Opening Moves

‘Very good Comrade Colonel, not just a pretty face after all are you’, and this time his nods were noticed and appreciated by Nazarbayeva.

“We anticipate that Spanish troops will start to receive military supplies in the near future, if they haven’t already started to be delivered.”

“I think you go too far now Comrade Colonel,” interjected Beria, continuing forcefully.

“It is the NKVD position that the allies will not have sufficient military hardware for their own needs, let alone to supply to an ally of dubious worth.”

Stalin chuckled, which immediately made both intelligence officers wary, one with direct knowledge of his master, the other on her instinct.

“Go on Comrade Colonel,” and he flashed a look at Beria that was fully understood.

“We have two reports of shipments crossing from Africa into Gibraltar yesterday and then moving on into the Spanish interior. One of those reports suggests armaments as a possibility.”

Beria did not know of this and that was written on his face for both the others to see. He wanted to speak but remembered the veiled warning he had just been given.

“When the Axis powers surrendered in Africa they left behind considerable stocks of equipment, as did the Vichy forces, equipment which is redundant and which could now be on its way to Spain.”

“How much?”

Replying directly to Stalin, Tatiana accessed her memory banks.

“That is not something which is known for certain Comrade General-Secretary. However, it is a matter of record that over two hundred and seventy-five thousand prisoners were taken in 1943 alone.”

Stalin leaned forward, his posture encouraging further information.

“That represents a huge amount of modern effective weaponry cheaply available and immediately ready for disposal.”

“These weapons will be ones that most Spanish soldiers will be familiar with and if the Allies are indeed sending them across to Gibraltar, then it is feasible that the entire Spanish Army could possess effective equipment within two weeks.”

Nazarbayeva continued.

“Given that the Allies have acted so swiftly in lifting the embargo and moving cargoes into Southern Spain, it is reasonable to assume that they believe the effort is worthwhile and that Spain will contribute to their cause.”

Again, Beria itched to speak up but remained mute.

“The availability of Spanish ports will change the allied logistics but will offer them limited improvement, and we believe there will be a negligible effect for our forces, Spanish airfields will be of some use to them most certainly but only as we push further into France.”

“Of concern will be the ability to deploy reinforcement units from Africa through Gibraltar and into Spain. I can see no reason why the Spanish would refuse that, given their new political stance.”

Pausing to gather her thoughts before proceeding, Nazarbayeva started to feel real discomfort in her left foot. Having lost everything from the heel forward the only way her left leg could keep her upright was by use of the metal ankle strap, an ‘L’ shaped piece which replaced the foot. Prolonged standing made it very sore and she had been on her feet for nearly an hour.

The pause was misinterpreted and Beria shifted, enquiring of his leader.

Stalin silently gave his NKVD chief his head.

“Comrade Colonel. In matters of intelligence, it is always possible to interpret matters in more than one way. We agree in most areas but is there any substantive evidence to support your view that a properly equipped Spanish force would be able to take the field, or indeed, if the political will actually exists to do so?”

Turning to address Stalin directly, he made a valid point.

“After all, Franco did much posturing during his relations with Germany, and still only sent one division to fight for a cause he apparently supported wholeheartedly.”

And to Nazarbayeva he continued, “A posturing which he undertakes again, and proposes providing the same single division to further his cause.”

Beria’s eyebrows rose, feeling he had scored a point over the GRU submission.

‘Check.’

He sat down and looked up at the woman, expecting to see turmoil, but instead saw only calm.

“This afternoon, just before I left to deliver this document, we received a report from our agent within the Spanish Government.”

Beria too had his agents in place, and none of them gave any indication of a difference to Spanish physical commitment to the Allied cause. Unfortunately for him, they simply were not in the right place.

Tatiana had left the best until last for no other reason than reinforcing her report with a juicy fact, whereas she had actually drawn Beria into nailing his colours to the mast of a sinking ship.