Show Germans Push Closer to Paris in in Three Pronged Drive A B BATTLE FRONT e. e dp JUNE SS 4 AMIENS e a t VR O. O C O I CHAUNY CHATEAU us NOYON Q t CHESNE ROU I N yr y use O A a NEU GOURNAY 1 E R s. s IS CLERMONT SOISSONS' SOISSONS DE LARCHE f R l G CI f MERV R. R Jf SENLIS v MA i M UX MANTES ARIS o 0 to 10 zo 20 ao 30 VERSAILLES Heavy dotted line is present battle front sma small 11 dotted line is front o on 1 June 5 when nazis began drive Numbers show three main thru 1 Toward I-Toward Toward Rouen 2 South 2 South in in Soissons Soissons Soissons Sois- Sois sons area On 3 On 3 On both sides of Rethel near which nazi parachute troops we were e dropped WHAT Italy Can Bring Nazis in War Wor Troops Submarines I J By United Press Italy can bring to Germanys Germany's side an army of probably 2 2 men a first line air force of 2500 to planes and a navy of six dreadnoughts 21 cruisers submarines and to minor warships Italian forces are deployed in three principal theaters The northern frontier along the chain of Alps between France and Italy At key points in the In Africa The largest concentration of ot Italian troops possibly a million men is believed to be along the so-called so line on the French frontier The second great troop concentration concentration con con- is in Africa Italy has probably to white and native troops in Libya and another or more in m Italian East Africa and Ethiopia Other Italian troops are in Albania Albania Albania Al Al- bania where and possibly considerably m more re are sta sta- sta- sta the islands off the Turkish coast with a garrison garrison garrison gar gar- rison of to men and Sardinia and Sicily where forces of unknown strength are disposed The Italian navy is presumed to be b largely in Mediterranean and Adriatic waters It includes two new brand-new ton battleships battleships bat bat- the the and the Vittorio Veneto which mount nine inch 15 guns guns and and four old but modernized battleships There are 21 cruisers with 14 or 15 building submarines with 25 or more building destroyers destroy destroy- ers and gunboats and or more speedy motor mosquito boats boats' The air force has a total strength of to planes of which 2500 to are first line ships There are about 10 10 trained pilots The Italian replacement rate is about planes a month which might be exp expanded The Italian troops on the northern frontier could be employed employed employed em em- In a direct attack on France with the assistance of the Italian air force Some Italian Italian Italian Ital Ital- ian commentators have claimed that the German air force would assist such an attempt There ar are admitted difficulties to such an attack however because the pastes passes are are re n narrow and easily defendable defendable defendable de- de on th the French French side It frequently has hns been suggested suggest suggest- ed that one immediate Italian move would be an attempt to cut the Mediterranean in two between between between be be- tween Sicily and Sardinia and North Africa This might be accomplished by an attack on the French naval base at Bizerta opposite opposite opposite op op- Sicily with the aid of land forces from Tripoli The French island of Corsica just north Sardinia of would be open to Italian attack from the latter island and nd has had a prominent prominent prominent prom prom- part in recent Italian propaganda propaganda propaganda prop prop- demands Moves against both Turkey and Gre Greece ce are possible possible possible pos pos- sible from the strategically located lo located located lo- lo islands which lie in a flanking position along the Turkish coast and close to many islands of the Greek archi archi- pel pelago go Albania could be employed for fora a thrust at or to strike down into Greece toward The Th Italian East African possessions possessions possessions pos pos- sessions are centrally located for operations against the Anglo- Anglo Egyptian Sudan north and arid west of Ethiopia Kenya south of Ethiopia and west of Italian of-Italian Italian East Africa French Djibouti and British which are virtually surrounded by Italian possessions Forces in Libya could be used to attack Egypt and attempt to drive through to the Suez canal Probably one of the first points of attack would be Malta the British rock fortress which lies just off the Sicilian coast |