Chapter 873: Stating an Attitude

If Turkey really had the ability to help the German army capture the Baku oil fields, saving the Germans from having to make the Caucasus their main offensive direction, giving half the oil production to Turkey might not have been out of the question. Because then the German army could leave the troublesome Stalingrad behind and march directly on Moscow.

But did Turkey have this ability? The seemingly powerful Turkey, situated between the Middle East and the Soviet Union, could act as a sort of barrier. But once this barrier began to attack, its “leaks” would be exposed.

“If Turkey attacks the Soviet Caucasus region, or is repulsed in an attack on the Middle East… has anyone thought about the consequences?” Akado had not wanted to pour cold water on his aides, but at a time like this, he had to make these people see the facts clearly before they spoke.

Everyone had been discussing what would happen if Turkey sent troops and won the war, but they had all overlooked what the current war situation would become if Turkey were to actually lose.

Field Marshal von Brauchitsch was arguably the most professional person present. He immediately thought of the consequences of Turkey’s collapse—there would be no more obstacles between the Soviet army in the Caucasus and the American army in the Middle East, and the variables of the war would multiply.

If the Allies were to really blow up the Baku oil fields and then let the surrounded Soviet army in the Caucasus head south to the Middle East, or blow up the Middle Eastern oil fields and let the American army head north to the Caucasus, it could create trouble for the German army’s strategy of a quick and decisive war. It should be known that the German advantage in the Caucasus was no longer as obvious as at the beginning of the war. Once the American and British forces got involved, the entire situation in the Caucasus could really be turned around by the Allies.

“Turkey… might not lose, right? After all, whether it’s the Soviet army in the direction of the Caucasus or the American army in the Middle East, they seem to only have the strength to parry, not to counter-attack.” After thinking through the problem of Turkey’s defeat, Brauchitsch raised the key point of victory or defeat that he was most concerned about: would Turkey actually lose.

Akado gave a cold laugh, then stood up and walked to Brauchitsch’s side, looking down at the Field Marshal. He stopped Brauchitsch, who was about to rise, then looked at the others and said slowly, “During the last world war, Turkey was also our ally. We hoped Turkey would send troops to the Middle East. And what was the result?”

Did the result even need to be stated? Of course, the numerically superior Turkish army had been inexplicably bogged down by the scattered guerrillas of the Arab world, and had even switched sides to Britain and France at a critical moment. In short, this ally had been extremely unreliable in the last war.

Everyone’s expression turned sour. Turkey’s performance in the last war had indeed not been very good, leaving a greater psychological shadow of betrayal on the Germans. This kind of ally was often a troublemaker in victory and a turncoat in defeat.

“To have Turkey take the risk is not as good as stabilizing them and doing it ourselves!” Akado finally said. As he spoke, he couldn’t help but feel a little envious of the Third Reich’s other enemy, Japan in the Far East.

The allies of the Third Reich were few and far between. America’s allies were even more unreliable. On the contrary, it seemed that Japan, which dominated this aspect, had its own advantage: its allies were a group of out-and-out little brothers, with no power to influence Japan’s victory or defeat.

And so Japan did not have to consider how to stabilize its allies; it just had to continue to develop according to its own will. What a happy thing that was. Look at Japan’s “allies”—Vietnam, Burma, Cambodia, the even more powerful puppet state of Manchukuo… which of them would dare to talk back to Japan? Which of them would dare to make demands on Japan?

Of course, on the other hand, whenever Akado thought of these allies of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan, he suddenly felt that allies like Italy, Romania, and Finland had suddenly become much more combat-effective. Take Italy, for example. At least its combat effectiveness was much stronger than that of the Manchukuo army, right?

Sometimes, the thing about allies is a really interesting dialectical relationship: when allies are strong, they often become unreliable. And when they are so reliable that they are obedient, it often proves that these allies are already too weak to be of any help. This was the case with Italy in World War II, and it is also the case with the relationship between NATO and the United States in the 21st century.

“In the end, you have to rely on yourself!” Akado lamented. “The troops sent there are to stabilize Turkey, to prevent them from succumbing to the pressure of the United States and the Soviet Union! As for having Turkey attack… that’s something I don’t dare to consider. After we have occupied the Caucasus and have forced Turkey to go south, that will be the best choice.”

“Instead of being incited by the Jews and demanding that Turkey go south,” Akado said coldly, staring at his subordinates who were exchanging glances with the Jewish forces, “you’d be better off keeping a close eye on the iron ore in Norway! That’s what’s truly useful to the Empire!”

Gulp. Several of the politicians and officials who were privately friendly with the Jews swallowed. To be singled out and criticized by the Führer was no laughing matter, because anyone who angered the Führer would have to directly face the wrath of the SS. The last guy who had feigned compliance with the Führer, his whole family was now working in a “factory” called Auschwitz.

