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During German-Finnish negotiations, Finland had demanded to remain neutral unless the Soviet Union attacked them first. Germany therefore sought to provoke the Soviet Union into an attack on Finland. After Germany launched Barbarossa on 22 June, German aircraft used Finnish air bases to attack Soviet positions.
The Soviet offensive plans controversy was a debate among historians as to whether Joseph Stalin had planned to launch an attack against Nazi Germany in the summer of 1941. The controversy began with Soviet defector Viktor Suvorov with his 1988 book Icebreaker: Who started the Second World War?
A Russian translation of Schulenburg's declaration dated 5:30 a.m., 22 June 1941. The text reads: "In view of the intolerable threat that arose at the German eastern border as a result of the massive buildup and preparedness of all armed forces of the Red Army, the German government considers itself compelled to immediately take military countermeasures.
The failure of Operation Barbarossa reversed the fortunes of Germany, and Stalin was confident that the Allied war machine would eventually defeat Germany. [4] The Soviet Union repulsed Axis attacks, such as in the Battle of Stalingrad and the Battle of Kursk, which marked a turning point in the war.
German-Soviet air war Germany's losses USSR's losses Soviet claims Ratio German confirmed German claims Ratio Soviet confirmed Completely destroyed combat aircraft at air 22 June 1941 243 [48] 7:1 or 4:1 35 [49] or 55 [48] or 57 [50] 322 [48] 1:1 336 [48] Completely destroyed combat aircraft at air and on ground 22.06-31.12.41 7,888 [51] 4:1 ...
The Soviet Union is referred to as Russia throughout the document, a metonym that was common in the West throughout the Cold War.) The chiefs of staff were concerned that both the enormous size of the Soviet forces deployed in Europe at the end of the war and the perception that Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin was unreliable caused a Soviet threat ...
The Soviet Union was too open for attacks on road intersections to have much effect on preventing supplies reaching the line, or enemy units retreating, so bridges were focused on. The Luftwaffe continually attacked Soviet airfields around Smolensk and Polotsk. Gomel also received special attention. Luftwaffe interdiction against Soviet ...
Soviet troops liberated Naro-Fominsk only on 26 December, Kaluga on 28 December, and Maloyaroslavets on 2 January, after ten days of violent action. Soviet reserves ran low, and the offensive halted on 7 January 1942, after having pushed the exhausted and freezing German armies back 100–250 km (62–155 mi) from Moscow.