Furthermore, even if the Russian army were utterly unprepared, it would be virtually impossible for Germany to swiftly crush Russia.
The vast expanse of Russian territory meant that the German Army would need at least six months to a year to exhaust themselves on this front, time ample enough for Britain and France to deploy their troops and organize a large-scale offensive.
While the German Army believed they could defeat Russia in a short period, Britain and France made it clear to the German Army that they, too, could crush the German forces within a short duration, even with just a fraction of their forces left for defense.
On April 13th, a piece of intelligence about Germany being ready to attack Russia, awaiting only the final assault timing to launch a comprehensive offensive, was laid before Stalin.
