Wairarapa Times-Age THURSDAY, DECEMBER 2, 1943. ACHIEVEMENT IN ITALY.

Wairarapa Times-Age, 2 December 1943, Page 2

Wairarapa Times-Age THURSDAY, DECEMBER 2, 1943. ACHIEVEMENT IN ITALY.

<? T-TOW far the Eighth Army .is likely to be able in the .immediate future to extend its victorious offensive north of the River Sangro is at the moment an open question. Jn what is described officially as heavy and continuous fighting and, it is to be feared,\t no light cost, British, Canadian, Indian, and New Zealand troops have penetrated and broken the encmv mam defensive line on this important section oi the Italian ‘™ nt - The conquest and capture by the Eighth Army 01. the f()111flt ’ (l ridge on which the German line was anchored m the Adriatic coastal zone has not only opened the way directly to a further advance, but may set a period io' the defence by the enemy 01. any line covering Rome. . .. ~ Uncertainty as to the ability of the Allies to exploit lull) in the immediate future the destruction of the enemy Imo beyond the Sangro rests chiefly on conditions ol: ground and weather which have been described in many recent reports Iroin the battle area in Italy—conditions in which mountain roads and track's are made almost impassable and lower-lying areas are reduced in many instances to quagmires. Obstacles raised in this wav, and. b'v enemy demolitions, to the passage ol guns, armoured vehicles ami transport are serious enough in the narrow coastal plains of Italy. They are even worse m the. mountains. Account lias io be taken also ol the extent to which bad weather restricts air operat ions. /Writing in anticipation of the present, stage ol the campaign, an American correspondent who knows the country estimated* that instead of being able to plan air operations on a basis of 30 bombing days a month, the Allies could expect to count upon only 15 or so. On the whole, these conditions impose a much greater handicap on the advancing Allies than on the enemy, standing on prepared defences or retiring. It is in spite of this great handicap, however, that the Eighth Army has won its remarkable success in the area north ol: the Sangro. II is ol some importance, too, that the territory now occupied by the Eighth Army is due oast of Rome, although the western end of the Allied line is still about eighty miles distant from the Italian capital. Provided hindrances to movement in. the eastern sector can be overcome, there may be possi hili ties ol outflanking and enveloping the enemy forces holding what is left ol: their defensive line across Italy, or of compelling them to retreat in. order to escape that fate. In any event, the Germans have been blasted and driven out of fully organised and prepared defences they intended and hoped to hold at least throughout the winter. At a minimum if. seems likely that if the enemy wishes to continue a stubborn defensive campaign in Italy he must be prepared to throw in heavy additional forces, and this, in light of his general prospects. he may be very reluctant to do. The massing of heavy German forces in Italy might facilitate considerably Allied action in other areas, amongst them the Balkans and Western Europe. As regards the immediate outlook in Italy another very important factor is Allied sea power. On a number ol: occasions British and American naval units have shelled enemy positions on both sides of Italy and it is stated that np to a distance ol ten miles inland or thereabouts their fire has been remarkably accurate and effective. As the campaign develops, land, air and naval co-operation against the enemy in the Italian coastal zones may be developed on a much greater scale. Account has to be taken, also, of the possibility'of new landings well behind the German defensive line.