Rise of the Eurasian Alliance: The Road to War
Russia in late 1941 and early 1942 was a state that was rapidly arming for war. In 1941 alone Russia would produce over 3,000 T-34 tanks, as many of the old T-26 and T-35 models were phased out and scraped to provide materials for the construction of newer models. Thousands of new aircraft also rolled off the assembly lines as the Russian General Staff aimed towards modernizing Russia’s huge but somewhat obsolete airforce with cutting edge designs. Aircraft such as the Ilyushin IL-2 and the Yakovlev Yak-1 were produced in the hundreds in hopes of making this aim a reality. Nearly 800,000 SVT-40s would be produced during the second half of 1941, as it gradually became the standard rifle of the Imperial Russian Army.
With nearly all of Europe now firmly under the thumb of Berlin, tensions on the Russo-German border were at an all time high. The Emperor had given orders for Russian anti-air units on the border to shoot down any unauthorized aircraft that violated Russia’s airspace. Emperor Vladimir Romanov wished to send a clear message to Hitler that acts of aggression towards Russia would not be tolerated. Throughout 41 and early 42 there remained well over 4 million Axis troops on the border of the Russian Empire, which caused many within the General Staff to fear that an invasion was inevitable. Though it struggled to maintain parity with the Axis, Russia was unable to give it’s European front it’s full attention due to the increasing hostilities between the Empire and Japan in the Far East.
Since the signing of the Tripartite Pact in late 1940, hostile activity along the Russian-Manchurian border had been steadily increasing. Several border skirmishes between the Imperial Russian Army and the IJA would occur throughout 1941, further inflaming the already tense situation between the two powers. As a result of the gradual breakdown in relations between St. Petersburg and Tokyo, Russia would transfer roughly 1.5 million troops to the Far East in order to protect their interests in the region from a possible Japanese invasion and, if necessary, go on the offensive themselves. Overall command of the Far Eastern Army was given to Field Marshal Anton Denikin and was placed on a permanent state of high alert.
Field Marshal Anton Denikin
Under Denikin’s command, the Far Eastern Army would engage the IJA in numerous low-level firefights, with most ending favorably for the Russians. Any minor territorial gains made by either side were quickly abandoned so as not to escalate the situation. In response to the buildup of Russian forces on the Manchurian border, the military government of Japan greatly reinforced the Kwantung Army under Yoshijiro Umezu, who maintained strict border patrols throughout 1941 in fear of a Russian attack. By the end of the year, the Kwantung Army contained at least 1.4 million soldiers, mostly infantry divisions.
General Yoshijiiro Umezu
Though of similar size, the composition of the two forces greatly differed. The Japanese Army focused primarily on infantry-based tactics, with a, by western standards, relatively limited role played by armor and mechanized forces. In contrast, the Imperial Russian Army was heavily focused on mechanized and mobile warfare, with tanks serving to smash the enemy’s formations and lines of battle, with the infantry moving in from the rear to consolidate their gains. Out of over 1.4 million infantry, the Kwantung Army only contained roughly 1,200 tanks, many of which were considered obsolete in comparison to the new Russian T-34. In contrast, Denikin’s army had been provided with over 6,000 tanks, of which about 45 – 50% were T-34s.
Denikin’s advantage in artillery was also decisive, having nearly four times the number of Umezu’s forces. The Imperial Russian Airforce also held the advantage over its Japanese counterpart in terms of sheer numbers. While Japan’s army had proven deadly against the relatively unprofessional and disorganized forces of Kuomintang China, they had never truly been tested against a modern, mechanized foe in a major land war. Even against the Chinese the IJA had been forced to fight tooth and nail for every inch of land, and had suffered enormous casualties during the course of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War. Umezu was reported to have pleaded with Tokyo for additional troops, as he felt his current force was inadequate to repel a potential Russian attack, but the eyes of the military government were still firmly focused on the war in China, and denied his request.
Despite Japan already being stretched dangerously thin in Asia, the world was shocked when on December 7, 1941 the Imperial Japanese Navy launched a surprise attack on the main American pacific naval base at Pearl Harbor. The Japanese had hoped that the attack would intimidate the United States into lifting their oil embargo against Japan, which was crippling their war effort in China. The reaction of America however proved to be the exact opposite of what Tokyo had desired, as a fiery speech by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt would soon prove, as he, with almost unanimous approval from congress, declared war upon the Empire of Japan. Even more surprising than this turn of events was Hitler’s declaration of war on the United States on December 11, despite no truly formal alliance existing between Germany and Japan.
It was at this moment that the wars in Europe and Asia were joined to become what we know as the Second World War. With Germany’s declaration of war, the United States now officially joined the Allies in their war against Hitler’s Axis alliance. On January 1, 1942 during the Arcadia Conference the alliance between the anti-Axis powers was given the formal name of the “United Nations”. The UN proclaimed their intention to defeat Germany and Japan “no matter the cost”, and to fight on till the day the world was freed from their merciless tyranny and oppression. The Russian Empire was quick to reaffirm their neutrality in Europe, but made no mention of East Asia. This resulted in a further wave of violence erupting along the Russian-Manchurian border throughout the month of January, resulting in some 2,000 Russian casualties and over 10,000 Japanese.
