Chapter 1202: The Maritime Strategy of the Entente

PS: If you want to hear more of your voices and receive more of your suggestions, search for the WeChat public account "qdread" now and pay attention to give more support to "Huaxia Sea Power"!

The war in Europe is over, and the once powerful Combined Fleet of the Five Nations has returned to its own home. However, before leaving, the top brass of the five navies also made some plans in London for the action plans of the navies of various countries after the start of the future war. The areas of responsibility and the tasks carried out by the fleets of the countries were discussed and coordinated. Since we want to discuss the issue of naval strategy, it is necessary to set the speed and scale of the development of the naval forces of the Central Powers. Then, according to the setting, we will formulate corresponding countermeasures.

"Shortly after the end of the First World War, the Germans began to build naval bases in the Balkans and Crete and Turkey, and after nearly a decade of hard work, they have completed most of the works, and the new shipyard, military port, and supporting machinery factories, airfields and other facilities have begun to operate. According to our intelligence, the German base complex in the Eastern Mediterranean is now fully capable of accommodating more than half of the High Seas Fleet and the entire Austro-Hungarian fleet. And as Italy fell into the clutches of the Germans. The number of ports and bases available to the German fleet was directly almost doubled! Plus the remaining shipyards in Italy. After some rearmament, I think it is fully capable of supporting the German Navy in future battles. And not only has the base of operations been transferred to the Mediterranean, but even the construction of large warships has already been transferred, and in the future, German shipyards may only be responsible for the construction of submarines or inshore defense warships. Thomas said first.

"But we can't let that stop us from giving up on the defenses of the North Sea, and I think everyone here should be well aware of how much trouble the ghosts of the deep sea caused us in the First World War. If the Germans had taken control of Norway early in the war, our anti-blockade mission would have been much more difficult to carry out. We must expand our blockade line, and this will require a large number of destroyers and aircraft. Of course. The Royal Navy will do its best to keep the sharks in the North Sea, but we need support. Especially anti-submarine aircraft and destroyers. Thomas said the request.

"Within 3 months of the start of the war, our country and the United States will provide your country with 80 anti-submarine destroyers of 1000 tons. Although it may be a little older, it is more than enough to carry out anti-submarine missions with sonar and depth charges. In addition, we will increase the amount of assistance according to the situation on the battlefield and the loss of warships, which will be a continuous long-term process. I think we can leave the specific assistance to the professionals. Yang Yonglin and Ma Jifen whispered and exchanged opinions.

"Thank you and the United States for your support. I think this is of great significance for our anti-submarine warfare. Thomas smiled and thanked the two countries for their promises. In the event of a future war, the Allies will launch an attack on Iran and South Asia. And Iran's oil is very important to us, and if we can hold Iran's oil fields, then there will be no problem with the fuel supply of our troops in South Asia. Otherwise. We're going to have to ship fuel from the other side of the Pacific. Iran is also a barrier to South and Southeast Asia. In order to hold this place, I think all countries should have a strong fleet. Thomas then spoke of the British people's primary concerns. What to do in the Indian Ocean theater of operations!

"First of all, I think the Huaxia Republic will keep its original promises, right? Mr. Yang Yonglin? Ma Jifen glanced at Yang Yonglin next to him, and then asked politely.

"Although it was inconvenient for our country to directly participate in the war in the name of the country at the beginning of the war because of the fuel problem, our commitment was absolutely in advance. Moreover, with regard to the availability of logistics and armaments, we can rest assured that the supply of logistics and armaments can be increased. Yang Yonglin nodded and said.

"Thank you for your help, then after the start of the war. We will send a fleet of 3 to 4 aircraft carriers and 4 battleships to India in 2 months' time, and we hope that your country will be able to arrange the relevant berthing at that time. After thinking for a while, Majifen continued: "If your country can maintain this scale, then Britain and the United States will have about 8 aircraft carriers in the Indian Ocean, plus the French fleet and the warships provided by Huaxia. I think we should be able to make up about 12 aircraft carriers, right? "China, Britain and the United States had already had many exchanges on the future Indian Ocean battlefield several years ago, so all three countries were relatively straightforward in this meeting. The Italian Navy was weak and it was unlikely that it would start directly into the war. Now it's up to the French.

"We will deploy a fleet on the island of Madagascar, which will have an aircraft carrier and an aviation cruiser. There will also be 2 battleships and some destroyers. We will threaten our opponents on the flanks. "After thinking for a moment. The representative of France gave that answer, which was very frustrating to the representatives of other countries. On the one hand, the French had a small number of troops, and on the other hand, the French finally rejected the intention of confronting the Allied navy with Britain and the United States. Yang Yonglin suddenly found that the construction of Huaxia to the French had a feeling of lifting a stone and shooting himself in the foot. Huaxia's intention at the beginning of the use was just to let France allocate a part of its forces to contain the opponent, not to let France only do this thing! "We have to keep our west coast safe, and we have to suppress the Spanish Navy and Allied submarines that enter the Atlantic Ocean from the Strait of Gibraltar, and it's hard to pull in more troops."

