Italy would avoid risking major warships among mines and other hazards in the confined Adriatic while searching for a more favourable use of its forces. A campaign from Libya into French territory offers room to manoeuvre and confronts French troops already depleted for the Far Eastern war. France is also reluctant to weaken its continental frontier with Italy while Germany remains the greater threat. Mussolini has agitated for North African gains since the previous November and can imagine a limited colonial victory restoring prestige after the Yugoslav advance stalls. Whether Italian forces can turn that apparent opening into durable operational success remains uncertain.
Chapter · 34:53-36:19
Italy's opening in French North Africa
Mussolini turns from a costly Balkan campaign toward French North Africa, where weaker Allied garrisons give Italian forces a better prospect of local success.