Regarding the fact that the guerrilla republics claimed that they bombarded Chernigov with ultra-long-range rockets, no one in Moscow cared about it, and Stalin did not even see the report.
The leader of the Soviet Union, his mind was preoccupied with the battle situation on the Kharkov front. After he allowed the Soviet army to tactically withdraw to the original front, he did not know whether he was right to do so, since the generals all recognized Temu
Xinge's decision was difficult for him to stick to. He was really afraid of a recurrence of the siege of Kiev in 1941.
But could the Soviet army have expected the development of the war situation?
As of May 26, the Soviet 21st Army successfully crossed the Barvinko River despite heavy losses. The 28th Army's actions to support the 21st Army were also repulsed by the Germans. The Germans even fought in Barvinko
A bridgehead was built across the river.
To make matters worse, the Soviet 8th Army, which was responsible for the defense of the southern flank, was completely defeated by the German Kleist Armored Group. The German army joined forces with the ten German infantry divisions outside Kharkov.
A huge pocket formation still appeared. Even though Timoshenko had ordered the offensive troops to withdraw completely, more than 150,000 people were still trapped in the encirclement that the German army had not yet closed and was about to close.
But this time, the Soviet army was more prepared after all. The limited RPG weapons equipped by their grassroots soldiers also greatly enhanced the anti-tank capabilities of individual soldiers. Therefore, Paulus's German Sixth Army encountered Soviet resistance at the front.
It was getting worse and worse, and the loss of tanks made this famous general with mysophobia even more worried.
As long as the battle devolves into an infantry melee, the Soviet army will have the confidence to continue fighting and wear down the German army.
The two Soviet tank armies lost more than 80% of their T34-76 tanks. After their combat effectiveness plummeted, they had lost the nearest breakout route from the south of Kharkov. Now the Soviet army still has the last retreat route in front of them.
- Northeast of Kharkov - a section of the Barvinko River controlled by the Soviet 21st Army, only five kilometers long.
"Compared to Kilponos, I am very lucky. Without the German assault troops to block this bottle cap, my army still has a great chance of breaking through!"
Timoshenko called this the Kharkov Pocket. As long as the offensive troops could pass through the "Southeast Corridor", they could withdraw to their original fronts. Furthermore, the strategic reserves of the Southwest Front Army, such as the 38th Group Army, also quickly suppressed
The campaign goal of coming up, attacking and capturing Kharkov cannot be achieved at present, but Timoshenko still has a certain degree of confidence in stabilizing the previous front.
These changes in the battle situation on the front line were also transmitted to the Guerrilla Republic through brief telegrams.
As the 63rd Group Army, which is isolated in the German war zone and belongs to the Southwest Front's battle sequence, senior officers can only hope that their front commander can turn the tide.
It can be said that this battle was a failure for the Soviet army, and Yang Mingzhi unfortunately hit the mark again.
Yang Mingzhi was not happy about this at all. Only enemies and traitors and puppet troops did not want the Soviet army to win? He did not do anything "unlucky crows".
The Southwest Front Army and the Southern Front Army are facing the most violent German counterattack since their five-month counterattack. Even the results of the counterattack for half a year are likely to be lost in an instant. The Guerrilla Republic can only pray for these friendly forces.
Able to hold the front line before the battle.
The Southwest Front can hold on to its original defense line and continue the war in a stalemate. This is the best outcome. If the Soviet army cannot hold its defense line, the worst outcome is the collapse of the entire front.
Yang Mingzhi knew the outcome from the beginning. The Soviet army had a low success rate in resisting this German onslaught, and the future full-scale battle between the Sudden River and the Volga River would also begin with the Soviet army's current retreat.
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The biggest impact of the Southwest Front's retreat on the Guerrilla Republic was that the possibility of airdrops was almost cut off.
It is unrealistic to expect Timoshenko to carry out several more large-scale airdrops. Furthermore, what determines the troops' continued victory is not military assistance from superiors at all, but whether the tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians in the swamp share the same hatred of the enemy.
The offensive carried out by the Guerrilla Republic during the same period of the campaign was already the best response. The next thing the troops have to do is to temporarily recuperate and prepare ammunition and rations for the next military operation.
Therefore, from the early morning of May 27, Yang Mingzhi officially began planning for a new military operation.
On the large area map spread out by the command headquarters, a small city was specially marked - Loyev. This is the next target of the troops' attack.
