I became Stalin chapter 15

15

Zhukov looked at the vast Ukrainian plain, back after a long absence.

He went to the Far East from the Kiev Military District, suffered the Battle of Khalkhingol, and came back to take charge of the entire Ukraine this time. Somehow the feeling was new. A number of officers from the Southern Front lined up in front of him.

Zhukov, who sat in the top seat and looked around the crowd, stopped for a moment on some of the generals.

More than 60% of the reserve forces to go to the entire front have been concentrated in the Southern Front. With this support, Zhukov and Kirphonos prepared a daring counterattack.

The spear tip of the German Army Group South, a counterattack operation to crush the 1st Panzer Group.

The general secretary recommended two generals as talents to lead the counterattack. Zhukov had been working with them for a while, and he couldn’t help but admire the eyes of the general secretary.

“Lieutenant-General Malinovsky! Lieutenant-General Tolbuhin!”

“Yes sir!”

The general secretary demanded that both of them be appointed as commanders. The two were shown as commanders of the corps under the direct control of the Southwest Front and the Southern Front, respectively, and, according to Zhukov’s standards, showed remarkable results beyond expectations.

Tolbuchin had a stocky and blunt impression, but unlike his appearance, he was attentive and a commander loved by his subordinates. So much so that Zhukov himself wants to use him as his right arm and advisor.

Along the border with Romania, in Kishinev, the core of the Bessarabian defense, Tolbuhin faced eight German offensives. And he succeeded in withstanding all the offensives.

He squeezed the reserve and put it in the right direction of the offensive, leading to victories in both large and small engagements. In the process, the ability to block the detour infiltration of the German forces, thoroughly secure supply routes, and build a solid defense line was excellent.

Zhukov appreciated his meticulousness in observing the enemy’s movements to a paranoid degree, constantly deploying the meager but still present air reconnaissance aircraft.

“Lieutenant General Tolbuhin, I will appoint you as the commander of the newly formed 1st Shock Army! The Shock Army command currently has key personnel in Zaporozhe, so the commanders and staff of the lower ranks will thoroughly respect your appointment. . Especially in the Southern Front, I’ll help you recruit me to the best of my powers.”

“Yes, sir! I will make sure that nothing falls short of expectations!”

It was a pity to send him far behind. Right now, there is a shortage of excellent commanders on the front lines, but what can we do?

Tolbuhin was, in Zhukov’s opinion, the best person to take charge of the first-choice of the breakthrough of the depths. Kyrphonos, second in the Southern Front, also agreed with Zhukov.

In the deep operation, the first-line squad had to be put in the vanguard of the Zepa charge while enduring the enemy’s offensive before the operation. In this process, the ability to minimize damage and boldly deploy a reserve force at the correct timing and location was not something that anyone possessed.

Tolbuhin’s 1st Strike Force was in the forefront and had to implement deep operation, which is still in the theoretical stage, on the battlefield. That is why the competence of the commander was so important.

“Okay. Next… Lieutenant General Malinovsky!”

“Yes! Comrade Commander!”

“I appoint you as the commander of the 26th Army. The 26th Army will be exposed to the enemy’s fiercest offensive. I’m sorry, but please bear with me.”

The 26th Army was the most protruding point of the Soviet defenses. The terrain was suitable for defense because it was surrounded by hills and mountains, but it was in danger of collapsing at any time as it was exposed to enemy attacks in three directions.

Although it had good mobility, it was inferior to other Soviet units in terms of firepower due to the concentration of lightly armed mountain divisions.

Now Malinovsky had to carry them out on defense. The stiff shoulders trembled. But there was no retreat for the Soviet soldiers.

“Thank you sir!”

Malinovsky showed talent in defense. He showed his talents in ‘mobile defense’, in which he reversed the offensive through a counterattack that crushed the enemy’s offensive, and retreated and reorganized allied units with a lot of damage by using the momentary void that appeared at that time.

