Evening star., 1943-01-13
Nozis May Toke Stond
To Protect Mako Oil
Retreotine Germans
Being Forced Into
Arc Around Rostov
By Maj. George Fielding Eliot.

Arc Around Rostov
By Maj. George Fielding Eliot.
It would appear from the Russian
reports Of yesterday, that the Germans
are making rather hasty withdrawal
from their positions in the eastern part
Of the North Caucasian area. The whole
of two important branch line railways,
together with the mainline functions Of
Georgievsk and Mineralnye Vodi, would
hardly have fallen into Soviet hands on
single day had the Germans made
anything like a determined effort to
hang on to them. Such fighting as there
was appears to have been merely the
delaying action of rear guards covering
the retirement and gaining just enough
time for the main bodies and perhaps
some supply elements to get clear.
How far the German retreat will 60
remains to be seen. The Russian forces
In this area. commanded by 1t. Gen.
Maslenikof, appear to have considerable
striking power. Gen. Maslenikof Is the
only Russian Army commander whose
communications are unimpeded by enemy
action. He draws his supplies and equip
ment from the Russian military depots
in Transcaucasia, by way Of the Baku
Railroad, and receives support from
American and British arsenals by way
of the Persian Gulf, the railways Of Iran
and Iraq and the Caspian Sea. This
latter is long line and a difficult one.
but here as in the north 1t seems likely
that the Russians have been boarding
their receipts of planes, tanks and guns
all summer long while they prepared
for their great counterstroke.
A glance at the map will show that
the Germans in the North Caucasian
area are now being gradually herded
back into a semi-circle covering Rostov.
The direct pressure is from Maslenikoff.
His right is now linked with the left Of
the Russian Army coming down the
Stalingrad railway by the mobile Rus
sian forces operating over the Kalmyck
line has made another advance, to
Kuberle, which threatens the left flank
and rear Of the forces withdrawing
before Maslenikoff.
Meanwhile, the Germans appear to
be worried about the Russians on the
Black Sea coast, in the Tuapse area.
These forces are supplied from the same
sources that serve Maslenikoff, and the
Russians still have both naval and
merchant shipping on the Black Sea
which could land additional troops II
necessary. A powerful thrust from this
direction. moving north against Novoros-
siisk, Maikop and Krasnodar, may well
be within the possibilities OF the i'm
mediate future German resistance is
stiffening in the areas closest to Rostov-
that IS. on the Don and Donetz Rivers
and in the Kuberle area-but 1t is stiffen-
ing, OF course. at the price Of using up
the available reserves, AND new attack
from the Black Sea coast might be Just
too much. The Russians throughout
their offensive operations have shown
great capacity for meeting stif1ening
resistance in one sector by a new blow
in another.
1t should, however, be kept in mind
that the great Russian difilculty is now
their extended communications. Except
for Maslenikoff, none of their army
commanders has a clear, open line OF
railway communications back to main
centers OF supply. This will continue to
hold out; they are selling their lives
dearly and they are certainly buying
precious time for their comrades, for
were they to give way now 1t is hard to
see what could save Rostov and the
German troops in the Caucasus. The
farther the Russian armies go from their
distant railroads north and east of the
Don the greater the strain put upon
their motor transport and upon their
engineers engaged in trying to improve
and keep open the poor road system of
this region. The Germans, on the other
hand, enjoy the full support of open and
operating rail lines.
On this basis 1t would seem likely that
barring an immediate German collapse
1t Stalingrad, which Is . possibility
always to be reckoned with, that the
Russians will for a time gain ground
more rapidly in the Caucasian area than
elsewhere. However, their advances in
the south will put increased strain on
the German reserves and will force de-
cisions on the German high command
which may help other Russian forces to
advance. Probably the controlling factor
Of most immediate consequence is the
extent to which the Germans have de-
termined to withdraw. If they make 4
definite stand anywhere south of the
Don 1t will doubtless be at q position to
cover the Maikop oil fields. Their
chances Of retaining these fields could
hardly be considered good, but they have
built many hopes upon them and NAV
try to keep an asset for which they have
paid 50 heavily.
(copyrisht, 1s43, New York Tribune. Incl