The popularity of Russian Prime Minister Sergei Baidalakov by the start of 1942 was in rapid decline due to his inability to stop the exploitation of the working class by the Oligarchs, who despite their hegemonic rule over the Empire’s industrial sector, were in general capable administrators, able to maintain production efficiency within their factories, often by intimidating their workers into working past the 10-hour work limit on the threat of them losing their jobs. Often times minimum wage laws would be ignored, and working conditions in general were poor in many factories. While things were still better than they had been under Stalin, the situation was still intolerable in the long run. Many within Russia had begun to see Baidalakov as inefficient due to his unwillingness to seriously rein in the Oligarchs.
Many within the Empire’s political scene were predicting a Labor Coalition victory in December, which the Prime Minister feared would not only ruin his carefully laid plans for the Russian economy, but would also be seen as unacceptable by the strongly conservative military. Baidalakov believed that in the event of a Labor victory, the army would attempt to launch a coup against the newly elected government. This would not only result in the destruction of Russia’s fragile democracy, but also potentially lead to another bloody civil war between the Mensheviks/Socialist-Revolutionaries and the military. Such an event would be a complete catastrophe for the Empire, and leave it prone in the face of a potential German invasion. Baidalakov knew that Hitler would not pass up such a golden opportunity if it were presented to him.
With less than a year before the election, Baidalakov knew his political career and perhaps even the fate of Russia itself would depend on his actions in the following months. With the growing tensions with Japan in the Far East dominating the front pages of most major newspapers within the Russian Empire, the Prime Minister began to see a war against Japan as not only inevitable, but perhaps even desirable. This was at least in part due to the influence of the General Staff, which had since late 1940 attempted to convince Baidalakov of the necessity of a first strike against the IJA in Manchuria and northern China. The Prime Minister had proven reluctant to send Russia to war against a major world power however; the memory of the Russo-Japanese War and the humiliating defeats inflicted upon the Motherland during that conflict still lingered in the minds of many senior politicians and General Staffers who had served during the war.
Russia’s failure to defeat Japan and the resultant loss of influence in East Asia had been the immediate trigger for the 1905 revolution, which had resulted in thousands of needless deaths and had greatly shaken the fabric of Russian society. The Japanese of 1942 had a fearsome reputation on the battlefield and were well known for their fanatical devotion to their country and Emperor, who was seen as a semi-divine figure. Baidalakov feared that if a potential war with Japan went poorly for Russia, it could exacerbate the already growing unrest within the Empire and cause enough discontent to possibly inspire another revolution. While the army and the Ohkrana would eventually be able to suppress any such uprising, this would destabilize Russia’s fragile political system and leave the country highly vulnerable to external threats.
With Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor however, the Empire of the Rising Sun appeared increasingly overextended. With fighting in China becoming increasingly violent and costly for both sides, many within the General Staff felt that the optimum time to attack had arrived. With Japan now at war with the allied powers, Russia was no longer in danger of facing sanctions from the west should it invade, though such a risk was never truly taken seriously given the frosty relations between Tokyo and the western powers. Many within Russia also hoped to gain further economic investment from American companies by declaring war on their principle foe in the East. The only added risk in early 1942 was that an attack upon Japan could lead them to an armed conflict with Germany, considering Hitler’s declaration of war following Pearl Harbor.
Despite the Prime Minister’s fears of such a war in the west breaking out, the Russian General Staff assured Baidalakov that Germany would not risk a war with such a powerful neighboring country as Russia whilst they were still at war with the Allies. With political discontent in the Empire rapidly growing and with the December elections drawing ever closer, Prime Minister Baidalakov reluctantly approached Emperor Vladimir, requesting his support, as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, for a war with Japan. The Emperor, having been greatly impressed during his annual review of the military in October of 1941, gave his authorization to begin military operations against the Empire of Japan. On February 9, the Emperor traveled in secret under heavy escort to Denikin’s military headquarters in Kharbarovsl to personally meet with the old Field Marshal.
Witnesses to the conversation state that at one point the Emperor questioned Denikin on the alleged pogroms that took place under his command during the first Russian Civil War, causing the Field Marshal to fluster before staunchly defending his reputation against the accusations of his detractors. He also gave the Emperor assurances that the various Jewish communities in China, including Japanese-controlled Manchukuo, would be respected and treated fairly. In 1942 there were nearly 40,000 people within China practicing the Jewish faith, and in light of the persecution their European counterparts had experienced under Hitler, Russia wished to avoid appearing anti-Semitic to the allied powers, in particular the United States whom they would soon share a common foe with in Japan.
Though Anton Denikin was amongst the Old Guard of the General Staff, he had been thoroughly impressed by the performance of Russia’s armored divisions in Finland during the brief war there, which he credited in part with the country’s rapid capitulation. The date for the invasion of Japanese-controlled Manchuria was set for March 5, which was to involve over 6,000 tanks, the largest armored assault in military history at that time. The Russian economy during the months of January and February gradually began its shift to full wartime production, completing the transfer to military production by early June. At 0600 hours, March 5 1942, the Imperial Russian Army began its invasion of the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo.
The initial strength of both sides were as follows:
Russia
1,554,000 men,
25,486 artillery,
1,748 support artillery,
6,253 tanks,
5,644 aircraft,
Mongolia (Russian ally)
95,000 men
700+ aircraft
Japan
1,326,000 men,
5,867 artillery,
1,237 tanks
2,432 aircraft
Manchukuo (Initially Japanese ally)
250,000 men
300+ aircraft
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There you go! Enjoy.
