ALLIED PLANS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 2 December 1943, Page 4

ALLIED PLANS

FOR MASSIVE ASSAULT ON JAPAN ' SHAPED BY LEADERS GREATEST ASSEMBLY OF KIND YET HELD (By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright) (Received This Day, 11.10 a.m.) LONDON, December 1. The British and American leaders and Generalissimo Chiang Kaishek met for the first time surrounded by the greatest assembly of Allied military and political leaders ever seen. The meeting continued for five days. While the leaders were discussing agreements on principles, and mapping out a future massive assault against Japan from land, sea and air, teams of advisers met and worked out plans. Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek arrived on November 21, with a party of 18, followed by Mr Churchill on the same day and President Roosevelt on the next day, when the conference opened. The Chinese party and Mr Roosevelt flew to the conference. Mr Churchill, who was accompanied by Mr J. G. Winant (American Ambassador to Britain) voyaged by sea to North Africa, calljng at Gibraltar, Algiers and Malta. The British party numbered more than 200, from Britain and overseas. “It took under three days, in a series of dramatic conferences, for the Allied strategists to plan a great new offensive from China and the Pacific,” the Exchange Telegraph Agency’s Cairo correspondent says. “The whole pattern of Allied strategy to crash down on Japan with such force she will be forced to surrender unconditionally was completed in under five days. Great staffs from each delegation worked at top pressure from the day they arrived until the day they left. The conference split up into two phases—internal conferences of service chiefs and conferences of diplomatic chiefs. The decisions reached at these conferences, apart from the avowed Allied determination to bring the Japanese to their knees, are primarily operational and therefore secret, but I am told the Japanese will get a terrific shock when the Allied strategy is implemented.” HIGH HOPES RAISED Reuter’s Cairo correspondent says the leaders . thrashed out problems in an ( atmosphere of cordiality and friendship. High hopes are held that machinery will soon be established for the Pacific on the lines of that established for Europe after the tripartite conference in Moscow. It is believed that problems from the British and American side are: (1) Carrying a sea and air offensive to the gates of Japan —a determination that is reflected by the strength of naval officials present, the Admiralty sending 58 delegates. (2) Avoiding local operations regarded in London as wasted effort, including the controversial subject of island hopping. (3) Correlating future strategy on the basis of a broader liaison between staffs. (4) Settling the huge problems of the transport of supplies, troops and material. (5) Development of the weight of the Pacific air assault. BEHIND BARBED WIRE The conference area was converted •into a military perimeter, enclosed in barbed wire. Only delegates were'allowed inside. Delegates travelled to the conference in the utmost secrecy. The Soviet Vice-Foreign Commissar Vishinsky, who is the Soviet representative on the Allied Commission for Italy, conferred with delegates when they passed through Cairo on their way to Algiers. “It is obvious from the activities and make-up of this most unusual conference during the war that it was not devoted entirely to the Japanese conflict,” states the Associated Press Cairo correspondent. “The Chinese were noticeably absent from the biggest military meeting on November 26, with General Eisenhower presiding, which a spokesman said dealt firstly with the Mediterranean campaign, and secondly with grand Europeain strategy. It is reliably reported that the Anglo-Ame-rican General Staffs were engaged only in argument and discussions on the details of a second front. A sense of immediacy is given at the same time to the anti-Japanese decisions by the fact good campaigning weather prevails in the China and Indo-Burma theatre. It was remarked that the absence of General MacArthur had somewhat localised his new drive.” STRICT CENSORSHIP REPORTERS SHUT OUT “BARS RAISED” AGAINST SOME KNOWN FACTS (Received This Day, 11.40 a.m.) LONDON, December 1. Throughout the conference, recporters were not permitted to see a single principal. The only news they were allowed came from four non-journalistic observers, who reported only physical facts, such as who had conferred, lunched or dined with whom, so that the Conference unwarrantedly was given something of a social column tinge. The entire conference was surrounded by thousands of soldiers, in addition to barbed wire. Censorship and security bars were raised against many facts most of the newspapermen knew, making it difficult to give a balanced portray of the conference. The security of a large collection of famous personages naturally played a part in the situation, as the conference was held within range of Nazi bombers and the Nazis knew about the meeting. A spokesman for President Roosevelt conceded that the meeting was an open secret. According to Reuter’s Cairo correspondent, the Chinese came to the conference with a batch of urgent problems—firstly, a combined strategy for the Pacific, South-East Asia and China for the quick defeat of Japan by an allout offensive; secondly, the reopening of the Burma Road by an assault from India; thirdly, supplies for the Chinese armies and people; fourthly, post-war reconstruction of China and help from the British and Americans.

The departure of Mr Churchill, after the talks, for an unnamed destination, strengthened a belief that General Smuts had been left in charge of Imperial strategy, while Mr Churchill works out the future course and plan of military operations on a world-wide

scale. The North African conference may be regarded as a prelude to further intensive talks which must result from such sweeping decisions to break the back of Japanese resistance in the shortest possible time. Reuter’s correspondent says Mr Churchill had one of the busiest times of his life. He was in conference throughout the day and evening and working until 2 a.m. He was constantly in touch with London throughout his journey to North Africa, a special radio staff having been provided on the ship. The conference was preceded by talks at Malta between Mr Churchill and generals, including Generals Eisenhower and Alexander. Mr Churchill was nearly mobbed at Malta by cheering Maltese during his first visit to the island during the war.