The bulk of JG 26 remained on the Channel coast under the command of Luftflotte 3, where it operated uninterrupted for the next four years following the Battle of Britain. RAF Fighter Command and its new commanding officers Shoto Douglas and Trafford Leigh-Mallory wished to take the offensive into France and Belgium in 1941. Termed the "lean towards France", Leigh-Mallory, No. 11 Group RAF, began the Circus offensive in January 1941. The German-led invasion of the Soviet Union, Operation Barbarossa, in June 1941, provided a greater strategic rational for applying pressure to the Luftwaffe in Western Europe. On 9 January 1941, Circus Number 1 was flown by 60 fighters over northern France. The Germans ignored them, using the same tactics as Keith Park in the Battle of Britain. RAF Bomber Command was shortly employed as bait to bring the Luftwaffe to battle. There were few high-value strategic targets in France and Belgium within range of escorting Spitfires. A follow-up Circus with small bomber formations and strong fighter escort began on 10 January as the policy's second element began. These were followed by "Rodeo" fighter sweeps and "Ramrod" operations fighter-escort for bombers. Mallory was revisiting Hugh Trenchard's World War I policy.