Doctrine

A fundamental military doctrine for World War II has been laid down by the U.S. Commander in Chief. Said he last week in his broadcast speech: "If the Axis powers fail to gain control of the seas, they are certainly defeated. Their dreams of world domination will then go by the board and the criminal leaders that started this war will suffer inevitable disaster."

Only time can tell whether that doctrine is sound. In its favor is the fact that, even in peacetime. Europe is not self-sufficient. Saddled with war, it is short of food and many of the necessities of war, such as oil, steel-hardening metals, rubber. Some of his necessities Hitler has relieved by his conquests to date, and others he may relieve by future conquests, but every conquest adds to his problems of ruling conquered countries and conquered peoples. Franklin Roosevelt had chosen as the cornerstone of his military doctrine that if Hitler is locked up with his victims his revolution will succumb.

The U.S. strategy which this doctrine calls for is that the Nazis must be driven from the seas, as well as denied possession of land bases with seapower implications --e.g., Dakar, the Azores, Cape Verde Islands, etc. An obvious corollary is that when the U.S. begins to swing its military heft, the first swinging will be done by the Navy and air arms. As long as the Commander in Chief holds to his fundamental doctrine and does not go beyond it (for example, into a continental land offensive) the U.S. Army's role will be subsidiary.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.