![]() ![]() ![]() Analyzing the situation, the Stavka of the Supreme High Command decided to temporarily switch to defense in the Kursk Bulge. The German force consisted of about 900,000 men, 10,000 artillery and mortar pieces, 2,700 tanks, and about 2,050 aircraft.Fortunately, Soviet military intelligence managed to uncover the German army's preparations for a major offensive on the Kursk Bulge. They received air support from two air fleets. The German forces consisted of 50 divisions, including 16 panzer and motorized divisions, and a large number of separate units. Its goal was to crush Soviet forces in the Kursk Bulge, seize the strategic initiative, and turn the tide of the war in their favor. The troops of the Central and Voronezh Fronts deployed along this front posed a significant threat to the flanks and rear of Nazi Germany’s Army Center and South groups.For the summer of 1943, the German command planned a strategic offensive operation called Operation Citadel. It was over 150 kilometers deep and stretched 550 kilometers along the front. This bulge extended into German-held territory south of Oryol and north of Belgorod. The primary objective was to thwart a major German offensive and defeat the enemy's strategic grouping.The Kursk Bulge was formed as a result of the 1942-1943 winter offensive of Soviet forces and their subsequent retreat during the 1943 Kharkov Defensive Operation. The Battle of Kursk played a crucial role in shifting the balance of power on the Eastern Front and marked the beginning of the disintegration of the fascist bloc. ![]()
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