The German high command identified a critical lack of oil as their most pressing strategic weakness. The Caucasus campaign, specifically , sought to solve this by:
: Capturing the Volga River and disrupting Lend-Lease supplies entering through the Persian Corridor. The Campaign (1942–1943) The Caucasus 1942-43: Kleist's Race for Oil
: Simultaneously crippling the Red Army by cutting off their primary fuel supplies. The German high command identified a critical lack
The campaign detailed in Robert Forczyk’s covers a pivotal but often overlooked segment of Fall Blau (Case Blue), the German summer offensive of 1942. While the Battle of Stalingrad captured global attention, General Ewald von Kleist’s Panzerarmee 1 spearheaded a desperate southern thrust to seize the Soviet Union’s vital oil resources. Strategic Objectives The campaign detailed in Robert Forczyk’s covers a
: Capturing the fields at Maikop, Grozny, and Baku , which together produced 82% of the Soviet Union's crude oil.
The Caucasus 1942–43: Kleist's race for oil - Osprey Publishing
The offensive began on July 25, 1942, following the fall of Rostov-on-Don.