“Beat Hitler First” Dominates Allied Plans

Manawatu Times, Volume 68, Issue 57, 9 March 1943, Page 5

“Beat Hitler First” Dominates Allied Plans

(By Telegraph—-Press Assn.—-Copyright.) Received Monday, 10.15 p.m. NEW YORK, Mar. 7. General MacArthur and Admiral Halsey have been expected to do a big mans job with a boy’s equipment writes Joseph Harsch, military correpondent of the Christian Science Monitor. American and British service officials have realised this and would like to send both the commanders greater forces than they have been able to supply. “However the Allied plan of strategy was worked out because it was felt absolutely impossible to fight simultaneous offensives both in Europe and the Pacific. To have divided the offensives evenly would have meant futility in each. Whether the decision to concentrate on Europe first was right or wrong it had never since been possible to depart from it without jeopardising everything everywhere.” ‘ * The decision was made with the expectation that MacArthur and Halsey would be able to hold the Japanese at bay while the other campaign wa3 going on,” says Mr. Harsch. ‘‘There has never been any absence of a realisation of how much was being expected of them and appeals from Down Under have been accepted as more or less inevitable. But these appeals have not been acted on beyond the minimum estimates of what was necessary to hold that front. “While there is no doubt the Japanese have been strengthening their positions throughout the islands north of Australia these concentrations are still considered in Washington to be short of the size sufficient for an offensive attempt against Australia. The assumption here is that the Japanese have decided to concentrate on defence so far as the Pacific Islands are concerned.”