"According to your naval plan, in five years, the French Navy will have 4 or 5 aircraft carriers, and your country will deploy only one in the Indian Ocean region, don't you think it's too stingy? Moreover, your country also has important interests in Africa, which require a strong fleet to protect. Thomas's face changed slightly, and his tone was full of confusion and resentment.

"The security of maritime transportation in the Atlantic will be the responsibility of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet, and the U.S. Navy can allow the fleet to span the entire Pacific Ocean and half of the Indian Ocean to support the operations of its allies, so why can't the French Navy have an extra force to defend its own possessions and the interests of its allies?" Magifen said.

"General Darlan put forward a more realistic plan, and we could have focused on Europe, where at the beginning of the war the French Army would launch a major offensive against Spain with the cooperation of the Navy and the Allies. We could even land a two-pronged Spanish force from Portugal, and Spain and the rest of the Central Powers had no land access. And the Mediterranean can be blockaded by the Guò Air Force, as long as we can defeat Spain. Then you can enter the Mediterranean, and I believe that with the naval fleets of the four countries and the British and French armies, Spain can be solved in a relatively short time, and thus the South Asian problem can be solved indirectly. The representative of France said.

"First, how do we cross the Pyrenees? Secondly, after the outbreak of war, it was unrealistic that our country and the British Army alone could not quickly defeat Spain while defending the Eastern Front. Thirdly, from a geographical point of view. The entire territory of France was within the range of the Allied air forces, and even if the British and American air forces could enter the French mainland, they would not be able to obtain a safe base. Thirdly, because of the distance, the land and air forces of our country and the United States will not be able to fully function for a considerable period of time, so the beginning of the war will be the main combat mission of your country and Great Britain, and we think that it would be good for your country to secure the border line, and there is no strength to attack Spain. This plan is very unrealistic. Yang Yonglin said unceremoniously.

Here's the excuse! It's a shirk of responsibility! None of the people present were fools. This plan of the French was simply impossible to realize, and it was the equivalent of Britain and France against the entire Central Powers in Europe. The power of the United States and China will not be able to exert its strength at all in a short period of time! One of the most important reasons why the United States and China were willing to set the battlefield in South Asia at the beginning was that it could make Germany's forces more dispersed, and at the same time, South Asia was closer to China, making it more convenient for China to participate in the war. The fact that the French came up with this plan does not mean that they really intend to carry it out. Rather, the French want the allies to deploy more troops in Europe to ensure the security of France! At the very least, it could be used as a pretext to refuse to send more troops to theaters of operations outside Europe.

But while everyone knows this is a pretext, there is no better way for countries to do it, after all, France is still an ally. As a result, the United Kingdom and the United States then proposed compensation plans. That is, the French Navy increased its forces in the Indian Ocean theater of operations, and as compensation. The United States and Great Britain guaranteed maritime security off France's west coast after the war, and could also send air fleets to encircle French airspace. The British even offered to exchange 5 wings of air force for the French fleet. It's not that the British have so many planes that they can be used casually. Rather, because the British fighter jets were too close to the range, they could only swing over the Channel if they took off from the British mainland, so it was better to push the boat with the flow than this.

Disappointingly, the French remained uninterested in this plan, as they saw it more realistic to rely on the United States and Britain to ensure the security of France than to rely on the French Air Force. After all, it is impossible to say whether the former is doing his best, and the air force in his own hands is at least at ease. And what about the issue of command in the event of a massive entry of foreign aviation forces? There may not be such a proverb in France as anti-guest-oriented, but the French still understand this truth! What's more, such an act makes the French feel very humiliated. I can't get over the face.

As a result, the result of this meeting was that the good things that China and Britain and France had said were exhausted, and the French fleet just didn't want to move. In desperation, the U.S. Navy and the Huaxia Navy decided to add at least two more aircraft carriers to join the Allied Combined Fleet in South Asia during the war. Among them, because the French Navy promised to ensure the safety of the communication lines in the eastern Atlantic, the US Navy decided to send at least one fleet aircraft carrier to South Asia, while Huaxia said that it would send at least one more 20,000-ton medium aircraft carrier within half a year of the start of the war.

Thanks to the 1888 reward of the little pig who is running away from the book friend~~~, and the monthly pass support of the book friend smyhe783~~~. The second is more ~~~, ask for support and subscribe ~~~. (The novel "Huaxia Sea Power" will have more fresh content on the official WeChat platform, and there will also be a 100% lottery gift for everyone!) Open WeChat now, click on the "+" sign in the upper right corner to "add friends", search for the official account "qdread" and follow, hurry up! (To be continued......)