As was fast becoming his habit, Kirponos deferred to Vashugin, who spoke up first. In the dual-command structure of the Red Army, Commissar Vashugin was the dominating personality in this particular symbiotic relationship with Kirponos. While demonstrably a capable division commander, Kirponos was promoted beyond his ability to command the Kiev Special Military District, the most powerful one in the Soviet military establishment. Unfortunately for him, and tens of thousands of Soviet soldiers, this rise in rank was not accompanied by a rise in experience. Additionally, his mild-mannered persona was completely overshadowed by the bombastic Commissar Vashugin.
True to himself, Vashugin pointed out that while Purkayev was correct from the military standpoint, this was the narrow view of a specialist, not taking into account the morale factor: “Did you know what kind of morale damage this would be, when we, after nurturing the Red Army in high offensive spirit, would order a passive defense in the very first days of war?!”
Seeing Purkayev unconvinced and ready to contest the point further, Vashugin calmly played his trump card: “You know… if I would not have known you as a tested Bolshevik, I would have thought you panicked!”[41] While Purkayev was ready to explode, Kirponos intervened.
Playing the peacemaker, Kirponos stated that they both were right. According to Kirponos, while correct overall, Purkayev overlooked that fact that the fortified districts along the old border were not ready for defense. He brushed off Purkayev’s retort that they could be rapidly brought up to partial readiness by utilizing combat and construction engineer units.
Kirponos continued. While it was obvious that they could not take Lyublin by the end of the 24th, they were still obligated to counterattack. Thus, they now needed to concentrate on rapidly bringing the five mechanized corps towards the developing area of main battle and conduct a coordinated attack. Commander of the Fifth Army, General Potapov, was to do everything possible to hold what he got. The IV, VIII, and XV Mechanized corps would attack from the south, while the IX, XIX, and XXII Mechanized corps would strike from the east and northeast. The XXXVII Rifle Corps was to cover Tarnopol from the northwest with two of its rifle divisions. Its third division would be held in reserve of the South-Western Front near Tarnopol.
This was it, then. While Vashugin expressed his loud and enthusiastic agreement, Purkayev and Bagramyan quietly left and began preparing for an offensive which they believed suicidal. They understood that Kirponos would not change his mind for fear of being labeled as defeatist and panic-monger, even if he knew them to be correct. All Soviet officers knew that the punishment for an even perceived display of inability to carry out orders and accomplish the mission was an arrest by NKVD and swift execution.
The two senior staff officers had to make plans with meager assets available to them. The VIII and XV Mechanized Corps were still out of position. The IV Mechanized Corps became involved in local fighting along the front of the Sixth Army and could not disengage in time to participate in the general counterattack. Therefore, the Fifth Army under General Potapov would have to carry out the counterattack alone.
Year later in his memoirs, Reminiscences and Thoughts, Marshal Zhukov acknowledged that instructions about carrying the war into enemy territory were premature [emphasis added]. He, however, defended these orders by stating that nobody in the senior Soviet command echelons knew the main direction of enemy’s push nor the German strength. Zhukov attempted to distance himself from the fiasco, stating that this directive was composed and disseminated according to a decision by Stalin and People’s Commissar for Defense S. K. Timoshenko, without Zhukov’s input.
Major General Potapov’s Fifth Army, which was to be the leading force in the counterattack, was in woefully inadequate shape for the task. It is the clear indication of terror under which Stalin held his military commanders that Kirponos was willing to knowingly commit inadequate forces rather than even to attempt to change or postpone the mission. The four forward rifle divisions of the Fifth Army were pinned down by the enemy, plus the 41st Tank Division was out of contact at Kovel and feared lost. Consequently, the three divisions of the Fifth Army which had not been engaged yet would have to form the strike force of the counteroffensive. These units were the 135th Rifle Division of the XXVII Rifle Corps and two divisions of the XXII Mechanized Corps, the 19th Tank, and the 215th Motorized Rifle. However, even the participation of the 135th Rifle Division was still questionable. In its Situation Report #1, forwarded to Moscow at 2000 hours on June 22, Major General Purkayev stated that as of 1800 hours location of the above division was still unknown.[42] This rifle division was advancing to the border incommunicado, and it was Kirponos’ wishful thinking that it would be informed of its mission in time to participate in the offensive the next day.
The jump-off time for the counterattack was set for 2200 hours on June 23. However, while advancing towards the border, these three divisions were discovered by German reconnaissance aircraft and subjected to severe air attacks. Besides inflicting casualties and destroying invaluable vehicles and equipment, the air attacks caused significant time delay. Thus, the counterattack was later postponed until 0400 hours on June 24.
After receiving his marching orders, Major General Potapov, in turn, had no doubts that the proposed counterattack was doomed to failure. His chief of staff, Major General Pisarevskiy, suggested that they at least keep the motorcycle regiment of the XXII Mechanized Corps as their last reserve since committal of the three above-mentioned divisions on June 23 would leave them without any unengaged major units. Potapov approved his suggestion, wondering if the Moscow leadership had lost their collective mind.
During the night of June 21–22, a majority of officers at the General Staff and People’s Committee for Defense in Moscow were ordered to remain at their posts. Timoshenko and Zhukov were constantly on the phone with border district commanders, receiving information updates. Everybody was tense from incoming multiple reports about increasing German activity along the border.
At 0307 hours, Timoshenko received a call from the Black Sea Fleet commander, Adm. F. S. Oktyabrskiy, informing him that naval forward listening posts were reporting an approach of a large number of unidentified aircraft from the sea. The fleet was standing by, and Oktyabrskiy was requesting instructions. Zhukov, who was in Timoshenko’s office, asked him what he wanted to do. The admiral replied: open fire on the unidentified aircraft. After a quick consultation with Timoshenko, Zhukov gave Oktyabrskiy permission to open fire.
Things started happening fast after that. From 0315 hours calls began coming in from commanders of Baltic, Western, and Kiev military districts with reports of air attacks by German aircraft.
At 0430 hours Timoshenko and Zhukov met with Stalin and selected members of Politburo (Politburo, short for Political Bureau, was the Soviet supreme governing body) in Kremlin. After a short discussion, a call was placed to the German embassy with request for explanations. As the reply, the German ambassador Count von Shulenburg requested an urgent meeting with the Soviet foreign minister, Vyacheslav Molotov, which was immediately granted.
The Soviet leadership awaited Molotov’s return amid further disjointed news from the western frontier. Every passing minute added to the list of more and more Soviet cities subjected to German bombing and Red Army and Air Force units coming under attack. At last Molotov arrived. His opening statement dispelled any doubts as to German intentions: “The German government declared war on us.”[43] Back at their headquarters, Zhukov and Timoshenko were struggling with lack of communications: