The Eastern Front After Five Weeks

Southland Times, Issue 24499, 29 July 1941, Page 4

The Eastern Front After Five Weeks

MILITARY experts have always pointed to three probable weaknesses in the Russian defences. These were: the inadequate railway system and the poorness of communications generally; the quality of Red, Army equipment, believed to be inferior to the enemy’s; and the absence of a capacity for organization comparable with the deadly efficiency of the Germans. Perhaps it is too soon to decide that the experts were completely wrong. The strain of a long war might reveal flaws in the Soviet economy. Even if it be admitted that Russia has advanced rapidly in the development of hex- resources, the vast country is still backward when compared with the industrial strongholds of the west. Political weaknesses that are only incipient might become active and disruptive forces if hardship and hunger were widely endured. Already it has been reported that political commissars are back in the Red Army. The experiences of the war in Finland showed that these men are simply nuisances on active service. They cause a division of authority, undermining the confidence of the officers, and encouraging the Russian habits of debate and procrastination. Thenreappearance coincided with the announcement that Stalin was to be Defence Commissar. Possibly the Russians are able to mix politics and warfare, and the suggestion of party control in the front line may have no inner significance. It would be unfair to question Russian morale while the Red Army is defending its country bravely, resourcefully and successfully. Whatever may happen in the future, it now seems certain that the blitzkrieg has lost its early impetus. The Germans wanted a quick decision, and to obtain it they threw

almost the entire weight of their armies against the Soviet frontiers. During the first three weeks they advanced at a speed probably without parallel in military operations of a comparable magnitude. When they began to slow down it was believed in Britain that they were pausing for a brief consolidation before pushing on with a renewed momentum. But the second phase ended more quickly than the first, and with less spectacular results. Although the Germans may still be advancing, they are not moving at a blitzkrieg pace, and at some points they are at a standstill. It is possible to believe, therefore, that the Russians have kept their grip on the situation throughout, that their equipment is far better than the Germans expected, and that the country’s internal economy has been strong enough to withstand shocks event greater than those which shattered ’ the French Republic. “Surprisingly, the Russian transport system has. not shown any signs of breaking down,” says a British correspondent in Moscow. And he adds: “Ruthless priority is given to military needs.” The word “ruthless,” used in this context, may be significant. A totalitarian State is accustomed to ruthlessness, and in a time of national emergency it should be easy to introduce methods of control which would sweep aside civilian x-ights and requirements with a swiftness that would be impossible in a democracy. Another important fact is that the Russians “are now operating with their supply bases nearer at hand, and are better able to reinforce their troops than are the Germans.” This would not be an advantage if the panzer divisions were systematically breaking through the defences. It will be remembered that large hopes were placed on the extension of the German lines of communication during the battle of France, and that these hopes were disappointed. The difference today is that the Russians are not intimidated by enemy penetrations. Their guerrilla forces appear to be large, well organized, and in close contact with regional headquarters. It is impossible to do more than guess at what is happening on the long front: the details must wait until the smoke and the propaganda vanish together. But after five weeks of massive operations the Germans have failed to reach any of the three main objectives—Leningrad, Moscow and Kiev. Hitler has lost the opening rounds in a battle that, for once, is not going “according to plan.”