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Cairo Conference
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=== Burmese counter-offensive === The resolutions of the Cairo Conference concerning the counterattack on Burma can be said to have changed drastically,<ref name=":12"/> while Operation Buccaneer was later cancelled. In November that year, as agreed at the Cairo Conference, Field Marshal William Joseph Slim's XV Corps departed for Burma, while the two Chinese divisions at Langga were mobilised to Lido, Assam, to engage the Japanese in December. Mountbatten returned to India and was instructed to draw up a new plan of action for the pirates. He intended to mobilize 50,000 men, but both Roosevelt and Churchill insisted that the operation should not include any more troops than the 14,000 originally planned. Roosevelt and George Marshall argued over the number of men, while Churchill sought to abandon the operation and concentrate supplies on the Aegean in Greece, a plan that the American military leadership was less than enthusiastic about.<ref name=":1"/> On November 29, Churchill told the Chief of Staff to record the Prime Minister's "special rejection of Commissar General Chiang's request that we should conduct both amphibious and land operations in Burma".<ref name=":2"/> ==== The Cancellation of Operation Buccaneer ==== [[File:Tehran Conference, 1943.jpg|alt=Stalin, Roosevelt, Churchill at the Tehran Conference|thumb|Stalin, Roosevelt, Churchill at the Tehran Conference]] At the Tehran Conference from November 28 to December 1, Stalin controlled everything, with Roosevelt and Churchill seemingly doing his bidding.<ref name=":2"/> Stalin proposed the option of a rapid end to World War II, making the strategic importance of China secondary.<ref name=":1"/> He strove to open up the Western Front in Europe, with the Soviet Union fighting against Japan as soon as Germany was defeated.<ref name=":5"/> He also disapproved of the counter-offensive in Southeast Asia as he felt that the main theatre of war against Japan should be the in Pacific.<ref name=":7"/> Churchill also declared that fighting the Japanese deep in the swampy jungle of Burma was like jumping into the sea and fighting sharks. He felt that if China were really one of the real Four Powers, they should prove it themselves.<ref name=":9"/> Hence, Churchill urged Roosevelt to go back on his promise to Chiang. Roosevelt believed that if the Soviet Union cooperated, the war could be ended early and China's position was no longer important.<ref name=":5"/> Churchill's argument was all the more convincing for Roosevelt since the US and Britain needed to use their landing ships to open up the Western Front in France.<ref name=":2"/> After the Tehran conference, the two returned to Cairo together and Churchill formally proposed to call off Operation Buccaneer. Roosevelt initially insisted that he had made a promise to Chiang and hence could not break it without Chiang's acknowledgement. He justified his insistence by pointing out that since the shortage of landing craft was only about 18β20, it would not excessively impede allied plans on the Western Front.<ref name=":2"/> In December, the British-American Joint Chiefs of Staff decided to cancel Operation Tarzan, while arguing that the occupation of the Andaman Islands was more than worth the loss. Churchill was unhappy that Operation Buccaneer required such a large amount of supplies, suggesting that the operation should be postponed until after the end of the monsoon season and that landing craft should be allocated to the more costly European theatre.<ref name=":7"/> Churchill insisted on the cancellation of Operation Buccaneer, while US Admiral Ernest King opposed it. On December 5, after consulting with his military advisers, Roosevelt finally agreed to Churchill's demands and decided that Operation Buccaneer should be cancelled. Roosevelt telegraphed Chiang<ref name=":2"/> suggesting that China launch the counterattack alone first, or wait until November 1944, when the Allies had a major offensive capability at sea. He attempted to reverse this decision by informing Churchill that China would continue to build up its Yunnan forces but would not move into Burma unless the planned amphibious operation was launched as scheduled.<ref name=":1"/> ==== Tripartite troop movements ==== [[File:US equipped Chinese Army in India marching.jpg|alt=Chinese Expeditionary Force with American equipment in India|thumb|Chinese Expeditionary Force with American equipment in India]] On December 21, 1943, Churchill authorised Mountbatten to mobilise 20,000 men for an amphibious operation, but instead of taking the Andaman Islands, an attack on the Rakhine coast behind the Japanese lines was launched. The landing gear for the Southeast Asia command was sent back to Europe. On December 23, Churchill's chief of staff reiterated that Operation Maharaja and the landing in southern France, Operation "Anvil" was the priority operation of 1944, and nothing in other areas could affect either operation.<ref name=":1"/> After the amphibious operations were cancelled, Mountbatten's Southeast Asia Command drew up alternative operational plans for an attack on northern and central Burma. In January 1944, Stilwell commanded the American-trained Chinese Expeditionary Force in India to advance on Mon-Kwan.<ref name=":2"/> Chiang refused to accept a small attack on the Rakhine coast as a substitute for Operation Buccaneer<ref name=":1"/> and for some time was reluctant to send troops into Burma from Yunnan.<ref name=":9"/> Roosevelt pressured Chiang to send Chinese troops from Yunnan to Burma or he would cut military aid.<ref name=":10"/> In March, Churchill also telegraphed Chiang in Chongqing, urging China to send military aid to Burma.<ref name=":2"/> In April, the US issued an ultimatum to cut off Lend-Lease aid to China if the Yunnan troops were not mobilised for Burma.<ref name=":9"/> Chiang finally agreed to deploy Chinese troops in Yunnan to attack Japanese forces in Burma,<ref name=":2"/> explaining that it was necessary for China to achieve "joint warfare between China, Britain and the US" and enforce "the desire of the US to come directly to China to fight against Japan".<ref name=":1"/>
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