“If the 1st Shock Army is a hammer, then the 26th Army can be said to be an anvil. While the 1st and 2nd Shock Army attack the enemy’s 1st Armored Group, the 26th Army must defend their left flank.”

“I will definitely hold the defense line!”

The 1st Panzer Group, led by Kleist, tried to rush into Kiev, but was stranded by the hardened Soviet offensive. The German and Soviet armies were fighting back and forth over the small town of Zitomir and the river that ran through it.

Subsequent units of Army Group South were still advancing after the leading unit, still 200km away. With the soft sides of the 1st Armored Group fully exposed.

The 26th Army, led by Malinovsky, now had to stop these successors from advancing further. Even by pouring out all of the reserve forces of the Front Army, they should not take a step back from the current defensive line.

If the 26th Army retreats, the 1st and 2nd Shock Army, which enter the side of the 1st Armored Group, will be attacked on the flanks. In any case, inserting two well-armed and trained field troops had no choice but to create a gap.

The counter-attack operation that Zhukov thought of was to insert the 9th Army, mechanized at the highest rate, into the gap created by the two shock forces, advance to the Pripyatti Marsh, and create a huge encirclement that met the Marshal’s 1st Guards Army. it was the gist

“Finally… Commander of the 2nd Shock Army, Major General Vlasov!”

“Yes! Commander-in-Chief! I will do my best!”

“Major General Vlasov, no, now I’m going to promote him to lieutenant general. The 2nd Shock Army will play the role of a 1.5-wave counter-besieging and annihilation of enemy forces that are advancing deep into our territory in the future counterattack.”

Vlasov’s eyes lit up at the word “reverse siege”. Vlasov was a favorite of the Soviet Army, served as a military instructor for the Nationalist Party of China and trained the 99th Division belonging to the current Northwest Front to become the best division, and even received a citation from Marshal Tymoshenko.

Zhukov wanted to summon him and assign him the role of polishing and polishing the spear-tip echelons of the counter-attack.

Vlasov showed a knack for training field troops. It was the unit he had trained that was no less elite than that of Zecht and Falkenhausen, the German-born military instructors of the Chinese Kuomintang. Chiang Kai-shek sent a letter praising him to the General Command of the Soviet Army.

Stavka’s senior generals predicted that he would rise to a leadership position in the next generation of the Soviet army. Because generals from the Chinese military advisory group, such as Chuikov and Batutin, were promoted quickly to higher ranks.

Of course, the secretary didn’t seem to like him very much. Why?

Zhukov thought about it a couple of times. Vlasov showed a competent and delicate commanding ability, and also gained popularity among his subordinates. Could it be because of the problem of enlisting troops? If so, I could understand it to some extent.

But now was not the time to worry about that. Field Marshal stopped Army Group Center, and Rotmistrov smashed the vanguard of Army Group North.

It’s time to show off something from the South!

“Uh huh… What are you doing when you’re dragged into someone else’s war?”

“I mean. And the unlucky Hungarians…”

Romanian soldiers grunted and stood guard. In the distance, the Soviet army seemed to be idling, but after firing a few shots, it disappeared quickly. That way, if you happen to be caught by an officer, you don’t have to close the joint because you don’t watch the key.

It wasn’t a good shot as I’d never fired it a few times. Even the soldiers knew that. that they are not elite soldiers

Although the Romanian army intervened in internal affairs and launched a coup, it was far from a strong force. General Antonescu drove out the fallen King Karol II after losing public opinion. Then, he mobilized his support force, the Iron Guard, to declare the ‘National Corps State’.

Of course, the general public did not like this militarization. Especially the soldiers who had to be brought into the army.

“Soviet men and Hungarians are the same thieves. Aren’t they?”

“Giggle, you’ll get caught too.”

The driving force behind Antonescu’s reign was the promise of ‘Great Romania’ to the people.

In conflicts with neighboring countries, Romania lost considerable territory. Bessarabia, where the Romanian army is advancing now, Dobruza for Bulgaria, Transylvania for Hungary, etc.

