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In the Western popular imagination -- particularly the American one -- World War II is a conflict we won. It was fought on the beaches of Normandy and Iwo Jima, through the rubble of recaptured French towns and capped by sepia-toned scenes of joy and young love in New York. It was a victory shaped by the steeliness of Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, the moral fiber of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and the awesome power of an atomic bomb.....
Unfairly or not, the current tensions obscure the scale of what's being commemorated: Starting in 1941, the Soviet Union bore the brunt of the Nazi war machine and played perhaps the most important role in the Allies' defeat of Hitler. By one calculation, for every single American soldier killed fighting the Germans, 80 Soviet soldiers died doing the same.
Last edited by Ibginnie; 05-15-2016 at 07:14 PM..
Reason: copyright violation
That writer was very biased as if having casualties wins wars.... actually having the opponent have casualties and logistically destroying their ability to make war wins wars. In the case of WW II, the US and UK domination of the skies and daily bombing took away Germany's ability to make war and the Russians army fought heroically on the ground (as did Americans).
My Father was an 18 yoa soldier that hit Omaha Beach during the invasion and was shot there...after being patched up in the UK, he returned to the battle and was shot and captured on a scouting mission in Germany and was freed by Russians at the end of the war. He did have a high opinion of Russian soldiers despite how poorly they were armed and equipped.
I don't believe Russia would have defeated Germany in a 1 on 1 battle.
The Soviet Union signed a non-aggression pact with Nazi Germany, the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, on 23 August 1939. In addition to stipulations of non-aggression, the treaty included a secret protocol that divided territories of Romania, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Finland into German and Soviet "spheres of influence", anticipating potential "territorial and political rearrangements" of these countries.[1] Stalin and Hitler later traded proposals after a Soviet entry into the Axis Pact.
Last edited by Ibginnie; 05-15-2016 at 07:15 PM..
Reason: too much copy and paste
[i]The Soviet Union signed a non-aggression pact with Nazi Germany, the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, on 23 August 1939. In addition to stipulations of non-aggression, the treaty included a secret protocol that divided territories of Romania, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Finland into German and Soviet "spheres of influence", anticipating potential "territorial and political rearrangements" of these countries.[1] Stalin and Hitler later traded proposals after a Soviet entry into the Axis Pact.
Interesting.
The relationship between the US and Russia has been complicated.
Last edited by Ibginnie; 05-15-2016 at 07:16 PM..
Reason: edited quoted post
Stalin was desperate for war material and to have the second front opened.
That's what defeated Germany.
Author is very narrow minded.
The Germans were already stalled before the allies entered the war. There wasn't much of a chance that was going to alter regardless if a second front opened or not.
We must not forget Soviet sacrifices and losses. However, they had helped Germany prior to getting attacked by them.
How successful would the Soviets have been without US domination of German skies weakening Germany and Lend Lease which kept the Soviets afloat.
No US involvement and no USSR capture of Berlin in 1945.
Plus our forces were split - Japan.
Certainly lend lease was a major help to the Soviets. However, U.S. air domination didn't play a role in keeping them afloat because the Soviets began taking back territory a year before the U.S. gained air dominance.
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