15% is not a vast majority
German POW in Russia: 2 388 443
Released: 2 031 743
Died in captivity: 356 700
My sister in law's father was a LW 20mm AAA gunner in France. He was
wounded on D-Day and sent home to heal. When the war ended, he was sent
south from his home by the Americans. He was given to the Soviets and
shipped to Siberia in 1945 along with 2300 others.
Because he was a journeyman carpenter he was valued and used to help
build bridges on the Siberian highway and railroad. By the time he was
repatriated in 1950 only 200 of the 2300 were left alive.
I know it's hearsay, but unless his camp was unusual those numbers sound
off. The Russians don't even know how many of their own were lost.