Resolved: Russia would have lost WWII without Allied assistance

1. The Allied Military intervention Although one of the comments argues the Allies did not militarily intervene on the Western Front, he is incorrect. Although they did not directly send troops, they did play a significant role as to how the Eastern Campaign concluded. a) Greece The campaign in Greece was one of the most important factors in the execution of Operation Barbarossa (the invasion of Russia) and its eventual outcome. Many historians believe that the attacks on Greece by Italy are the turning point of the war itself. Italy invaded Greece on April 6th, 1941. The Italians were unable to take the region, and asked for German assistance. The English in turn sent 60,000 troops, 100 tanks, and 300 aircraft in order to entangle as many German troops in the region as possible. This delayed Barbarossa by at least a month. Hitler would blame the loss in Russia on the Italians insistence on invading Greece. Hitler’s friend, Leni Riefenstahl, was quoted as saying, “if the Italians hadn't attacked Greece and needed our help, the war would have taken a different course. We could have anticipated the Russian cold by weeks and conquered Leningrad and Moscow. There would have been no Stalingrad” [1]. The delay caused the Germans to suffer winter and logistical losses due to the weather. As Operation Typhoon began, the advance slowed down due to weather issues. The rain caused mud to make Panzers immobile, and when the ground froze over (where the tanks could drive on it) Germans began to die of the cold. The advance on Moscow halted, and the Russians had prevailed. Operation Barbarossa, at this point, was not winnable—although, the Germans still may have been able to achieve a profitable peace treaty… That is, if the allies didn’t support Russia’s future war efforts. b) Multiple fronts One of the forgotten fronts opened by the allies was the Norwegian front. Although the allies never invaded there (although they had deception plans to force the Germans to station troops there [2]), the Norwegian theatre dramatically affected the outcome of World War 2. The fact that the English had ‘plans’ to invade England caused the Germans to place 300,000 troops in Norway throughout the entire war [3]. Imagine, for example, had these troops been part of Army Group North. Leningrad could have been taken, Leningrad was a huge port which provided the Soviets with Lend-Lease aid and was a large industrial city. Its loss would have significantly hampered Soviet war efforts. The loss would also dishearten Russian communists and lead to a morale boost for the invading Germans. More troops would have been spared for Operation typhoon, which would have led to the capture of Moscow, and possibly giving Hitler his victory on the eastern front. The campaign in Africa led to Rommel never serving on the Eastern Front. Although he would not have been an army commander (he liked to lead from the front), he was an excellent smaller unit (for example, a corps) commander. This could have led to more success—or at least, more casualties inflicted on the Russians—had he served on that front. Further, the Italian and German troops serving in Africa could have been in Russia. And, in 1943 – 44, the allies were in Europe. Fighting in Italy and France. Had these troops been usable, even at this late date, the Germans could have lasted a much longer time against the Russians. The Russians were running low on man power by the end of the war. Had all the Western Forces moved East, the Russians would have been delayed, and may possibly sign a peace with Hitler. Bagration would have been prevented or less significant, and Kursk may have been a German victory. As we can see, these indirect effects significantly altered the course of World War 2. c) Strategic bombing campaigns The Allied bombing campaigns crippled the German war machine. 1.1 million pounds of bombs were dropped on Germany. For comparison, 1.4 million bombs were used in the ENTIRE WAR. The Americans bombed cities, factories, railways, and any strategic site we could think of. German General Albert Speer noted, “The war is over in the area of heavy industry and armaments, from now on the material preponderance of the enemy can no longer be compensated for by the bravery of our soldiers. ” German production slowed, communications ruined, and their troops could not be transported. Defensive and offensive capabilities simply were destroyed. German officers noted that they would often have significant reserves ready for use, but the Allied bombing of German railway made it impossible to move them efficiently, and they became worthless. American bombing operations damaged 75% of the buildings which served as 90% of aircraft production. This meant that the Germans could not produce aircraft, and would lose air superiority in every mission—something which is necessary to win mobile warfare [4]. ---> As we can see, the military actions of the Western Allies crippled Germany 2) Economic intervention The Lend-Lease program was called ‘Russia’s Life Saver’ by historian Albert Weeks. Russians troops were equipped, fed, and supported in every way by American industries. Michael Parrish notes, “The victory over Nazi Germany was achieved through the economic power of the United States and the lives of millions of Soviets” [5]. Without the American—and even English—aid, we would be living in a dramatically different world. The Armed forces in 1945 have published research as to exactly how much the Allies had given to Russia and others. Combat vehicles were extensively given to the Russians, peaking in 1943 (when massive Russian offensives would lead to more offensives in 1944 and 45, which led to the destruction of Nazi Germany). The Americans gave the Russians a HUGE amount of material in order for the Russians to build their tanks (for example, we gave them tools and metal). We also gave a significant amount of railway supplies, and vehicles, which were essential to troop movement and communication. Had we not given this to the Russians, their success in future offensive and defensive operations is suspect and chances for Soviet victory diminishes. The Soviets also received 153,000 small arms (firearms) from the US and 6,000 artillery pieces [6]. 3.9 million pounds of Lend Lease material went to the USSR over the Arctic Route, and this only accounted for 23% of total aid given to the USSR. 400,000 Jeeps were given to the USSR, as well as 12,000 armored vehicles. 11,000 aircraft were also given. 2.6 million pounds of gasoline was given to the USSR, as well as 35,000 motorcycles. 4.4 million pounds of food were send to feed Russian troops. Joseph Stalin was quoted as saying, “without American production the United Nations [the Allies] could never have won the war. ”[7][8] I turn this over to my opponent! 1. . http://en.wikipedia.org...2. . http://en.wikipedia.org...3. . http://en.wikipedia.org...4. . http://etd.lsu.edu...5. . http://www.historynet.com...6. . http://cgsc.contentdm.oclc.org...7. . http://en.wikipedia.org...8. . http://en.wikipedia.org...