the popular army view of being above politics and the need to play a unifying role in the national struggle; the army leadership consequently rejected attempts to introduce partisan ideology and alignments. This antagonism between the government and PETA-trained officers, forced Amir to find an armed support base elsewhere. He aligned himself with sympathetic Dutch-educated officers in certain divisions, such as the West Java 'Siliwangi' Division the command of which had been assumed by KNIL Lieutenant A.H. Nasution in May 1946. Another source of support for the new cabinet was the more educated armed pemuda sympathetic to the cabinet's 'anti-fascist' approach. With an engaging personality and persuasive oratory skills, Amir had more time and aptitude than Sjahrir for party building, and he played the main part in wooing these pemuda. Prime Minister A split between Amir's and Prime Minister Sjahrir's supporters rapidly deepened in 1947. There had long been mutual suspicion between Sjahrir and the communists who had returned from the Netherlands in 1946; the fading of the 'anti-fascist' cause made these suspicions more obvious. Sjahrir's preoccupation with diplomacy, his physical isolation in Jakarta from revolution-infused Central Java, and his dislike of mass rallies allowed the more Moscow-inclined Marxists to assume more control in both the Socialist Party and the Left-wing as a whole. By June 1946, Sjahrir's increasing isolation from the coalition encouraged the opposing factions to depose him. This group put their support behind Amir, the alternative Socialist leader. On 26 June 1947, Amir, along with two other Moscow-inclined Ministers Abdulmadjid Djojoadiningrat, and Wikana, backed by a majority of the left, withdrew their support for Sjahrir. Their argument was that Sjahrir had compromised the Republic in his pursuit of diplomacy – the same charge that deposed every revolutionary government – and that in the face of Dutch belligerence, such conciliation seemed futile. Following the resignation of Sjahrir as prime minister, a new government needed to be formed. On 30 June 1947, President Sukarno appointed Amir, Adnan Kapau Gani, Soekiman Wirjosandjojo, and Setyadjit Soegondo to form a new cabinet. During these negotiations, Amir courted a broad coalition but hostility from Muslim Masyumi prevented its leader, Soekiman, as well many pro-Sjahrir 'religious socialists' from previous cabinets from joining the new cabinet. Other influential Masyumi factions, such as that of Wondoamiseno, provided support. Although Amir's communist allies controlled about 10% of the thirty-four with Amir's Defence Ministry their sole key one,