On December 4, 1917, Wilson appeared before Congress to deliver the 1917 State of the Union Address. In it, he requested a declaration of war against Austria-Hungary and stated such a declaration to be necessary to "clear away with a thorough hand all impediments to success." Wilson went on to charge that Austria-Hungary was "the vassal of the German government" and was acting as the "instrument of another nation." However, Wilson's real impetus for seeking a declaration of war against was the situation in Italy. American military planners believed that it might soon be necessary to deploy American forces to shore up Italian defenses against robust Austrian gains.