Updated

Monday, June 22 at 3 a.m. ET

On June 22, 1941, 3 million German soldiers thundered across Eastern Europe into Russia, destroying countless cities and taking millions of prisoners. Adolf Hitler launched “Operation Barbarossa” — a blitzkrieg invasion of the Soviet Union.

Already weakened by the brutal dictatorship of Josef Stalin, Russia was on the verge of collapse. But with Britain standing alone against the Nazis in Europe, President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill were forced to deal with a brutal despot to keep Russia alive in the war against Hitler.

In this gripping episode of "War Stories with Oliver North", you’ll learn how a secret plan unfolded to arm Russia, and how the United States delivered $10 billion of vital supplies to the Soviets through Alaska, Siberia and even Iraq.

You’ll meet the American men and women pilots who flew risky missions to the northern frontier for our Russian allies.

You’ll go inside the "War of the Rats," the desperate battle for Stalingrad.

And you’ll hear the incredible story of an American soldier who escaped from a German POW camp and joined the Red Army on the Eastern Front.

And later, in a rare interview, you’ll meet the woman who was at Stalin’s side during the Tehran and Yalta conferences when Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin divided the world.

It’s the untold history of Americans and Russians in the titanic struggle of World War II.

Staff for this episode:

Executive Producer: Pamela K. Browne

Produced and written by: Gregory M. Johnson

Editor: Scott Biederman

Designer: Greg Van Why