Askov American., 1943-05-20
l shall have more to say about this
in subsequent letters.
Churchill in Town.

l shall have more to say about this
in subsequent letters.
Churchill in Town.
AS this is being written Prime
Minister Churchill and his staff of
experts are in town for the pur-
pose of conferring with the President
The conference is said to have been
made necessary by the seriousness
of the military situation in the Far
East, where the British campaign to
recapture Burma has begged down.
China is almost at the end of her
rope. She has had very little help
from the United Nations in the way
of war material. Notwithstanding
this, she has compelled Japan to
maintain an army of occupation num-
bering nearly a million men who
would otherwise be free to fight in
those sectors where the American
boys have been uniformly successful
The belief is prevalent in Wash
ington that if China is compelled to
sue for peace it will prolong the war
by several years. Heretofore, our
war strategy has been to get Hitler
first and to clean up Japan after
ward. 1t is generally believed that
this plan was conceived by Churchill
who, naturally, wanted to assure his
country against invasion. Hitler is
being kept busy by Russia so is no
longer a threat in that direction. It
would seem that the time is rapidly
approaching when our military ac-
tivities will be transferred to the
Far East.
Aside from the military angle,
there are other very strong reasons
why the war will shift to the Orient
now that the German armies in Afri-
ca have been annihilated: Uncertain
ty about Russia's war aims in Europe;
jitterineSS about RuSSia's refusal to
join in the war against Japan; un-
willingness to permit Russia to be-
come the dominant power in post
war Europe, and the realization that
Japan is hourly growing stronger
and if not forced to a showdown
within the next six months, will be-
come practically impregnable.
General Macarthur and Admiral
Halsey have for months been stress
ing the super-importance of crush
| ing Japan before she has time to dig
in, consolidate her conquests and ex-
plot the wonderfully rich resources
of the colonies and dependencies that
she has acquired. Oils and fats,
rubber, petroleum, m ang ane e,
chrome and other war essentials are
| now at her command in unlimited
quantities. Then, too, she has an
inexhaustible supply of manpower
and if she can drive China out of the
war, Japan and Russia will dictate
the terms of peace. 1t is significant
that Russia not only refused to at
tend the conference at Casablanca
but she has also stubbornly resisted
all attempt to get her to declare war
on Japan. Russia has already an
nounced that she will retain the
four Baltic democracies after the
war; also that portion of Poland
which she grabbed off when Hitler
marched into that ill-fated country
She is also almost certain to take
Finland and many fear the balance
of the Scandinavian peninsula.
All this would mean that America
will become an armed camp after
the war-universal military training;
huge standing army; two-ocean
navy, either one of which must be
stronger than the combined navies
of Russia and Japan. If this tragic
situation should eventuate it will be
because the President has not given
enough thought to what was best
for America.