RUSSIAN TACTICS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 24009, 5 July 1941, Page 11

RUSSIAN TACTICS

ELASTICITY VITAL LESSONS IN FINLAND TECHNICAL IMPROVEMENT LONDON, July 1 The Russians under present conditions cannot place* their former relianoe on traditional stubbornness in defence, writes Captain Liddell Hart in the Daily Mail. They must rely on a combination of elastic defence and counter-offensive. "Hitherto,'' says Captain Hart, "there has been no reasonable military ground for the talk of victory in which political leaders have indulged throughout tho war. That kind of confidence is so akin to wishful thinking that it does not carry much weight with anyone taking a sober account of the hard facts of history in general and wars in particular. Better Than Recognised "Now, for the first time, in a substantial sense, we are presented with the possibility of victory as distinct from frustration or a German victory. "The Russian war-machine during the Finnish war certainly creaked but it was made of better material than the sceptics recognised. The leaders showed an unusually rapid capacity to learn from earlier mistakes. The men were uncomplaining and enduring. The level of technical personnel was much higher than that of the old Russian army.

"Staff work was remarkably good in the latter stages of tho campaign and armament was not only plentiful but often of first-rate quality, although the chief weakness was the comparative obsolescence of the aircraft. "Thus the crux of the present problem is bow far the Red Air Force is now equipped with sufficient new machines possessing adequate performance. Element of Surprise "Unless the Russian mechanised forces prove that they are able to spring a surprise on the Germans in a tank battle, the Red Army's problem will be how to avoid the German hammerstrokes without retreating too far to remain strategically effective, because it must be recognised that Hitler may be able to gain, his strategic aim without winning a decisive victory. "For instance, he may bo able to occupy the Ukraine and Caucasus oilfields and open the way to Iran and Irak.

"Britain must provide the greatest possible distraction against Hitler's concentration against Russia. We ought to exploit any real opportunity for sea raids, which effectively distract German forces and the German mind." SIGN OF STRENGTH M. STALIN'S ADMISSIONS SOVIET MASSES IMPRESSED (Rpcd. 7.15 p.m.) LONDON, July 4 M. Stalin's broadcast made a favourable impression in London where his admission of setbacks and loss of territory is regarded as a sign of strength, says the diplomatic correspondent of the Times. Stalin seems better able to tell his people the truth than Goebbels. The Moscow correspondent of the Daily Telegraph says Stalin's call for total national war, not only in the modern sense, but in the grim "old Russian" way, electrified the Soviet masses.

Explaining how Stalin could broadcast to the masses when all private radio sets have been called in, correspondents say there are public loudspeakers in all villages, on collective farms, in offices, factories and shops, and also in every courtyard of town tenements. Stalin chose 6.30 a.m. for his broadcast so as to catch everybody before the day's work began. M. Stalin's frank fighting speech is reported to have been a tremendous incentive to all Russians. of thousands have enlisted in the new national militia.

The Berlin radio says that if the Russians obey Stalin's order to destroy crops in the path of the German advance, they will only be harming themselves, for they will not receive an ounce of bread from Germany. The Evening Standard says: "Soviet Russia fights. To-day this mighty fact, which haa transformed the whole aspect of the war, is clinched by M. Stalin's pronouncement. He shirks none of the hard military considerations, but he rallies his nation to endure until victory. This, we believe, is a proclamation of the readiness of Soviet Russia and her huge armies to fight before Smolensk and behind Smolensk, before Moscow, and, if need be, from the Urals."