The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1944-04-04
Interpreting
The War
By KIRKE L. SIMPSON
Press War ANALYST

Associated Press War ANALYST
There are strong intimations that
in southeastern Europe the first
closely integrated phase of the
Russian-Allied attack to smash
Germany has been reached with
Red army surge into Runans
roper plus Allied bombing Of Blu.
dapest.
Just how wide and deep the first
Russian penetration across the
Prut River above Iasi june NJ
went Moscow reports did not i'm.
| mediately reveal. There seemed
little doubt. however, that this in.
itial Russian thrust beyond the boil
stered pre- war Russian western
frontiers is aimed straight at the
Galati gateway to the upper Dan.
ubian plain.
A Russian break-through thera
could lop the whole Balkan pen.
insula off from Hitler's fortress
Europe. 1t could even lead ulti.
mately to a Russian-Allied junction
in the south, splitting Rumania in
two, isolating Bulgaria and Nazi
garrisons in Greece and Albania.
and offering Turkey powerful in
ducement to join the war against
the Axis.
The immediate military goal of
the Russian invasion of Rumania
is more limited The push across
the Prut seems oriented to the
southwest along the Iasi-Galad
railway which reaches the Siret
River at Tecucl above Galati. That
is the most vulnerable sector of
the probable Nazi defense line in
the Carpathiars linked with the
IDanubian delta.
A Russian b'eak-through across
the Siret at that point to debaueh
into the Danuobian plain sou.h Of
the Transylvanisn Alps would
bring Red spearheads within Strik.
| ing distance of Bucharest and Plo-
esti's web of oil pipe lines, A Rus
sian crossing OF the narrower ST.
| ret higher up would render any
Nazi defense of the Danube below
Galati impossible and compel
German retiren. ent to guard the
Transylvanian passes in the south
as the invaders have already been
II driven into the Carpathian passes
i farther north.
II Linked with the Russian drive
II across the Prut came the first Al
/ lied bombing of Budapest, rail and
II road hub in Hungary vital to Naz
II defense lines throughout the Bal
/ kan region. Whether actually Al
LED timed in agreement with Mos
COW to synchronize with the Red
army drive acl oss the Prut or not,
the effect is the same. Russian
Allied pincers are beginning to
close in from east and west ST.
multaneously in an effort to bite
of the whole Balkan peninsula, or
at least to force Bulgaria out Of
tie war, cut off Hitler's Rumanian
oil supply and break the back Of
Rumanian adherence to the Nazi
cause.
The strategic possibilities as well
as the tactical advantages offered
by the site Russia has chosen for
the drive into Rumania are self
evident. Successful penetration Of
the Danubian plains north of the
river in RumaEia could wholly dis
rupt German Balkan defense plans,
The flat lands along the southern
side of the Transylvanian Alps lead
directly to the Rumanian-4 ugo-
slavian frontiec on the Danube to
offer a possibility of Russian d.
rect contact With Allied-YugoslaV-
ian forces.
With Allied air power smashing
at Nazi supply lines from the west
to facilitate the Russian land drive
the bombing of Budapest looks to
be the first move in the south to
implement Teheran Allied-RusSlan
oo,,, ~ i'm onto