"How is that possible? The Finns actually stopped the polar bear? ”

"Yakovlev's 7th Army suffered heavy losses on the Karelian Isthmus and failed to break through the Mannerheim Line?"

"The 8th Army of the Soviet Red Army was thwarted in its offensive in the area of Lake Torva, 500 people were killed, supplies were cut off, and it was forced to go on the defensive?"

"The 9th Army of the Belarusian Front was divided, and the 163rd Division suffered heavy losses, so isn't the 44th Division not far from the end?"

After listening to Brigadier General Hayes Corona, Director of the Military Intelligence Service (G2), on the latest situation of the Soviet-Finnish "Winter War", the American officers present were all blown up. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

It was the first time John had participated in such a military meeting chaired by Chief of Staff Marshall. Almost all the directors and deputies of important departments are there, but I didn't expect the atmosphere of the meeting to be so relaxed, as if anyone can speak freely and express their opinions.

John even heard a colonel question the accuracy of the G2's intelligence, and Brigadier General Corona only explained the source of the information this time and was not angry.

It was not without reason that the colonel questioned the accuracy of the Military Intelligence Service. For one, the results of the Finns were too incredible. It is unscientific that the 33,000 army and the 12.7 militia temporarily conscripted actually beat the Soviet Red Army, which had 450,000 people, 2,000 tanks, and more than 800 aircraft, to the point that it could not find the north.

Second, it is because this is not the first time that the Military Intelligence Service has made mistakes. Since the economic crisis of 1929, the Military Intelligence Service has been shrinking in personnel and strength. By 1936, the entire department was reduced to only one colonel, less than 70 people (the director was not even a general, a proper second-rate department).

Although Marshall has increased his investment in the Military Intelligence Service since taking office, intelligence work has not been immediate. It is indeed a bit difficult to expect an intelligence service that can only maintain a handful of overseas intelligence sites to provide timely and accurate information. This time, however, the newly appointed Chief Corona was confident in the accuracy of the information he had.

After a brief commotion, Chief of Staff Marshall quickly took control of the situation in the conference room. The theme of today's meeting is to study and judge the next development of the Soviet-Finnish "winter war." At any time, President Roosevelt and Secretary of State Hull may need to hear from the military on the matter.

Soon, in front of a huge military map, two groups of staff officers began to deduce the development of the battle situation, and from time to time some officers put forward their own hypotheses, some supported and some opposed. Marshall and several deputy chiefs of staff also ask a few questions from time to time.

John didn't care what happened next in this war. Even without memories from his past life, he could see that the Finns' victory was only temporary. In a small country with a total population of only 3.7 million people, there are not as many adult men in the country as there are invading Soviet soldiers. Without outside reinforcements, it was only a matter of time before they surrendered. It is impossible for the Finns to shed the blood of an entire people for Karelia and a few small islands.

As for whether the Finns will have reinforcements? The problem is obvious. Although the actions of the Soviet Union were a clear act of aggression, they aroused the outrage of the international community. But it seems that no country is willing to do it for the sake of Finland and the Soviet Union.

Almost a month into the war, Finland has received no more reinforcements than 8,799 Swedish volunteers, 1,010 Danish volunteers, 895 Norwegian volunteers, 372 British volunteers, and a few foreign journalists with a "sense of justice".

Historically, Britain and France had plans to send troops to support Finland. They planned to land 100,000 British troops and 35000 French troops in northern Norway, and then enter Finland through Sweden. However, these are all illusions, and according to documents revealed after the war, they had no intention of fighting with the Soviet Union at all, but only wanted to occupy the iron mines in northern Norway in order to cut off Germany's strategic supply of goods.

And in the end, this plan was not implemented. Because Hitler warned Sweden that if the British and French troops set foot on Swedish soil, it would mean that Germany would attack Sweden immediately.

So, John was well aware that the Finns' current victory was nothing more than the final glory. The blizzard that blew on the third day of the war provided them with the right time, the dense forests and snowfields that were not conducive to the development of the Soviet mechanized troops, and the national cohesion created by the reform of the Finnish social welfare system (even the Finnish socialists joined the fight against the invaders to defend their welfare). The Finnish People's Republic, which the Soviets had built with the support of Kuusinen, had no soil for survival. Only then did they stage the miracle of winning more with less.

John is now interested in observing how the staff officers of the U.S. Army's top staff analyzed the situation and how it differed from what he had seen in the movies in his previous life. Just as John was watching with relish, Chief of Staff Marshall suddenly called him by name; "Lieutenant Colonel Vanderbilt, you were responsible for the military material assistance to Finland some time ago. From the point of view of material supply, how long can Finland last? ”

"As far as I know, the Finns are running out of ammunition reserves. So this time they bought a lot of ammunition, in addition to the equipment of four light infantry divisions. According to our own supply regulations, the consumption of bullets is about 2 months, and the consumption of shells is 3 weeks. If the battle is intense, it will probably be shorter. The supplies arrive in Helsinki at the end of the month, and if everything goes well, it could help them stay until the end of February. ”

After thinking about it, John continued: "The biggest concern on the Finnish side at the moment is that the bombing of the port of Helsinki by Soviet planes is likely to threaten the safety of these supplies. Fortunately, the 50 H-1 fighters we helped this time will fly to Finland tomorrow, and the Soviets have little hope of gaining air supremacy in a short time. ”

Marshall nodded slightly, and without saying anything, turned to the other officer's question. It was only after John sat down that he came to his senses that this was the first time he had spoken at such a military conference. My heart suddenly became worried, and I didn't know if my performance just now was up to standard.

He observed the expressions of the officers around him, and noticed that everyone was listening intently to the staff officer from the Army Air Corps, and no one was paying attention to him. Only Major General Boer smiled at him, as if to affirm what he had just said.

John settled down and continued to participate intently in the discussion. In the end, everyone reached a relatively unanimous opinion on several major issues: 1. Finland's victory was temporary; 2. The Soviet Union will complete the adjustment and resume the offensive in early February next year; 3. Finland will surrender by the end of May at the latest, and it is likely to lose the territory of the Karelian region; 4. The losses of the Soviet side are estimated at about 500,000 people. 5. In the short term, the USSR will not take military action against Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

After the meeting, John looked at his watch, and before he knew it, it was already past nine o'clock in the evening. I've been engrossed in the discussion just now, and now I'm starting to feel hungry. Although a little tired, John found himself enjoying discussing military issues with these career officers. Especially when it comes to group deductions, John is even a little selfless. Am I a militant at heart? He couldn't help but be a little puzzled.