The Land
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Joined: 2/19/2010 Status: offline
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So the second part of the Southern Front is Yugoslavia and Italy. Yugoslavia was a "non-aligned" country which, while Communist, never joined the Warsaw Pact and maintained a policy of neutrality. It embraced its role as a buffer between the Eastern and Western blocs. However, that said, the Yugoslav Communist leadership must have been aware that in a world where the Warsaw Pact was defeated, they would have a hard time preserving their own position as leaders of the only Communist nation in Europe. So if the Soviets make adequate progress in Germany, then they will get a Decision Event asking if they wish to entice Yugoslavia to their side. Yugoslavia's terms are that the Soviets have to commit themselves seriously to the invasion of Italy. If the Soviets say yes, then a top-rated army-strength formation deploys at Zagreb; if they say no, the same units show up in the Ukraine, but Yugoslavia stays out of the war. This in turn affects Italy. Italy was a full member of NATO and, technically, committed to the defence of Western Europe. However Communist parties regularly scored 30-35% of the vote in Italian elections, and there was a widespread suspicion that if push came to shove, Italy might be an unreliable part of NATO - a 'soft southern flank'. In this mod, Italy is a NATO major but won't fully mobilise unless there are hostile troops on its border. Either because of the USSR selecting the Yugoslavia event, or Soviet troops pushing into the Austrian Alps, or of course the USSR just declaring war. Italian National Morale will also be the most fragile of any of the NATO majors. If the Eastern Block takes much of Northern Italy then probably the Italian government will collapse and a pacifist coalition of Communists and Socialists will take over. This in turn will have an impact on National Morale of the other NATO majors, and could affect victory. There are a couple of other things in the Yugoslav situation. Yugoslavia has a navy, albeit mainly a defensive one. But the Adriatic ports might prove helpful for the Soviet Mediterranean fleet, which finds itself stuck in a hostile ocean. Also, Yugoslavia opens up new directions of attack into Austria and Greece, which may be relevant. So here is the Soviet 6th Guards Army making an attack at the Italian border on Turn 2, supported by the Yugoslav army and airforce. The Italians had pushed a brigade forward into Trieste, which has just been destroyed. There are other Italian units on the other side of the Isonzo, and further reserves behind them...
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