Originally, during the operation to cross the river to meet the guerrilla brigade, capturing the city was an option across the river. In the end, tens of thousands of people were able to cross the river by ferry, but the efficiency was still unsatisfactory. The worst part was the difficult transportation of heavy equipment. For example
Captured artillery must be firmly fixed on longer and wider rafts to transport them across the river. If the raft is not properly controlled and the artillery falls into the river, then don't even think about fishing it out again.
On the contrary, if the troops occupy the small city by the river during the operation, they can immediately use the railway bridge and road bridge there to allow the army to cross the river at a very short speed.
The importance of bridges to the army could not be greater than this. Just as the war situation telegram came from afar, it was the German army that occupied the bridgehead control area before the Soviet army planted explosives on many bridges in Pavlovsk. Kleist Armor
The cluster could not allow more than 100,000 troops and more than 500 tanks and armored vehicles to cross the river in one day, and the collapse of the Soviet southern flank quickly occurred.
The bridges in this city are not big, and there is a branch railway line running through the city. Capturing it will be of great benefit to the Guerrilla Republic. No matter how the war turns out, the city itself will be a treasure trove.
A group of staff officers, as well as Yevlov and Fomin, gathered in the headquarters at dawn, listening to their group army commander shouting about the goals of the next military operation that he had thought up all night.
"Our next step is to liberate another city, which is the city closest to our control area. That is Loev! Seize this place and occupy its iron bridge. Our army will then use troops in the direction of Chernihiv.
, the troops' march will be much smoother. Our army's heavy equipment, such as those captured field artillery, and a large amount of logistics supplies, can also quickly cross the river and quickly enter new battles."
His thoughts are of course welcomed by everyone, not to mention that Zhilobin is of particularly great significance to this Soviet army.
Because the former 63rd Group Army encountered the elite German pursuers in the wide area to the north and was completely wiped out. Before its defeat, in July, the remnants of the 6th Armored Army led by Kuznetsov
, and also urgently used the city's railway system to evacuate smoothly.
Kuznetsov's retreat incidentally took away all the residents of the city. Anyone who was unwilling to evacuate was regarded as a traitor. Therefore, no matter what the attitude of the citizens, they were given a very short time to retreat. They had to abandon a large number of
property, they climbed onto the train one after another and retreated inland with the soldiers.
Only a handful of citizens did not leave due to various reasons, but they stayed and eventually all became victims of the war.
It is for these reasons that the 63rd Army has reason to liberate this place. It is not only the responsibility and obligation to expand the guerrilla zone, but also to avenge the victims of the city.
According to the available intelligence, the current number of German troops stationed in Loev is not large. Capturing this place is a matter of searching for loot. After winning, the Soviet army will also be able to obtain extremely rich loot.
Yang Mingzhi said matter-of-factly what everyone needed most: "Comrades, think about it, our future actions are not just to capture that city. There must be a lot of clothes in the city."
, daily necessities, and even a large amount of food reserves. These supplies are vital to us! It is still May, but a hundred days later, the climate will start to turn colder. We must seize more Shuba coats to ensure the future
In winter, we guarantee that even the weakest old man will not freeze to death!"
However, some people also raised a terrible possibility: "If, after the German army learns that our army has occupied the city, they send out a large army to attack, or even send out the air force for bombing, if the bridge collapses, won't we suffer heavy losses?!"
Yang Mingzhi also considered this point deeply. He pointed to the Loev point on the map and said: "Comrades, I am also very worried that the German army will counterattack madly! After all, the enemy suffered a huge defeat a few days ago! In the battle, our weapons
The ammunition consumption is very large, so the future battle to attack Loev will certainly not start quickly.
As for the German Air Force, it is very strange that their air force seems to have lost interest in us. However, it is also very likely that they will bomb the bridge. After all, this is Loev's greatest strategic value.
We learned that those bridges were built with a lot of steel. Even if the bridge collapses, we will have more things to use, even if the city is bombed into rubble! We need all kinds of metals to make weapons! Now everyone is no longer in trouble.
It was a pity for Homnich who was on the ground, but the scrap copper and iron everywhere on the battlefield supported the work of our arsenal in manufacturing rocket launchers! In short, as long as we capture Loev, the captured materials will greatly enhance the strength of our army!
"
The headquarters fell into a pleasant atmosphere, and Yang Mingzhi also initially determined that the attack on Loyev would not be until around mid-July. This time arrangement was also supported by the majority of officers and staff, and after about three weeks of rest and training,
As well as the accumulation of materials in the arsenal, the combat effectiveness of the army can reach the strongest level since the establishment of the guerrilla republic.