist regime to win Jewish good will as a means of gaining favor in the United States.
East Germany desperately wants to improve trade relations with the United States. Communist Party boss Erich Honecker hopes to win most-favored-nation status and, in exchange, has indicated a willingness to pay reparations to Jews for their losses during the Nazi era.
The East Germans have not named a sum, but estimates range from $100 million to $175 million.
Honecker is expected to meet with World Jewish Congress President Edgar Bronfman later this month to discuss the issue.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
