military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) (02/09/90)
From: military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) Tuesday, 6 February, 1940 As Soviet forces continue to batter the Mannerheim Line, rumors spread of a German offer to mediate between Russia and Finland, as well as a 6-point peace plan offered to the Allies. Berlin sources deny both claims. The Italian aircraft previously refused passage through Germany are now en route to Finland via France. Near Eastern sources report rising tension over the possibility of a Soviet-German drive toward the Persian Gulf. Britain and France prepare plans for armed intervention in Afghanistan, the Caucasus, or the Balkans. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@cbnews.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military-request@att.att.com "Moreover, if there has ever been any doubt of the devastating effect of the 1937 purge in the Red Army, this campaign has dispelled it. Eighty per cent of the officers are reported to have been liquidated, and that factor has been sufficient to wreck personnel efficiency in the military forces for years to come." - Maj. Gen. Stephen O. Fuqua, US Army, Retired