The modifiers are absolutely brutal and usually set the limit to 100+ when it comes to resistance and the AI just lacks any manpower to actually garrison it all.

Give the AI more cores on maybe the major cities so the AI has access to some manpower. Because until PDX adds an ability to send garrison support to allies on your own volition, this has to do. Because even if you send Generalgovernment 100k guns and 50k support equipment, they can't garrison for anything as they just lack the manpower to even remotely garrison anything. This is further compounded by the reduced access to manpower via the national spirits.

Second, the AI should *hard focus* on getting the modifiers removed. Not be busy trying to get 1 50% doctrine discount while their territory is at 95% resistance.

Why are those important?

Because as of right now, it is better to just keep any territory and grow compliance yourself instead of forming puppets that will just cause massive headaches down the line. Outside of just roleplay reasons that is. (Not that there even is a very big difference between cores and 100% comp anyway.)