Washington in the spring of 1943 looked no different from previous years. The tree-lined boulevards along the Potomac River began to become lively, and the flower beds on both sides of the streets began to bloom. Since spring, there seemed to be more rain. Since the United States entered the war
, this has entered its third year, but apart from the strict food supply, the feeling that the war has brought to Americans does not seem to have changed much.
As the entire national economy was incorporated into the wartime management system, the huge number of unemployed people found jobs, and even women were mobilized into factories. Although there were some good news from time to time in the Pacific or European battlefields,
Bad news comes from time to time, and the battlefield will continue to bring bad news to some families, but people will still selectively try to forget this news as quickly as possible.
After all, the war has brought a sense of stability to most families, and they do not have to worry about when they will lose their jobs all day long. In the minds of most people, the fear caused by the economic crisis is much greater than the fear caused by the war.
For ordinary people, they would rather choose war than end up on the streets because of unemployment.
This is actually one of the reasons why the Germans chose Hitler. The great economic crisis of 1929 brought too much harm and fear to people, so most people would rather choose war than suffer from hunger again.
Different from the relaxation and bustle on the street, the corridors of the White House seemed very quiet, and the atmosphere in President Roosevelt's Oval Office seemed a bit tense.
Secretary Hull hurried back to Washington from London and immediately rushed to the White House. When he entered the office, he noticed that President Roosevelt seemed to be getting older and tired. Chief of Staff Marshall was sitting upright on the couch, while the Secretary of Army Operations
Stimson and Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, Admiral King, were sitting on a small sofa to the side, while Hopkins, the president's adviser, looked sick and sat in an armchair beside the president's desk.
"Ah, Cordell, I didn't expect you to come back so quickly!" Roosevelt looked up at his Secretary of State in greeting, and Hull noticed a hint of disappointment in the president's tone.
"Yes, the situation is urgent and I have to rush back right away." After nodding and greetings, Hull walked over and sat down next to General Marshall.
"Is it confirmed?" Hopkins asked.
"Yes, the Russians have decided to start cease-fire negotiations with Germany. We can no longer undo this. Zhuyashvili is very afraid of the strength of the Chinese. After the Republican Army landed in Ukraine, he ordered the entire offensive to be stopped." Hull clicked.
Nodding, "They want to buy time. But they want us to face the attack of the entire Allied Powers."
"If we take action in Northern Europe, will we be able to restore the determination of the Russians?" Roosevelt seemed a little anxious.
"This is impossible. How many troops can we invest in Scandinavia? At most half a million. The poor natural conditions there determine that it is impossible for us to threaten Germany on this front. And it is impossible to take action in France now.
It is tantamount to suicide." Marshall's speech rejected the possibility of any action by the Army in the European battlefield. However, in Africa and Australia, facing the aggressive momentum of the Republican Army, the US military has been on the defensive.
"After the Russians withdrew, it was difficult for us to win this war. Maybe our initial decision was a mistake..." Hull said.
"No, we got it too, didn't we? From Australia and New Zealand to South Africa and West Africa, we have gained enough sphere of influence. What we lost was only the British. Although the results of the war did not meet our expectations, we still expanded.
Our control area." Roosevelt cut off Hull's words. It was too early to talk about gains and losses, and the United States was not worried about defeat. "Ernest, if we want to gain advantage in the Pacific, how many troops will we need?
?" He turned his head to Admiral Jin.
"At least more than fifty fleet aircraft ships and 1.5 million combat aircraft are needed. I think this is very difficult to achieve. Our enemies are also constantly increasing their strength. This will hollow out the entire United States. Congress will not
We will be allowed to do this." Admiral Jin said calmly.
"If we can get the entire Southwest Pacific, we may be able to persuade Congress to pass such a naval bill." Roosevelt said that arms dealers have always had great power in Congress, and it is not impossible to pass a bill to expand arms procurement in Congress. The problem is
It is necessary to have enough benefits.
Congress is not concerned about the increase in expenditures, but whether these efforts can obtain sufficient returns. It will never do anything without benefits. This is an American concept.
"This year, Congress only approved the construction plan for 10 of the latest Midway-class aircraft carriers. This is far from the number we need to achieve maritime superiority. If we still want to make achievements, we will need at least more in the next two years.
30 aviation battleships." Admiral Jin said, paused briefly and then continued to add, "I am worried that the finances cannot sustain such a large fleet."
"Don't worry, we are in trouble, and so are the Chinese," Roosevelt said.
"But their labor costs are much lower than ours. A long-term war of attrition is very detrimental to us." Admiral Jin said that the rich human resources of Republican China are unmatched by any country. After entering a protracted war,
, the advantages in this area will become more and more obvious.
"This is what worries me. We need to use our equipment advantages to force the Chinese to make some concessions. We need to protect Western civilization under the guidance of Saint Michael's sword. Otherwise, the white people will become
As slaves of those barbarians who do not understand freedom, those yellow people like locusts will harm the world.
, endangering the progress of the entire Western civilization." Roosevelt said, it is too late for him to throw out racism now. The Germans and Italians have joined forces with the Chinese. The British forced the Germans and Italians into a dead end for their own interests.
, in the end result, the Anglo-Saxons still failed to keep everything they had.
Unlike the anxious U.S. policymakers, the performance of Soviet Russia after the Republican Army landed in Ukraine made the General Staff relieved. As far as the current situation is concerned, there is reason to believe that the Soviet Union and Germany will be stronger in the Republic of China.
Under pressure, peace was finally chosen. However, to the surprise of the General Staff, President Lin Shuo vetoed the battle plan formulated by the General Staff to attack the British mainland.
"The ultimate purpose of the war is to build a future survival and development space for our country. The existence of a hostile Britain, Germany, and the Soviet Union is beneficial to building a new world order led by us. For future development, we need a
It is not good for us to have a safe strategic space and help the Germans defeat the British." Lin Shuo once again emphasized the overall national interest at the meeting of the Military Commission.
"After Hitler set his sights on London, he picked up the naval reconstruction plan again. They hope to get our help." General Armament Minister Jiang Tingzi said that in addition to submarine technology, Germany lags behind the United States in warship design and construction technology.
, China and Britain, especially in terms of aircraft ship construction technology.
"This is fine. Let the Germans fight the British and Americans in the North Atlantic. We fully support it!" A relatively powerful German navy is in line with the overall interests of the Republic. A very threatening German fleet will
It involved most of the British energy, and the Americans had to strengthen the strength of the Atlantic Fleet, which would indirectly weaken the strength of the Pacific Fleet.
The main obstacle to Germany's restructuring of its navy is the shortage of raw materials for ship armor steel, which requires Republican China to provide more rare metal raw materials. From the perspective of Germany's steel production capacity, as long as there are enough raw materials, high-quality steel can be produced very quickly
It will increase several times.
With Germany's steel production, after nationwide mobilization, it will soon reach one-third of the industrial capacity of the United States, which is enough to involve a considerable part of the energy of the United States and Britain. From this point of view, this ally is more powerful than the Italians.