“But Herr General, shouldn’t we get clearance from the other side before continuing this operation? This could create quite a lot of trouble.”
Hansen had to decide whether to kick the can one more time, all the way to General Manstein’s HQ at Rostov. It was a most unwelcome call, for Manstein had already received orders from OKW for Hansen to do exactly what he had related to Ott, but he was not happy about them.
Irrespective of Manstein’s opinion on the matter, Hitler would remain adamant. His troops had pushed all the way to the Volga, through the Donets Basin and now into the Kuban to the Black Sea Coast. His armies had burned Moscow, leveled Volgograd, and all while Volkov’s troops had failed to mount a single successful offensive anywhere on the front. He now viewed Volkov as a devious do-nothing slackard, who had dangled the promise of oil for the last two years, yet always found some reason or another why it could not yet be delivered.
When Ribbentrop returned with Volkov’s ultimatum concerning the Kuban, Hitler exploded. “How dare that man dictate territorial claims! If he wanted the Kuban, then he should have sent his troops there to take it. We do in one month what his armies could not accomplish in two years! Now he wants to make certain that we are kept well away from all his precious oil, but this will not be tolerated. German troops liberated the Kuban, and all of the Taman Peninsula, and it will be German troops that will control Maykop!”
Now Hitler looked at the map, the anger still reddening his face. “What is this river?”
Keitel leaned over the map, squinting. “The Urup.”
“That makes a good north to south boundary, running due south from Armavir and right along the same line as this one to the north. Send a message to Volkov. Tell him that all his troops remaining in the Kuban bend region must withdraw behind that line. They have 48 hours to begin this withdrawal. If movement is not observed, this continued defiance will be met with German steel. I will order Manstein to continue his advance one minute after that deadline. There will be no excuses—no further delays. This is a Führerbefehl!”
A 48-hour hold was placed on all operations south of the Don, and Ribbentrop was sent with firm instructions to clarify Germany’s position. He met with Volkov again on the 28th of March in a short and tense session.
“I have returned with our response, and signed by Hitler himself this time, so there will be no doubt as to Germany’s intentions.” He handed Volkov the document, which was a formal declaration that all territory in the Kuban and Taman liberated by German troops would now be formally annexed.
“This is outrageous!” said Volkov. Not only had Hitler rebuffed his demand for the Kuban, but he also made an additional claim on the whole of the Taman Peninsula. But that was not all. As Volkov continued reading, his cheeks reddened and the lines on his forehead deepened.
“What? In addition to this insult concerning the Kuban, you now presume to make a further claim to the Maykop District? This is absolutely absurd! That area, as well as the Taman and Kuban, have been our sovereign territory for decades! What gives you the right to make any claim whatsoever on these regions?”
Ribbentrop folded his hands. “To put it bluntly, Mister General Secretary, might. German arms in the field liberated those first two zones, and Hitler’s Directive concerning that territory will stand.”
“Might makes right, is it?” said Volkov heatedly. “You are aware that the entire Maykop District is presently occupied by the 3rd Army of Orenburg?”
“I am well aware of that, and this document now requests the formal withdrawal of those forces from that district to the line specified in subparagraph four. The new North-South demarcation line will now begin at the Kuban bend east of Kropotkin, then follow the Kuban down to Armavir, which will be a German occupied city. It then follows the line of the Urup River to its source in the high country to the south, before jogging southwest to the coast just beyond Soche. These are the new permanent boundaries established by the Führer himself.”
Volkov could hardly believe his ears. “Is that so? The Führer himself? Well he might have taken note of the fact that this line is well beyond the present German frontier. You were told earlier, and in no uncertain terms, that all these districts were deemed to be my sovereign territory. You were told that the matter of the Kuban was not a subject for discussion or compromise. Was this related to Hitler directly?”
“It was. He dismissed your claims before dictating the document you now hold.”
“My God man—do you realize this means war with the Orenburg Federation? Do you think we will sit by and permit this blatant land grab? We will not! I will issue no such order for the withdrawal of my 3rd Army, and I repeat once again my demand that all German forces now south of the Don should withdraw north of that river immediately.”
“Mister General Secretary…. As this latest directive from the Führer indicates, that is clearly impossible. There will be no withdrawal of German forces, and in fact, our 17th and 11th Armies now have orders to advance to occupy the Maykop District in 48 hours. If your 3rd Army remains on its present positions at that time, they will be forcibly removed.”
“Forcibly removed….” Volkov gave Ribbentrop a derisive look. “You may find that more easily said than done, Herr Ribbentrop. This is an insult of the highest order. You yourself negotiated the accord which has governed the relationship between our two nations since 1940. Yet I can see now that Germany never had any intention of remaining a faithful ally of the Orenburg Federation. So here is my response. Should one shot be fired at my troops on the line west of Maykop, a state of war will exist between the Orenburg Federation and Germany. Understand? Then we will see who’s might makes right. I am, this very hour, ordering all commanders in 1st and 3rd Kazakh Armies, and 2nd, 3rd, 5th and 7th Armies of Orenburg, to the highest state of ready alert. All prior demarcation of border zones and areas of responsibility are herewith abolished. Our forces will, as of this day, stand ready to conduct any operation of war deemed necessary to enforce our just and right claim upon all these disputed territories. Furthermore—I should have you hauled out of that chair and shot!”
Ribbentrop said nothing, knowing that many bringers of bad news had lost their heads through history. He stood up, the matter clearly concluded, and finally spoke. “Mister General Secretary, it is with great regret that I see the fruits of our previous accord shattered over this disagreement. You may kill the messenger here, but it will do nothing to change what I have been authorized to relate to you. I do, however, request diplomatic immunity, and will guarantee the same to all diplomatic personnel from Orenburg presently within German held territory. They will be granted safe passage to any destination they wish. As for the orders you say you are prepared to deliver to your armies, they are duly noted and will be reported directly to the Führer by me personally upon my return to Berlin. May I now be taken to my plane at the airport?”
“Go!” said Volkov. “And hear one thing more as you do, Ribbentrop. I am not called the Prophet without reason, for I have seen the end of this miserable conflict, and I can tell you now that it will end with the victorious forces of Russia burning and blasting their way into Berlin! Your armies will be driven out of our homeland and utterly destroyed! It was only my own blindness that saw an ally in Germany, for you have had your way on the battlefield up until now, and success has many friends. But do not think, even for one moment, that you can truly enforce anything in this document by force of arms. The end of all Hitler’s ambitions will be only one thing—the complete and utter destruction of the Third Reich!”