Evening star., 1944-06-22
Reds Open New Drives
In Effort 10 End War
With Finland Quickly
By the Associated Press.


LONDON, June 22.-The Red
Army hurled masses of men and
equipment into two new drives
on a broad front north of Lake
Ladoga today in an effort to
make quick end of the war
with Finland, already reported
in the throes of a government
upheaval which may be the prel-
ude to a bid for peace.
Launching of the drives was an
nounced last night in a Moscow
communique, which also disclosed
that Soviet forces advancing from
captured Viipuri on the Karelian
Isthmus south of Lake Ladoga were
within 20 miles of the border fixed
at the end of the 1939-40 Finnish
Russian war.
The political situation in Hell
sinki as the Russians intensified
pressure on the staggering Finnish
Army remained obscure, but there
were strong indications that the
Finnish government was facing a
crisis.
Aimed at Clearing Railway.
A Reuters dispatch from Stock
holm said a Finnish peace caolnet
already had been selected. An AS
sociated Press Stockholm dispatch
said the Swedish paper Svenska
Daebladet declared the Finnish gov
ernment crisis had been "de facto
solved" a phrase interpreted to
mean that the cabinet was reformed
and could ask Moscow for armistlce
conditions.
The new Russian offensives were
launched on the third anniversary
of the German invasion OF the So
Wet Union and apparently were
aimed at clearing the Murmansk-
Leningrad railway of Finnish forces.
One of the thrusts was launched
along the Svir River between Lakes
Ladoga and Omega (Onezhskoe) ap-
proximately $50 to 200 miles north
east OF Viipuri The other was
started about 100 miles farther
north, above Lake Omega, and
cracked Finnish lines east OF
Medvezhegorsk. at the northwestern
tip of the lake.
The broadcast Russian COM
muniuue said that In the first day
of the attack along the Svir more
than 200 populated places had been
occupied, including voznesene, a
district center of the Leningrad
region. "
12O Miles From Helsinki.
Soviet troops hitting west from the
top of Lake Omega, have closed in
on Medveghegorsk and. are fighting
in it's outskirts, another Moscow
broadcast declared.
Plunging beyond the burning ruins
of viipuri, other Red Army units
were within 100 miles of the Finnish
capital of Helsinki after taking more
than 50 additional places, the Soviet
communique added.
The new drives menaced seven
divisions of German troops garri-
soned in Northern Finland as pro-
lection for the metal mines located
there and there was speculation
that the Nazis might set up puppet
government in that area to protect
their interests.
Marshal Leonid A. Govorov's push
along the Karelian Isthmus is ex-
pected to cut the Helsinki@Petrozo-
vodsk railway at Vilmerstand,, 40
miles north of Viipuri, and the main
supply line for the Finnish divi-
sions holding the territory along the
Svir River and Lake Omega.
Meanwhile, the Soviet Informa-
ton Bureau, In a review on the
third anniversary of the German
attack on Russia, said more than
7,800,0 600 Germans have been killed
or captured in the three years of
fighting, compared with 100000
Russians killed, missing or captured.
German losses totaled 10000 tanks,
$4,000 airplanes and more than go
900 pieces of artillery, while Rus
sian losses were $4,000 tanks, 30,128
airplanes and $4,000 guns, the bu-
reau said.