ABSTRACT
In the New Year, the stream of data affecting Stalin’s calculations had grown. The German Africa Corps had joined the battle in Libya; German diplomatic pressure on Yugoslavia and Bulgaria signaled an intervention in Greece as well; and with the approach of spring, intelligence agencies worldwide were busily trying to divine Hitler’s next big move. In February, to cloak the deployment for Barbarossa, which was bound to become more visible as it progressed, the German Armed Forces High Command mounted an elaborate strategic deception, Operations Shark and Harpoon (simulated preparations for an invasion of Britain from France and Norway). The were designed to offer the Soviet Union and all other interested parties, including those expected to become Germany’s allies, a smorgasbord of disinformation from which several wrong but for the Soviet Union somewhat reassuring conclusions could be drawn: that (1) Hitler had not yet made up his mind and was keeping England and the Soviet Union open as options; (2) England would be next, and (a) the buildup in the East was a deception, (b) the buildup in the East was to provide security for the German rear, and (c) Hitler would beforehand exploit the buildup in the East to impose massive economic and political demands on the Soviet Union. The simulated starting date for the attack on England was 1 August.1
