The reason Russia was used for comparison was simply because there was no better reference. The best benchmark East Africa could find was the prewar Russian army.
Before the war, only Russia and the Far East Empire had armies larger than East Africa's current force. But although the Far East Empire's army was enormous, its equipment was truly abysmal, its combat strength was worrying, and it was divided among several different powers.
If factors such as logistics were set aside, the prewar Russian army's combat capability had been fairly good. Russia's prewar population and land area had also been close to East Africa's. Although the United States had comparable territory and population, and even an industrial scale similar to East Africa's, prewar America had placed far too little importance on military development. The American Army in particular could practically be ignored.
As East Africa prepared for a massive military expansion and reform, another change occurred on the European battlefield.
August 13, 1918.
Romania, which had remained "neutral" throughout the war in Europe, officially announced its entry into the "Central Powers." The joy of the Entente Powers camp, which had only recently gained American support, was instantly scattered by a fair measure. This cast another layer of thick fog over the already uncertain European situation.
Romania had always been a target for both the Central Powers and the Entente Powers. Winning Romania's support meant gaining nearly six hundred thousand additional troops. Romania's location was also extremely important: it lay in the heartland of the Central Powers and was a major oil-producing region.
In his previous life, Romania's entry into the Entente Powers had posed an enormous threat to the Central Powers, throwing the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Bulgaria into a passive position.
Wilhelm II had been so furious that he struck