The Wilmington morning star., 1943-08-13
interpreting
The War
By KIRKE l.. Simpson.

The war maps in Russia ~.
Sicily were changing almost ba @"a
by hour last highland for ~. ~.
better as American, CANADIAN s1s a's
British staffs poured over them N'.4 -.
preparation for the Rooseyoi,.' a.
Churchill parleys to plan new t,,' q.
tacks on Axis foes. ''
In Sicily Nazi DuDkaro,,.
flight aas Started. Overnight r' so
ether American sea-borne for" "'
ieap-frosged Cape Orlando in tbs
north to turn the planned N.Y.;
defense front north Of Mount Ft,a r-'
before it got set. To the soTt, ',a
British troops advancing IN t5a
east coast found die-hard reHst
ance bat of limited scope essen.
TALLY a rear guard situation,
Another Nazi race to the ra,r
was on, this time to a last.ditcb
position across the base of the tir,,
Messina peninsula covering tba
tomb-Dlasted escape route ia tbo
mainland. Again Allied staff vorI.
employed the triple attack tecs
rjque successfully to balk German
hopes Of prolonged delaying action
n Sicily while Nazi defense prem
arations on the mainland in Itaiv
and on the Greek peninsula arc
crushed to completion.
1t is from Russia, however ,bs,
tfe news of greatest moment
comes 10 the Allied planners gath.
erlng for session of transcenden.
Importance. 1t tells of a deadlr
Red army moose closing a b our
kharkov, and far to the west ot
the right jaw Of a huge Red wise
developing across the Kharkov.pol.
tava railroad and bearing down
on the vital Dnieper crossings.
Word Of Kharkovs return to Rus.
sian control was to be expected
It any momert. Flight or surrer.
Ger faced its garrison as the es.
cape corridor southwark, the onlv
route still open for retreat dwr.
Cled in width.
There were ,ntiInations, too that
the left prong of the Russian wise
hiding its time in Donets bridge.
heads south OF Kharkov, was about
ready to roll ahead. Al Zmiey Ns
advance guard stands within less
tt an a dozen rifles of the Kharkov.
Crimea railroad and within sixty
miles of the spearhead of the lung
ing Russian southwark drive which
mas cut the Kharkov-P Poltana line
At Vody yanaya
From both directions, north and
northeast. Russian heavy forces
are now within so miles or so Of
'he Dn,eper -rossing at Dnieperop-
etrovsk. The whole Maize line 10
the south in the Donets basin to
the Sea of Azov is in danger Of
entrapnent east of the river and
the period OF brief fall rains in
September which could slow up
tie Russian attack is still too dis
tant to afford the foe hope Of re.
lief from the growing pressure.
This ls the thiId time the Rus
slams nave tried to spring that
south bend of-ihe-Dnieper trap up
en- the invauer. They narrowly
failed before and this time are
Using more tremendous forces and
operating over a far wider terrain
tran previously. Success m uSt
1nean virtual annihilation Of from
quarter to a third of the whole
huge Nazi army in the east It
would iree the Caucasus and the
Crirnea of the foe, or doom the
Nazi troops here TO the fate Of
those caught in tn Stalngrad
pocket death or surrender.
The Russians are playing 0 .
te.eir greatest stakes of the war in
this summer campaign. They ap-
tory now, not merely battling for
tory nov, not merely ba tltingofr
position. ),
And Russian representation, d.
rectly or indirectly, at the Roose,
ye]t-Churchill staff meetings would
he welcomed by the Allies DEF
mite knowedge of what the Rus
SANS pan or hope to do to exploit
the resounding victories they nave
already recorded would be hardly
less welcome and may be 1orW'
coming.