Because of information sharing, the 722nd Division also received an interesting piece of information from the friendly 707th Division.
Just a week ago, the friendly defense lines discovered the remains of some rockets with small parachutes. No one knew what they were used for. However, there was a rumor going around that the continuous rain in early June was caused by the swamps.
The Russians did something wrong. They used technical means to cause severe rainfall.
If the German machine guns and the defense line of concrete bunkers were a wall that suppressed the Soviet army, then the Soviet army in the swamp created rainfall and turned the already muddy swamp area into a pure swamp, which was a natural barrier.
If they didn't interfere with each other, the 707th Division and the 722nd Division would have a pretty easy life.
The battle of Loev finally alerted the German army. At the military meeting, Floride mentioned the mysterious rocket wreckage without hesitation.
"Obviously, the Russians are always doing things that we don't know. We don't understand the Russians' tactical intentions at all. They surrounded Loyev but did not occupy it. There is a huge conspiracy in this.
I think the Russians are really looking for a decisive battle with us, so they are tempting us with the siege of Loev."
"In that case, let's fight!" A tough-tempered group leader stood up.
Floride waved his hand: "Quetzal, sit down first."
The regiment commander's righteous indignation also cheered up Florid. Why? He once thought that his troops would be afraid of the enemy because of the serious casualties. Obviously, he was too worried?
However, courage is only part of the reason that determines victory. Floride does not believe in any mental fanaticism that brings victory. He believes more in excellent weapons.
After all, although the current 722nd Division has not restored its original 15,000 regular German soldiers, with the addition of the Dongfang Battalion, the various armed forces that the division can control have reached 16,000.
In terms of combat effectiveness, Floride believed that the people of the Eastern Battalion were very good as logistics soldiers. Fighting a war? It would be too difficult for them.
Florid also has some high-end weapons, namely five Panzer IV tanks, ten Panzer III tanks, and even twenty T26s that are currently being used as tractors and restored to normal after being captured.
The No. 4 and No. 3 tanks were damaged on the front line. They were considered no longer suitable for front-line combat, so they were sent to the rear and became a weapon against the guerrillas. Because the Soviet guerrillas were very rampant near the Pripet Swamp.
It was only because of team activities that the German Belarusian garrison allocated so many heavy weapons to the 722nd Division.
They gave Florid a lot of confidence, and now that he has air force assistance, if it is purely defensive, he is really worthy of the Russians.
However, Florid was really reluctant to let the German army attack.
The military meeting did not discuss a reasonable solution, but Loyev's crisis is right in front of him. What else can Florid do?
"Forget it! Gentlemen, let's adjourn the meeting. I can only obey the order of the Army Commander on this matter! If the order given to us is to organize troops to attack, we can only march! I estimate that as long as I report this matter, the march will be inevitable
Of. So, Quetzal."
"exist!"
"Since you are willing to attack, please be prepared!"
"As you command!"
If Loev's situation is notified to the group army, the commander will definitely order the troops to reinforce. In a short period of time, Florid prepared a speech. His idea was very simple, that is, the dispatched German troops must be controlled within
acceptable level.
On the other hand, Wagner, the commander of the German Army Group stationed in southern Belarus, has never been in a good mood in the past few months.
The front line requires a large amount of supplies, and he must scavenge local people for food and cloth, and even hire local people to work for the German army.
Never think of relying on force to force local people to work in farms or factories. That is impossible! Force can only make them afraid for a while. Soon, they will find a way to escape and become guerrillas! In a few months
Later, through high-pressure encirclement and suppression, many small guerrilla groups in Belarus disappeared, and in the end only a few large guerrilla groups remained.
Summarizing the gains and losses of the past few months, Wagner realized that the simple iron-blooded high pressure did not put an end to the sabotage actions of the guerrillas, but instead allowed the soldiers below to kill many innocent people.
He even received many reports that out-of-control German officers and soldiers were having affairs with local women during the liquidation process. He even realized that in the many incidents of indiscriminate massacre of villagers, those soldiers of the Eastern Battalion became
The biggest executioner, yet the German army had to pay for these actions.
The German army wiped out many guerrillas in the area north of the Mozyr-Gomel highway, but south of the highway, the guerrillas ruled.
No! On the map, that area has been marked as "Soviet 63rd Army".
Wagner sincerely hopes that his troops can destroy this so-called army group. The fact is that the troops must establish a line of defense to ensure that the area north of the highway is under the absolute control of the German army. Of course, he also knows that those Russians will never give up.
.
They dared to fight with the Romanians on the right bank of the Dnieper River, which showed that they were actively expanding their influence.
Maybe, a new battle with them will happen in the near future.
Based on this mentality, Wagner recruited a group of people who hated Stalin in his military management area and selected anti-Bolsheviks in prison camps. Belarusians who were willing to serve the Germans were persecuted in the early days of the Soviet Union.
landowners, businessmen's children, and people who are forced to make a living.
In any occupied area, there is no shortage of puppet troops. This group army currently has four divisions and an aviation group under its command.
So how many puppet troops in the Eastern Battalion served the German army?
Five groups in total!
The Eastern Battalion is the collective name for the puppet army. Now Berlin has allowed the occupied areas to establish professional puppet troops. Their current largest organization is the regiment. Based on its role, it is called the police regiment.
The equipment level of each police regiment is far inferior to that of the German infantry regiment, even though the strength is similar. Most of them wear Czech military uniforms, or pure black uniforms. Their most notable feature is the black boat-shaped cap on their head, and no one wears a helmet.
, the junior officers also have a white armband on their right arm, which is printed in German - local people serving Germany.
The five regiments of puppet troops are equivalent to adding a division to the local garrison. In the eyes of the German army, these people are just cannon fodder. They are basically deployed in areas relatively close to the highway to assist the German army in guarding this traffic.
Wire.
So when the Army Headquarters received an urgent call from the 722nd Division, Wagner's attitude was very direct: "Loev is in your defense area. It is the sword in the heart of the Russians in the swamp. You must send troops to recapture it."
The 722nd Division also gave an explanation immediately. After all, Florid's attitude was very straightforward: "The Russians must be prepared for this battle. If our army sends a large army to rescue them, they may fall."
Falling into some kind of enemy trap."
What is the battle situation in Loev? As the commander of the group army, Wagner can only make judgments from limited intelligence. Wagner already knows very well what the 722nd Division is afraid of.
He sent his last telegram: "For this battle, your ministry will dispatch a regiment, and the fifth regiment of the police regiment will also be under your command. The two regiments will launch the rescue of Loyev no later than June 24, and they must be