The invasion of Norway was a major gamble that could have cost Germany much of its cruiser and destroyer force. The counterfactual asks whether Norway, reacting to the invasion of Denmark, could have mobilized and declared an aggressively enforced neutrality against any ship or aircraft entering its territory. Such a posture might have caused Germany to cancel or reconsider the operation and could have pushed Sweden toward a similarly restrictive stance. Reduced access to Swedish resources and an early Allied success might then have altered the European war, though the wider consequences remain uncertain.
Notable Point · 1:12:21-1:15:04
Could armed Norwegian neutrality have deterred invasion?
A rapid Norwegian mobilization and an explicit threat against every foreign incursion might have raised the cost of Weserübung enough to alter German calculations.