At the same moment, in the Far East, in the Chinese wartime provisional capital of Chongqing, Chiang Kai-shek was in a rage with his trusted generals, because the American aid he had relied on most had just been completely cut off.

“Director. Our Hanyang Arsenal was just bombed by the Japanese. Its production capacity cannot be restored in a short time. The frontline soldiers are short on ammunition, which is what led to this rout,” Chen Cheng, one of Chiang Kai-shek’s most trusted generals, said, steeling himself to be the first to speak. The Americans’ action of kicking them while they were down also made him quite unhappy, but for the moment, no one could think of a particularly good countermeasure.

Chiang Kai-shek’s wife, Soong Mei-ling, had gone to the United States as China’s special envoy. The Soong family was a well-known capitalist family in the United States, with extensive connections. But despite the Soong family’s best efforts, and despite the First Lady of China’s activities up and down the social ladder, she still had not been able to move the American high command to provide more military aid.

This was a betrayal of the Chinese theater! Chiang Kai-shek stared angrily at the map of China on the wall, a map covered in the flames of war, and roared inwardly. He knew that his officers had done their best. He knew what this recent rout had cost him.

A full 30 divisions of troops had thrown down their helmets and armor. The main force of two of the only remaining German-equipped divisions had been completely wiped out. The fierce general of the Northwest Army, Zhang Zizhong, had fought a hard battle on his position for six days and had finally died in battle without any reinforcements. In one battle, the Chinese theater had lost dozens of counties. The important heavy industrial base in the Wuhan-Hanyang area, which had originally been some distance from the front line, was now less than a hundred miles away.

The originally stable domestic situation of the war of resistance against Japan had taken a sharp turn for the worse. With the increasing density of the Japanese Army Air Arm’s bombing of the Hanyang Arsenal, China’s self-produced weapons and equipment were becoming scarcer and scarcer, and were no longer able to meet the needs of the war.

And the despicable Americans? They had abandoned China like a worn-out shoe. Disregarding the threat of the large number of Japanese troops that the Chinese army was tying down on the main front, they had directly suspended the shipment of supplies to the Chinese theater. The result was that the counter-offensive that the Chinese side had planned could not be implemented, and even the subsequent defense had become a difficult task.

“When General von Seeckt came to China, we were not as strong as we are now,” Chiang Kai-shek said with emotion to his subordinates, He Yingqin and other generals. “He helped us to establish the current Wuhan industrial base, which gave us the capital to produce weapons and to strengthen our national defense.”

“The reason we were able to fight so well in Shanghai, the reason we were able to lose so gracefully in Nanjing, in Guangzhou, in Hebei, and in Xuzhou, was all thanks to the old foundation left by Seeckt and our German friends,” Liu Zhi said softly from behind Chiang Kai-shek. “If we lose Wuhan, we will be completely finished.”

“Damn it!” Chiang Kai-shek cursed through clenched teeth, though it was unclear at whom. But everyone heard it clearly. They all lowered their heads, afraid that the Director’s anger would be vented on them.

The Germans had left. When they had left, they had left behind an industrial base, which had allowed China to fight with great momentum in the early stages of the war of resistance against Japan. The Americans had also left. When they had left, they had left nothing behind, so now the Chinese theater was in an extremely passive position.

This situation could not help but make the high command of China even more nostalgic for an old gentleman named Seeckt. This old gentleman was rigid and lacked a sense of humor. Countless Chinese soldiers, under the pointer of this old man, had memorized one after another of rigid tactical movements, which they did not dare to forget to this day.

Man is a strange animal. Their memory is selective, colored with subjective emotions. Although the Americans had given more, the Chinese were more grateful to the Germans for having given more timely aid. As the saying goes, “a crowd carrying firewood is not as good as sending charcoal in a blizzard.” No matter how many weapons and ammunition the Americans gave, it could not compare to the modern industrial foundation that the Germans had helped to build, nor to the modern military thinking that was deeply embedded in the hearts of the Chinese soldiers.

“Don’t even think about it. No matter how good the Germans are, their whip is too long to reach us. They can’t help us anymore,” Chiang Kai-shek said with a cough, somewhat listlessly. “For now, we still have to try and get the Americans’ aid, to consolidate the main front as much as possible.”

He was also helpless. After all, no matter how much the Germans were missed, they were far away in Europe. Even if Germany had a mind to win over China, it was powerless due to the great distance. The current China was in urgent need of all kinds of material aid. It was unrealistic not to cling to the Americans’ thighs. What’s more, Chiang Kai-shek had no idea whether the Germans needed a poor friend like China or not.

But to give the Americans a warning, or rather, to remind the Americans of China’s importance in the Allied camp, was a very necessary thing. So he continued, “Send a telegram to the expeditionary force. Have them contract their defense line! Imphal… let the British fight it themselves!”

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