Germany promised to support the Antonescu regime and return Bessarabia, which the Soviet Union had taken away. Antonescu, who had a weak support base, was as good as he could be, sending hundreds of thousands of troops into the war against the Soviet Union.

Due to the sudden entry into the war, the soldiers were drafted in large numbers and had to be dragged to the battlefield without any training.

Damn officers with a sense of authority, giving orders hard without doing anything right. The Germans who secretly ignore us even though we are our ally with the largest number of troops. The Hungarians who can’t even call it an ‘alliance’ with the subject of taking away the rightful Romanian territory.

There wasn’t anything to like.

“I just wish we could get out of this war…”

“Hey, the trend should follow.”

“Zeep, that’s right.”

The Balkans already had a strong army of the Axis forces. Hungary in the north and Bulgaria in the south joined the Axis powers, and Yugoslavia, who refused to do so, was invaded and the country was in ruins.

Croatia was torn apart and turned into a puppet state, and the Serbs-led partisans were resisting, but they were creating internal strife among themselves? Anyway, it was already all over Germany and its gang.

“I wish you wouldn’t come this way… oh my.”

“The enemy! The enemy!”

For some reason, the Soviet army was sulking, and suddenly dozens of Soviet soldiers were approaching nearby. Damn it, I blew my whistle and machine gun shots came pouring in.

Perhaps the nearest post is the one guarded by the Hungarian army. But will they really help? In fact, to others, Hungary and Romania were very similar. A place where the king is driven back and the soldiers seize power and run a dictatorship.

However, the Balkan countries could not get along with each other as they took land and population from each other in an endless conflict. Hungary, with Germany on its back, usurped Transylvania, the rightful dominion of Romania.

Can Romania feel good about joining the Axis powers to get the land back, but it hasn’t been returned yet?

The Soviets slowly approached the trenches with machine guns, checking the two soldiers who were firing back in the trenches.

“Fucking, Hungarian cubs …”

“… dogs ..”

The Hungarian army was visible from a distance. However, they did not show any signs of coming this way, and were only firing threatening shots at the Soviet troops. Romania, competing for land, seemed to think of it as an ‘enemy’ in reality.

Now, the Soviet army advanced to a dozen meters ahead, but with poor armament, they could not fight those armed with machine guns.

He tightened his hand to pull out the grenade pin. You have to eat at least one room…

“Hey, just put it away.”

“What?”

“Surrender! Surrender!”

A soldier stood up from the post, shouting surrender, raising his hand, and the Soviets stopped firing. The soldier who was about to throw the grenade also put down the bomb and raised his hand. The Hungarians were startled and fired on this side, but they soon had to kneel down again.

“Surrender! Help!”

“It doesn’t help…”

The two soldiers started shooting at the unlucky Hungarian army. The Soviets seemed puzzled, but somehow they came crawling to the post and looked at them with a ridiculous expression.

“Hey, Hungari, Hungary, right?”

“That’s right! Those bastards…!”

“Heh, help. Surrender?”

They didn’t say surrender again, but anyway, when the Soviet soldiers fired machine guns at the Hungarian side, they panicked and ran away.

When the fighting was over, the two Romanian soldiers slumped down. I’m going to be drawn to these guys now. Maybe they’ll tell us we deserted. Maybe going to Siberia? The sadness was intense.

“Let’s go, Romanian, we’re good.”

“What?”

Come to think of it, this Soviet soldier was stuttering and speaking slurred Romanian. The smiling face somehow… made me want to believe it. He grabbed the soldier who reached out his hand and stood up.

“Come, we good people. Long live the workers!”

I don’t know what you mean, but he’s a nice guy. Damn it, Kat ?.

Spit on the floor of the post and the soldier got up. Yeah, I guess I’ll just have to kill him after doing this?

Thank you all readers for reading

I became Stalin chapter 15

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