From January 14 to 24, 1943, Roosevelt and Churchill and their staffs met in Casablanca, Morocco to set out their plans for the period after the North African campaign.

The American military chiefs wanted to start straight away on a cross-channel assault on Germany. (This was later to be what became known as D-Day.)

The British wanted to start action in the Mediterranean area, in Sicily and Italy. Roosevelt supported the British. First priority for moving American troops was to be the Mediterranean. Several months later movement of troops was concentrated on England where they were being assembled for a cross channel attack in 1944.

Roosevelt also announced that nothing short of unconditional surrender would be accepted from any of the Axis powers.