Russians Planning Parade Of Armed Might In Germany

Greymouth Evening Star, 15 March 1949, Page 5

Russians Planning Parade Of Armed Might In Germany

(Rec 1.15 p.m.) BERLIN, March 14. The Russians have been slowly building up their armed forces in Germany since the beginning of the year, according to allied sources. Their occupation strength had dwindled to the low point of 250,000 towards the end of 1948 when units were sent back to the Soviet Union and were not immediately replaced. One allied officer said the replacements started to arrive after Christmas and the estimated strength is now about 300,000 officers and men. The Red Army in Germany is planning its greatest spring ’manoeuvres since the war, according to the western-licensed German press. The Russians will stage gigantic war exercises in eastern Germany, including river crossings and mock combined ground-air offensives. Fifty thousand German policemen making up the Communist “People’s Police” will take part in the manoeuvres. Police schools which haye been set up by the Communists in the past year will perform military operations to show the Soviet offi cers the advanced stage of their training, according to the newspaper, Telegraf.