SPRING OFFENSIVE

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 77, 18 February 1942, Page 5

SPRING OFFENSIVE

TANKS MAY DECIDE IT j I GIGANTIC BATTLES IN RUSSIA e| FORECAST sj J Moscow, Jan. 28. d Lieutenant-General Leonid A. Go's vorov, victor of Mozhaisk, said In a r special interview at the front yesterday: “The German Army has not lost y it? striking power. I expect gigantic r tank battles in the spring. The Gery mans will continue to depend on ma “ attacks by tanks, in which they still d have numerical superiority.” n General Govorov’s statement conc lumed the impression I gained during a tour of the Mozhaisk battle front, that y the German retreat is no longer un “ j controlled in this sector, and that the “ war machine, while damaged, has not ! been crippled, writes the Moscow cor- ° respondent of the “Sydney Morning I Herald.” Nevertheless the Germans ~! are still falling back very rapidly m e the attempt to create a gap between e their battered armies and the harrying Russian forces. After having re--1 t eated six to nine miles a day a Gerejman force is trying to hold the Rusejs.'ons about 40 miles west of Mozhaisk, “ but it should be broken soon. e As I w-andered through ruined Uvac‘| rovo. I could hear the Russian artillery s ! pounding the enemy five miles further '• west. German tactics are apparently I to delay the Russian advance as long r ’ 1 as possible to give their troops a chance ~| to establish a strong defensive line, s i which it is very unlikely they will be able to do this side of Smolensk. General Govorov received corresc pondents in a small room in a house m r Mozhaisk which he is using as temporary headquarters. It was so cold that . the steam of our breathing created a haze, thorugh which we had to peer at the general, who was seated at a tabje which was the only furniture in the , toom. He looks younger than his 45 years, probably because a small black i "Chaplin moustache” softens the hard, ruthless lines of his face. Most striking . points about him are the tremendou* r 'j force of his personality and his powei - _ ful build—legacy of his peasant origins, v of wffiich he is very proud. His mano j ner is abrupt and forthright. He talked ni to us very plainly, stating disadvantages as well as advantages. He does - not allow false optimism to cloud his e judgment. He expects the Germans to r : strike again savagely in the spring, l ' 1 and he is taking every precaution both t to. break down the power to strike and t to meet whatever offensive comes. ALLIED HELP VALUED r d He was asked: “Will the Germans r still have superiority in tanks id the f i spring?” K He replied: “That depends to some extent on our Allies. Our industry is ( working at top speed and the extent ) of aid from Britain and the United States may be the factor which turns the scale.” General Govorov added that the experience of this war had shown that the best mehod of meeting a mass tank attack was to fling tank against , tank. The next most effective weapon I. ! was artillery, in which the Russians I I had superiority. "We have also n ( Developed anti-tank defences.” he i j added. British tank took part in the Moz- ! baisk battle. Their performance more ; than satisfied their Russian crew's. ? A striking feature of the fighting was s 1 the limited part played by German tanks and aircraft—the tw-o weapons 1 on which they had relied to reduce 1 Europe. Russian fighters were overj head almost continuously as we wanj dered along the battlefront, but there ! was no sign of any German machines. " The principal reason is that they had not been prepared for winter fighting. According to General Govorov the Russians have not yet found a German aeroplane fitted with skis. No Russian aeroplanes are now' on wheels. Tanks are limited in their operations by the heavy snow and intense cold. Eighteen to 24 inches of snow covers the highways and tanks are unable to operate efficiently in these conditions, the Russians have also found that the , weather has limited the effectiveness P j of their aerial flame-throwers. I I Correspondents made a tour with a I | temperature 30 below’, giving us a . ! taste of what the troops endure in J fighting in these conditions. On the 68-mile drive from Moscow to Mozhaisk , my hands were continuously painful, although I was wearing heavy woollen , | gloves and leather mittens. It is beyond comprehension how it ( !is possible to operate weapons under . such conditions. The Germans, at | least, are finding it very difficult, ac- ! cording to prisoners, who have given 1 themselves up after reading Russian ’ leaflets that their lives would be spared. "Why did you surrender?” one of them w’as asked. “The war has lasted too L ; long.” he replied. THIN GERMAN CLOTHES The Germans appear poorly clad for 5 | these conditions. Their greatcoats and , uniforms are of comparatively light material and their ankle-high bools are made of light leather. Trying to ] protect their ears and head, they often • wind scarves beneath their light forage l caps. J : Their clothing is in striking contrast to that of the Russians whom I saw' along the roads and in Mozhaisk and liUvarovo. I saw nobody without fur- ; lined heavy knee boots, and if not ; i covered with a sheepskin-lined coat. ; they w'ere at least wearing a padded • jacket and trousers beneath a heavy 'wool greatcoat. Their heads were covi ered with heavy caps, with ear-flaps, , and their hands were protected * by extra heavy w'oollen gloves. The Germans, as they fell back. ! w'ere thorough in their w’ork of destruction. Museum Heights at BoroI . dino, where , trophies of Napoleon’s , battle there w-ere preserved. were gutted. Remains of relics within the ; shell of the building include old bay- , onets and cannon balls and similar equipment, w’hich had resisted the fire. Uvarovo was destroyed before it , , w'as evacuated, at least 800 houses being burned dow'n. All that remains of the once prosperous small tow’n is a heap of smoking ruins, among w'hich the ! few renaming inhabitants are searching for possessions w’hich might have | survived. Thunder of the guns, which can be j plainly heard in Uvarovo, indicated I the direction of the battle, as the Geri mans make desperate efforts to keep , the main Smolensk highway clear as • the most effective means of escape. Meanwhile, General Govorov is ! throwing in a great weight of artillery as the best means of battering the German war machine and keeping it moving so rapidly as to make it unable to gain sufficient time to establish strong defences.