Page 228 - The Chief Culprit

Kremlin Games y 189

In the second game, the invasion was carried out from Ukraine and Moldova. If Germany
were crushed, the rest of continental Europe would shower Stalin with flowers and his tanks
would have an open road right up to the Atlantic Ocean.
In the second game, Zhukov, in command of Soviet troops, attacked Romania and
Hungary. He found it easy to advance. First of all, there were no modern fortifications there,
like those in Eastern Prussia. Zhukov had indisputable superiority of aviation, tanks, and
paratroops. “ e second game . . . ended with the ‘Eastern’ decision being made to attack
Budapest.” Zhukov commanded the “Eastern” group in the second game, and it was he
who made the decisions about breaking through to Lake Balaton and crossing the Danube
River near Budapest. e decision so far was only made in the course of a strategy game, but
Zhukov himself already said that the games did not have an academic character, but were
directly tied to the imminent war. Stalin was not present at the second game and did not
conduct its debriefings, because he had already made his choice after seeing the results of the
first one. e Soviet invasion of Europe would be conducted south of Polesye.