Argentina The Germans had no air cover but were still given a “stand and fight” Haltebefehl order by Adolf Hitler The British began with a daring commando assault They forced a path around Lake Comacchio from April 9, thence through the Argenta Gap toward Ferrara British 8th Army was supported from April 15 by a second powerful attack made by U.S 5th Army under Lieutenant General Lucian Truscott The main British and American advances were supported by Brazilian and South African troops, among others U.S forces included a unit of Japanese Americans from the 442d Regimental Combat Team All Western Allied troops enjoyed overwhelming artillery and air superiority Truscott shifted the axis of advance to take advantage of collapsing German positions, even “bouncing” the Po with an improvised fleet of small boats and river ferries He broke through the Adige Line before the bewildered Germans could properly man it It took just over a week for the Western Allied armies to link and encircle what was left of Army Group C In rapid succession, Bologna, Ferrara, Genoa, Milan, and Venice were liberated All German forces in Italy surrendered on April 29, effective at 12:00 hours on May ARGENTINA Buenos Aires was home to many Axis agents and sympathizers Argentina maintained formal neutrality until just weeks before the end of the war That pleased its many citizens of Italian and German descent while still permitting export of large amounts of beef to Britain Argentina fended off strong efforts by Washington to force it to enter into hemispheric defense arrangements While profiting from trade with the Western Allies, Argentina hosted extensive Axis spy networks Part of the governing elite reconsidered neutrality as the tide of war turned against the Axis The shift away from the Axis became easier once Italy signed an armistice, then formally switched sides in September 1943 Argentina severed relations with Germany and Japan on January 26, 1944 That provoked a palace coup by General Juan Perón, who was decidedly pro-Axis and also a quasifascist in the mold of Benito Mussolini The United States, Britain, and other Allied states recalled their ambassadors and brought great economic pressure against the junta Even Perón was finally forced to bend to economic threats and the looming defeat of the main Axis powers: Argentina declared war on Germany and Japan on March 27, 1945 The declaration was meaningless and treated as such by all parties The United States and Britain recognized the Perón regime on April 7, but the pro-Axis leanings of the junta led to a rebuff to Argentine hopes to seat a delegation at the San Francisco conference Postwar Argentina was a safe haven for Schutzstaffel (SS) officers, collaborators, and a number of war criminals (including Josef Mengele) Many escaped justice to enjoy protected exile in Argentina, with aid from the Vatican or other ratlines ARGONAUT Allied code name for the Yalta conference ARGUMENT Code name for the “Big Week” bombing of Germany during the Combined Bomber Offensive 70