The President was talking eloquently over there, while the generals of the Joint Chiefs of Staff were staring at the sea view sand table in front of them, all of them frowning, as if they were thinking long and hard.
Through the sea view sand table, the current situation of the Palau Naval War is quite clear. Taking the Palau waters of the Pacific as the coordinate, China's Pacific Fleet is divided into three groups, firmly blocking the US-Japan joint fleet's waterway to the Philippines. At a distance of 100 meters from China
About 400 kilometers due east of the fleet, the U.S.-Japanese combined fleet is stationed here, with the Japanese combined fleet in the front and the U.S. Pacific Fleet aircraft carrier formation in the rear. Both sides are arranged in a fan-shaped formation, firmly protecting the U.S. aircraft carrier in the middle;
About 600 kilometers away from the sea area where the U.S.-Japanese combined fleet was deployed, there was a battleship formation of the U.S. Pacific Fleet that no longer lived up to its name.
Although Truman was not good at military affairs, the sea view sand table in front of him was so intuitive that he could glean some knowledge from it. Seeing that the generals were just looking at the sand table silently, and no one catered to his topic, he asked:
"Can we only retreat to the Philippines? After all, Papua is under our control, and it is not very far from Australia..."
Truman's words were of course very unprofessional, so Navy Secretary Knox immediately responded: "Mr. President, you are right, we can indeed order the Pacific Fleet to retreat to Papua. But there is a prerequisite for this, that is, we must give up those
The aircraft carrier has been lost. Not only that, if the Japanese cannot help us hold back the Chinese, the Pacific Fleet will be pursued by the Chinese fleet. According to the intelligence we have, the speed of the Chinese aircraft carrier is far higher than ours, and
, the Chinese also have asymmetric weapons such as missiles. So, it seems that this is the safest, but in fact there are many hidden dangers."
"What about evacuating to Hawaii?" Truman asked tentatively again.
"It's unrealistic. The Pacific Fleet is too far away from Hawaii. I dare to assert that if we really do this, the Chinese will definitely repeat their old tricks and send out long-range bomber groups for follow-up bombing again! Mr. President, Guam is still there
In the hands of the Chinese, with the advanced platform of Guangzhou, the combat radius of China’s long-range bombers will be doubled!”
"Can we just make a desperate attempt to break out of the Philippines?"
Knox hadn't thought of a better way yet, so he wisely kept his mouth shut.
The atmosphere in the conference room was silent for a while. Suddenly, Secretary of War Stimson said: "There are other ways!"
Everyone looked at him immediately.
Stimson stood up, struck the Japanese island of Kyushu with his right hand, and said: "In the current situation, it is obvious that the Chinese will not miss the opportunity to expand their victory. Since the Chinese defense direction is the Philippines, can we find another way and go directly to the Philippines?"
Japan? As far as I know, China’s current force layout is the weakest in the direction of the Ryukyu Islands and Japan. Moreover, if we go to Japan, we will be providing support to the Japanese mainland, which is definitely something the Japanese would like to see.
Presumably, the Japanese will try their best to help us hold back the Chinese fleet."
Stimson only said half of what he said. Those who were more quick-thinking here saw the key, and many people's eyes lit up immediately. After he finished speaking, the more they thought about it, the more they thought this method was wonderful, and they immediately supported his suggestion.
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Before Stimson finished speaking, he continued: "There is another advantage of doing this, that is, we can decide whether to raid Taiwan and the Ryukyu Islands depending on the situation. With the main force of the Chinese fleet fighting abroad, the Chinese have no ability to fight against us.
A surprise attack, and if we can help the Japanese mainland change its current predicament, the Japanese mainland can in turn launch a counterattack in the direction of North Korea and Ryukyu. This can buy enough time for the Pacific Fleet to rest and recuperate - just in case, China
If people can withstand our raid, then the Pacific Fleet will withdraw directly from the Japanese mainland to Hawaii. In that case, the safety factor will be much higher. Moreover, with this period of time as a buffer, we can also transport sufficient supplies from the mainland to Hawaii.
, to help the Pacific Fleet regain its combat effectiveness as soon as possible!"
Truman was not good at military affairs, but his ability to observe people's actions was not weak. When he saw the generals present looking relaxed and excited after Stimson finished speaking, he knew that Stimson had made a brilliant move, and he couldn't help but light up with joy on his face and asked: "
Is this really possible?”
Stimson: "Of course. But there is a prerequisite, that is, the Japanese must help us hold off the Chinese fleet for a certain period of time. Mr. President, you have to step forward to solve this problem."
Truman breathed a sigh of relief and said: "No problem! If it can help the Japanese alleviate the current domestic crisis, the Japanese have no reason to refuse!"
The Americans work very quickly. They held a meeting at noon and came up with a resolution around five o'clock in the afternoon. At around six o'clock in the evening, a confidential telegram signed by Truman was sent to Koizumi Toshiichiro's desk.
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The Americans thought they had found a turning point in the Second Pacific War, so they went all out. In contrast to them, the Southeast Asian Japanese army led by Koizumi Minichiro had actually given up because of the huge changes that were not conducive to the Japanese army in the Battle of Gambang.
to support the combined fleet.
Therefore, when Truman's secret message was handed over to Koizumi Toshiichiro, it did not attract much attention from the latter.
The Battle of Ganbang suddenly took a turn, and the root cause was Kim Jong-hwa's brigade that was originally stationed at Xiaoling Heights.
Just last night, when the whole world's attention was attracted by the successive battles in the waters near Palau in the Pacific, Kim Jong-hwa's brigade quietly left Xiaolin Heights, and under the cover of night, rushed southeastward.
At about three o'clock in the morning, I entered an artillery position between the Japanese front-line troops and the second-line troops.
Later generations can't imagine how Kim Jong-hwa's brigade could pass through three Japanese defense lines and appear at this critical position. In fact, even the person involved, Kim Jong-hwa, couldn't figure out how he could lead the team when he recalled it afterwards.
It should be regarded as this Japanese artillery position behind the enemy's rear.
The exact time was 3:11 in the morning. When Kim Jong-hwa was using a military flashlight to estimate on the map where his troops had gone, the reconnaissance platoon directly under the brigade, which had been walking at the front of the troops and was responsible for the reconnaissance mission,
Zhang Genyong, the commander, tiptoed over and happily reported to him: "Brigade, this time we launched an artillery position!"
"Are you sure?" Jin Zhenghe was also a little excited. He immediately pressed the flashlight to the ground and asked in a low voice.
"yes!"
"Great! Damn! I can finally do something big!" Jin Zhengheyun, then he thought for a while and sent an order: "Check the weapons immediately and launch an attack in five minutes! Zhang Genyong!"
"arrive!"
"The Japs sentry post will be left to you. We must ensure concealment!"