# Crazy ww2 strategy idea : let Hitler and Stalin fight, mop up the winner
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crazy-ww2-strategy-idea-let-hitler-and-stalin-fight-mop-up-the-winner/727227
**Category:** Great Debates
**Created:** [August 7, 2015, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crazy-ww2-strategy-idea-let-hitler-and-stalin-fight-mop-up-the-winner/727227 "2015-08-07T10:50:19Z")
**Posts on this page:** 2
**Page:** 3
### Author:  [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)
#### Post date: [August 12, 2015, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crazy-ww2-strategy-idea-let-hitler-and-stalin-fight-mop-up-the-winner/727227/41 "2015-08-12T16:04:07Z")
> [@ralph124c](#):
>
> I think that Germany had a chance to win in 1942-but only if Moscow could be captured. But, as Hitler took personal control over the army, defeat was assured.
You are missing the point. And also this really didn’t have much to do with Hitler taking control of his armies or whatever…the combination of the 3 major allies were always going to overwhelm Germany in the end. Though early on and at the time it wasn’t so obvious, in retrospect there was simply no way that Germany (with Japan and Italy) could fight the US, UK and the Soviet Union and win, regardless of who had control of Germany’s military or who made the ultimate decisions. Hitler being in charge simply hastened the end of the war by squandering German forces and innovation on stupid and wasteful campaigns or tactics.
But take the US completely out of the equation and the equation changes. Just like if you took the UK out…or the Soviet Union.
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### Author:  [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)
#### Post date: [August 12, 2015, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crazy-ww2-strategy-idea-let-hitler-and-stalin-fight-mop-up-the-winner/727227/42 "2015-08-12T16:09:22Z")
> [@RickJay](#):
>
> It is perhaps worth noting that as bad a move as this was, Hitler was not always well advised by his generals. Kursk was considered a terrific idea by many generals who should have known better and perhaps heeded the old military advice that you shouldn’t do what your enemy wants you to do.
>
> Absolutely no one, including Stalin or anyone working for him, knew how to war would go or thought for an instant the USSR could win the war by itself. Stalin’s constant insistence on more Allied help is completely inconsistent with such a claim, and he was not the lone voice in the Kremlin on the subject.
Exactly. Why WOULD Stalin ask (hell, demand) the allies open up other fronts in Western Europe and Italy if he knew that the Soviets were just going to win anyway? I mean, if he thought he could do it alone then it would be pretty stupid for him to make such demands…or to concede that if we would do this the Soviets would declare war on Japan AND provide material assistance for the invasion of the home islands, as well as attacking Japanese mainland Asian territories. The Soviets had remained strictly neutral with Japan to that point, and it’s only in hindsight that you can see how this would all play out…at the time, with Germany undefeated and Japan still holding it’s own it’s a major concession from Stalin to do this and not only put his country at risk but cost the Soviets even more in deaths and material.
Like I said, it’s revisionist history to say that the Soviets could have gone it alone and didn’t need any help.
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