Battle of Kursk raw decrypts directly to Moscow. Cairncross also provided Soviet intelligence with identifications of the Luftwaffe airfields in the region. Soviet politician Anastas Mikoyan wrote that on 27 March 1943, Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin notified him of a possible German attack in the Kursk sector. Stalin and some senior officers were eager to strike first once the rasputitsa ended, but a number of key officers, including Deputy Supreme Commander Georgiy Zhukov, recommended a strategic defensive before going on the offensive. In a letter to the "Stavka" and Stalin, on 8 April, Zhukov wrote: Stalin consulted with his frontline commanders and senior
Battle of Kursk a small area in the immediate environs of Kursk. The combined depth of the three main defensive zones was about . The six defensive belts on either side of Kursk were deep. If the Germans managed to break through these defences they would still be confronted by additional defensive belts to the east, manned by the Steppe Front. These brought the total depth of the defences to nearly . The Voronezh and Central Fronts dug and of trenches respectively, laid out in criss-cross pattern for ease of movement. The Soviets built more than 686 bridges and about of roads in