Evening star., 1939-10-22

Those who thought that the u S. S. R.
would be confined to the role of a silent
partner in this war are mistaken.
The government Of the Soviet Republics
intends to play the first fiddle and follow
its own policies rather than those of
Berlin.
When the non-aggression pact was
signed between the two relationships 1t
was generally believed that Russia would
be satisfied with gains in Poland and the
Baltic states. That since she did not have
to do any fighting, she would accept the
gratuities Herr Hitler was offering for
having enabled Germany to fight a war
on one front at time. For the rest,
Russia would follow Germany The prin-
cipal aim Of the Reich military and dip
lomatic leaders is obviously the disrup-
ton Of the British Empire. France, in
their opinion, is negligible quantity.
She will fight, and fight well, but she is
not likely to offer the same prolonged
resistance the British are capable of
offering. Hence, all the efforts of the
new axis should be directed-this is the
reported Berlin point of view-to the
destruction Of the British Empire.
Three-Point Strategy.
For the realization of this policy Ger
many has devised a three-fold strategy:
l. To attack the western front with
al the available means at her disposal
air attacks against the British-Fren
industrial centers, heavy attacks against
the British h-French lines of defense and
an unrelenting sea warfare by means of
submarines and airplanes against British
merchantmen and naval vessels This
last was carefully studied and, according
to naval experts, the Germans have de-
veloped a new type Of torpedo against
which the special waterline construction
Of the battleships can offer little or no
protection.
2. While Britain is engaged in deadly
struggle in the West, Russia should be-
gin her campaign in Central Asia by
an attack against India through Iran,
Afganistan and Baluchistan. This would
compel the British government to send
important units of her trained soldiers
and war equipment to the eastern war
areas. In connection with this, efforts
were to be made to draw the Turks into
the sphere Of the axis by promising
them the reconstruction of the old
Asiatic Ottoman Empire. Won Papen.
Hitler's Ambassador to Ankara did good
spade work and the results of his work
were to be reaped by Tovarich Molotof
In Moscow. But Turkey upset the cart.
3. Soon after the war entered its Sec
ond phase by spectacular German ac-
ton on the western front, Italy was to
join her ally by campaign in Africa
against Tunisia in the west and Egypt
in the east. The campaign of Italy was
to be more or less independent of that
Of the Reich and would have ceased as
soon as the Italian objectives were
reached. This was the theory of the
italian cooperation. But in Berlin,
where Herr Won Ribbentrop speaks ex-
cellent French, the old French proverb
"lappetit Went en- mangeant" 0he ap-
petite increases with eating) suggested
that the italians would want to 60 as far
Is Morocco once they have succeeded
In breaking down the French resistance
In Tunisia.
These were, according to the best-in-
formed sources, the ideas of the German
general staff in the event that Great
Britain and France refused to listen to
Hitlers proposals after the conquest and
the partition of Poland.
Stain Desires Bigger Role.
But 1t appears that Stain does not
intend to remain a silent partner-he
does not wish to leave the conduct of the
new war entirely to the Germans He
has his own ideas, which can be divided
into two parts: One, the prosecution of
the old ideas of the Cars for the ag-
grandizement of the Russian Empire,
and, two. the promotion of the Com
munist theology for a world revolution.
Russia is an immense landlocked coun-
try. In Europe her communications with
the outside world are restricted by the
Dardanelles and by the North Sea Straits
which control the access Of Russian ships
to the Atlantic.
When Gear Peter the Great created
Petersburg. he announced that he had
built a small window ON the Baltic Sea" F."
His political plan was to make that win
dow into q door and eventually into q
4AASc Sdec GA1OUkII WIlACLl GIic cIlOILIlOuS
natural resources Of the country could
be exported.
But he could not quite see his way to
increase that window because of the
power of the western nations. He and
his successors directed their attention to
finding wide gate somewhere else. And
that somewhere else was Constantinople
In their effort to break through to an
open ocean the Russians have been con-
fronted, for several centuries, with the
opposition of the British, and their plans
for the conquest of the Golden Gates
were frustrated by the clever, British
diplomats.
Stain is an ignorant man, but he
knows the history of his country. Stream
lined Russia today needs more than ever
free access to the Atlantic Ocean. This
war. If successful, might give her that.
It Is well known that in the original
Russo German agreement Of last August