Thrust Toward Black Sea

Manawatu Times, Volume 66, Issue 192, 14 August 1941, Page 5

Thrust Toward Black Sea

ORDERLY RUSSIAN WITHDRAWAL LONDON, Aug. 12. * An earlier message stated that the Germans claim to have isolated the Russian Black Sea base of Odessa. They aay their troops are on the Black Beu coast both east and west of the city. Moscow, however, says nothing to substantiate this claim. Neutral observers indicate that a large-scale orderly withdrawal is being made by the Russians. Belated German reports from the Eastern front claim that large Soviet forces cut off and tightly hemmed-in in the region between Ochakov and Odessa are trying to get away by ships, says the Berlin correspondent of the Associated Press of Great Britain. Ochakov is south of Nikolaev. To-night’a Russian communique reports that nothing of importance has occurred on the Eastern Front. The communique claims the destruction of 41 German planes for the loss of 34 Russian. “Our warships in the Baltic destroyed four torpedo boats and two transports on Monday,' * the communique adds. Interest in the Russian-German struggle is increasingly concentrated on the Southern Ukraine, where the Germans claim to have reached parts of the Black Bea coast after considerable gains of territory. The military spokesman in Berlin this afternoon said: “The German pursuit of the Russians has partly reached the Black Sea." To-night, the spokesman declared that German artillery dominated the lower course ou the Dnieper River below Kiev, for which reason these reaches were almost useless as a line ot communication for the Soviet. Moreover, he said, the few railways of the Southern Ukraine were now under the control of German troops and their alia*, so the whole traffic system was paralysed. “The Russians won't be aDle for long maintain their hold on the small section of the Dnieper bend at present under their control," he said. The British United Press correspondent in Berliu says that neutrals there belie\e the Russians in the Ukraine are carrying out an orderly large-scale retreat. t hey emphasise the statement in a Hungarian communique: “The enemy forces untouched by the encirclement movement are retiring on a broad front." The Berliu Ncwa Agency states that the Russians arc ..vtempting to bring their scattered troops to the Black Bea coast and ship them away. The Luftwaffe on Sunday, it says, sank six Boviet ships between Odessa and Ochakov. %he Bremen radio announced that,

during attacks against Oc-hakov on Monday, the Luftwaffe sank three small ( ships and damaged one. j The German News Agency claims that I German fighters patrolling the area around Kiev this morning shot down 27 enemy planes. e The Times’ correspondent on the b German frqntier, referring to the fact f tlia t no lighting has so far been rei ported from Odessa, points out that its . reputedly almost impregnable fortifica- . tions are based on similar principles to 8 those of Tobruk. Competent military circles in London >. considered an earner German claim e tnat strong forces were 7U miles from i t! the Black oea port of Nikolaev as un- I a‘likely to be accurato (says & British a Official Wireless message;. It was! s thought tuat armoured units might have i- advanced, but there was no evidence v that substantial units were there at all. jVhe position was more likely to be a >- break-through by a few armoured s vehicles. e There are indications, however, that * ( the German pressure in the Ukraine is persisting strongly, and there is no sign ' 5 of any falling-olf in this sector. Tne 0 greatest pressure of the German ad1 ‘ vance comes from the south-east from jUmau rather thau the north-west. It a is likely that the river Dniester has n been crossed near tho coiner of Bessr* arabia. 21 Finnish military experts arriving in c Berliu from the Russo-Fiunish frontier s* declared that the capture of Leningrad 1: was not expected for several weeks, is These experts added that an offensive | against Leningrad was not envisaged d for several weeks unless the Gerniau e offensive in the .Southern‘Ukraine terj- minated earlier thin scheduled, e Finnish trooxis north-eastward of if Lake Ladoga are uow r about 05 miles northward of the Stalin Canal and are e separated from Leningrad by swamps e where their progress must be* slow, be* ir cause tanks and heavy artillery can not is be used there. >e The Finns emphasise the imperative n t need for conserving Finnish manpower, d Finnish troops have not attempted to e storm Hanko, Russian base on former Finnish territory at the mouth of the l- Gulf of Finland, because they are sure ■e that it will fall into their hands after -e the collapse of Russia. ?- The Stockholm new spaper Socia Demoii kraten reports that the Russians on the y Finnish front are using a shell containt ing petrol, which bursts 200 feet over d the ground, igniting forests. | Reports from the Viazma front state t that, the Russians are using gigantic g modern tanks reaching 250 tons in a weight, with nine-millimetre steel ;- plating, 75-millimctre gunß, and flamex throwers. -| The British United Press correspondlent in Moscow- says that private reports ,!from the front indicate that the

Russians threw tho Germans back for some distance in tho Smoensk sector.