With his usual clarity, Brooke set out the situation on the Western Front and in Italy, and explained General Eisenhower’s intentions. The deputy chief-of-staff of the Red Army, General Antonov, then spoke, and Brooke noted in his diary that he was extremely pleased with the ensuing discussion.
On October 15, the war against Japan was discussed, with particular reference to the Red Army and the possibility of moving supplies via the transSiberian railway for an offensive in Manchuria with 60 divisions and appropriate air forces. Stalin took over from his military colleague and explained the difficulties of the project. According to Brooke;
"He displayed an astounding knowledge of technical railway details, had read past history of fighting in that theatre and from this knowledge drew very sound deductions. I was more than ever impressed by his military ability.”
Complete military agreement was reached by the Big Three. This did not mean that a political agreement had been reached, however. While being allies for the duration of the war it was becoming increasingly clear that after the war Soviet Russia and the United States of America would be global rivals. With this in mind, Stalin cleverly exploited the differences between Britain and America to his own advantage.
World History
