AXIS PLANS

Grey River Argus, 25 February 1941, Page 5

AXIS PLANS

ON THE CONTINENT MUSSOLINI S SPEECH Britain to be Defeated [Aus. & N.Z. Cable Assn.'j ROME, February 23. Signor Mussolini, addressing a Fascist rally in Rome, said that Ita lj will fight to the last drop of blood against England. He admitted that cne?tenth of the Italian Army~ has been destroyed, also one-fifth of the Air Force. . “I come to look you firmly in the eye,” he said, “and to break my silence bv saying that we will fight to the last. We would have entered the war in September, 1939, if we had been prepared, but after the fighting in Ethiopia we received an appeal from Spain which we could not deny. We would have prefeiied the war to have been delayed, to build up our material, but history takes one by the throat and forces a decision. It is our fate. We have had the most-dillicult fronts on all the seas, and in the African desert. AFRICAN REVERSE The British attack in Africa preceded one we had planned for live or ten days later. The British thus reached Benghazi The British claim to have lost only 2,000 men in Libya, is a lie. They must have lost 20,000. Mussolini went to great lengths to prove that careful preparations were made for the war in Libya, “which was always considered most ’ important strategically.” He said that over 14,000 officers and 356,000 men were sent to Libya, equipped with 1,900 guns of all calibres and most-recent types, 15,300 machine-guns, 11,000,000 artillery shells, one billion rounds of ammunition for automatic weapons, 24,000 tons of clothing, and 759. armoured cars. Mussolini’s Admission TENTH ARMY WiPED OUT ■ ALSO AIR FORCE SQUADRON TAus. & N.Z. Cable Assn.] (Received February 24, 7.10 p.m.) LONDON, February 24. A fuller version of Signor Mussolini’s speech corrects the .one previously reported. He said: “One Italian army, namely the' Tenth, was swept away, with almost its entire strength in men and guns. The Fifth Air Force Squadron was almost literally wiped out.” 1 Italy’s Burden GERMAN RECOGNITION REASON OF MEDITERRANEAN “CO-OPERATION [Aus. & N.Z. Cable Assn ] (Received February 24, 9.10 p.m.) LONDON, February 24. Signor Mussolini, in th e course of his half-hour’s speech, said: “The Germans know that Italy has been supporting the weight .of one million British and Greek soldiers and of fifteen to twenty hundred aeroplanes, and also as many tanks, in addition to thousands of guns, and at least half a million tons of warships. “The German Air Force units and armoured detachments have now put in effect the Mediterranean cooperation which the Fuehrer offered, thus proving that all of our fronts are common to the two Powers and that our effort is a common one.” NO SEPARATE PEACE " “These months exasperate our will, and must intensify our hate for the enemy, which is indispensable to victory. We will probably have to fight for a long time, but the Axis will win. Britain cannot win. _ Italy has an army of 2,000,000, and, if necessary, 4,000,000. American aid for Britain cannot compensate for all the losses inflicted by the Luftwaffe. Britain will soon be aware of Italian and German co-operation in the Mediterranean. New successes will come to us at all four cardinal points. African territory will be retaken without difficulty, when we want it. There are days of fierce fighting ahead on all the battlefronts. Talk of a separate peace is idiotic. The war will end when Britain is defeated, unless the Dominions wish to continue at the risk of losing their independence. Neither Italy nor Germany intends to attack the United States. ITALY NOT WEAKENING “It is ridiculous to expect the further weakening of Italy. This will never occur. Real Italian fighters and workers must not be misled by j a few anti-social persons complain- j ing about rations. The United States has formidable industries, but her aid must reach England, and must also surpass Germany’s production. This is impossible. British armies must invade the Continent, in order to conquer the Axis. No Briton will ever dream of taking such a step.” More Co-operation GERMAN NAVALS AND TROOPS [Aus. & N.Z. Cable Assn.l (Received February 24, 9.35 p.m.) LONDON, February 24. A “Times” correspondent on the Italian frontier states: German troop transports continue to go to Sicily and to southern Italy unceasingly. Many German sailors, not belonging to any sh : p, have gone to South Italy. Presumably they are to take over at least part of the Italian Navy. RECONSTRUCTION AT NAPLES. LONDON, February 23. The German News Agency says that Mussolini has allocated 15.000.000 lira for the reconstruction of 360 dwellings to accommodate residents of Naples, who. have been bombed ' out of their homes.