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the oil of Iran will neither be needed nor used for Soviet forces
in case of a war. Mid-EBasterm refineries will be destroyed and it
would be uneconomical to transport through the few available fas
cilities erude oil to the Russian refineries. Hence the sole inte=
rest of the USSR is to prevent the USA forces of getting the Iranian
crude and to ship it with its powerful tanker fleet to far away
refinewiese The only aim therefore is : in case of a war, Iran must
fall into Soviet hands, regardless wether the oil resources remain
intact or not : only in order to deprive the Americans and for no
other reasons. This very important decision confims anew what we
reported already several times, viz. that the USSR is already to¬
dey self-sufficient in oil and that all speculations on oil shor=
tages in Russia are unrealistic.
put while thus the Asiatic situation weighed heavily on
the minds of the conferees, Europe was not forgotten, The progress
than is generally believed in Western capitais. And especially the
thought o£ including the West German forces into the i
Buropean Army is considered in Russia as the greatest direct threat
to the Soviet Union. Hence it was decided, that if the integration
of Europe progresses and especially when the German re-armament
starts, the Buropean situation will demand action on the Soviet
side, Now, and this is of paramount importance, if and when suxh
am action is decided in Europe, it would nevertheless not be under¬
taken under any conditions without first having involved Red China.
In that case the slow approach as outlined - namely the waiting for
India's Communism - would be by-passed and actions started in the
minor fronts, while at the same time forcing the Indian issue.
Moscow expects - but here our observer was unable to learn by
what means, but he is quite positive that Moscow has a very clear¬
cut plan in:mind it consideres as fool-proff - to be able to involve
Red China in war with the USA within four month after such a deci¬
sion was taken, This involvement waeld be followed within a week
by action in Europe,
Concerning operations in Europe, we already reported, that
the invasion of the continent was completely rehearsed last fall
in Russia under the Command of Marshal Zhukov, assisted by Konev,
Sokolovsky, Chuikov and Tolbukhin. This strategy of the invasion of
Europe is timed at exactly three weeks : that is to say that within
that time Burope will be occupied, in the Soviet plans to the Pyre¬
nees, with the exception of Switzerland and pockets of resistance
in the Alps and Southern Germany. ,Brest should be accupied on the
fifteenth day of operations. Italy should be struck down by the
motorized forces of the Karpatho-Ukraine striking at the Isonzo,
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