BRITISH VIEWS

New Zealand Herald, Volume 81, Issue 25084, 23 December 1944, Page 7

BRITISH VIEWS

GERMAN STRENGTH WELL-ARMED RESERVE USED (Special Correspondent) LONDON, Dec. 21 A note of reserve on the German counter-attack in Belgium is still maintained in view o f the fact that the security ban on news has only been partially lifted. The Times military correspondent expresses the opinion that the offensive is unlikely to he stopped quickly and it may do a lot of damage before it is checked. This is not surprising, the correspondent continues, for the enemy has concentrated a comparatively small but compact and well-armed reserve. It may be taken for granted that it consists mainly of S.S. troops, and that it is heavily armed, including now superTifcer and Panther tanks, with a strong force of assault guns. Counting On Quality The enemy has wisely banked upon quality rather than quantity. Quality, together. with a relatively high level of invulnerability of tanks, is the factor upon which he counts to make up for any lack that there may be as regards quantity. One feature of quality is mobility. The Germans have thrown this force into what must be supposed to be a lightly-held sector, and have been able to reach open country. This must necessitate various moves on the Allied side, and it may be some time before they take effect. The correspondent adds that the German force is far better armed than the troops who made the break-through in the Ardennes in 1940, but even the best panzer and panzer grenadier divisions of today are by no means equal in human quality to those of 1940, and they are facing troops whichare better armed than were the Allies in 1940. No Crumbling of Defences The Manchester Guardian military correspondent, writing from Supreme Headquarters in Paris, says there has been no crumbling of Allied defences and the situation has not been allowed to get out of hand. The Daily Mail commentator, Alexander Clifford, writing from the Western Front, says that speaking from the viewpoint of the average well-informed soldier, this German effort really has been a surprise. "We did know three weeks ago that the enemy had been swiftly creating new utility divisions," ho adds. "We knew that he had new strong panzer forms,tions and was waiting for the opportunity to use them, but few people expected anything like this. It means handing some bouquets to the Germans, but we should not baulk at that. Cannot Be Repeated "The fact of the counter-offensive set the air aquiver with possibilities—that we might lose a lot and that this might be the last battle of all. The latter possibility is the one that emerges most strongly from this new situation. After three days you ican diagnose von Kundstedt'.s effort as so supreme that it most certainly cannot be repeated. If we win this it may not mean the end of the war, but it might easily mean that we shall never need to fight another battle." Mr Clifford emphasises the time factor and says that if von Rundstedt can .make certain that he has prevented us from launching our final offensive this winter, his supreme effort will be worth while, but since this is a gamble it is risky, and the advantage we gain from it is that the cards are now on the table. We know where the secret panzer reserve is and what it is doing. The Germans have precipitated a showdown. PRODUCTION FOR WAR HEAVY AMERICAN DEMANDS (Reed. 5.35 p.m.) WASHINGTON, Dec. 21 Arms production must be based_ on the possibility of heavy fighting against Germany throughout 1945 or longer, said the chairman of the War Production Board, Mr Krtig. He added that if General Eisenhower had broken through the West Wall easily equipment under procurement would have sufficed, but it now looked as if the military operations might take a long time. 'Consequently there would be greatly increased demands on production. , . _ -n "The Allied setback in Europe will hit us between the eyes with new production problems," said the vice-chair-man of the War Production Board, Mr Anderson. "Germany's powerful offensive may require a further tightening in civilian production. Urgent demands for shells, guns, . trucks and other material will certainly be followed other difficult armament problems.