Evening star., 1945-03-27
Reds23Mi|es
FromAustria,
Naziis Report
Deep Wedge Driven
Into Defense Zone
Guarding Vienna
Ey the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
LONDON, Mar. 27.-The Sd
Ukrainian Army has struck to
the Lower Raba River, which
runs within 20 to % miles from
the Austrian border. and 60 to
65 from Vienna. the German
high command announced today.
The broadcast German communi-
que did not disclose the point where
the Soviets reached the Raba in
Northwestern Hungary, but the
river flows into an arm of the
Danube at Gyor, stronghold guard
ing the Bratislava Gap entrance to
Vienna.
Marshal Feodor Tolbukhin's troops
may have reached the Raba up
stream from Gyor in an advance
from Papa or the area of Lovasz-
patona farther northeast. Both
towns were seized yesterday.
Resistance Is Fierce.
Tanks of both the Sd and I'd
Ukranian Armies were beating to-
ward Vienna along the south bank
of the Danube, and Germans were
resisting fiercely.
The German communique also
declared the Russians had scored
new breaches on the Berlin front
near Kuestrin on the Oder, and said
superior" Soviet forces were bat
tling in the fringes of the Baltic
ports of Danzig and Gydnia.
The Russias had surged to within
16 miles of Gyor in yesterdays ad-
vances, closing to within 81 miles
of Austria and SO of Vienna.
Crossing Planned.
Moscow dispatches said Russian
engineers were hurrying up equip
ment for a swift crossing of the
Raba.
The German communique report
ed a bitter defensive battle on the
Raba, and in the areas south Of
Gyor and southwest of Papa.
A German military spokesman de-
clared: Fighting in Hungary has
assumed the proportions of a great
offensive. The beginning of this bat
tie, which looks promising for the
Russians, has distinctly made Hun
gary new center of gravity on the
Eastern front"
Beyond the north bank of the
Danube, units of the I'd Ukrainian
Army captured Banska Bystrica,
125 miles east of Vienna, Mos
cow communique disclosed. These
forces. fighting in the rugged Car
pathian peaks of Czechoslovakia,
crossed the Hron River on a So
mile front to gain their objective.
Nazis Resist Strongly.
There were no new developments
from the northern end of Marshal
Tolbukhin's front, where the Ger
mans were last reported resisting
strongly the advance of Marshal
Rodion Y. Malinovsky's I'd Ukrain-
ian Army pressing toward Komarom
and Gyor, along the Danube's south
bank.
Marshal Tolbukhin's forces out
f1anked Kisber, rail junction II
miles south of Komarom, by cutting
its rail communications with Gyor
after taking Romano, II miles east
of Kisber. His infantrymen seized
Bakonypeterd, 16 miles southeast OF
Gyor, and Lovaszpatona, 7 miles
west of Bakonypeterd and also 16
miles from Gyor. The latter marked
the closest approach to Vienna.
Meanwhile, Russian forces far to
the north seized 21,000 trapped Ger
man prisoners along the East Prus-
sian beaches and were storming
Emaus, a half mile west of Danzig
after capturing Heele and Pelonken
! mile west and northwest of the
former free city, the Soviet war bull
letin announced.
The army newspaper Red Star
said the Russians were hampered
all along the way toward the
Bratislava gap by ambushes and
(See RUSSIA, Page A-5.)