Chapter 10: The Road Turns Back (2)

  2.

  September 22, 2007 is a day that all Indonesian Chinese and Southeast Asian Chinese should remember forever, because on this day, the new government that fully represents the interests of local Chinese - the Revival Party of Indonesia held an extraordinary national congress in Sanbao Ridge to formally announce its establishment.

  Although the flames of war were still burning in various parts of Java, this day marked the arrival of a new era. Yang Jun, a retired military officer from the Chinese People's National Defense Forces who had stood up for the Indonesian Chinese at their most critical and helpless moment, was appointed as the Minister of Defense of the new government. The Indonesian Chinese Salvation Army, which had been tested in battle, was reorganized into the First Military District of Indonesia, later known as the "Indonesian Chinese Guard".

  To gain more recognition from Western countries, Yang Quan-sheng will embark on a journey to Europe to purchase military equipment from seven Western European countries as soon as he takes office. "We should sell our weapons to Indonesia, which would make it easier for the two militaries to cooperate in future battles." It is not surprising that such voices appear among the high-ranking officials of the Chinese People's National Defense Army who played a decisive role in the Indonesian counter-insurgency campaign, and even politicize this issue, believing that Southeast Asian Chinese have indeed forgotten their gratitude.

  However, Ren Lingyu, who encouraged Yang Quan to visit Western Europe, did not think so. China's military industry, which has been subject to Western arms embargoes for a long time, needs new blood too much, and more importantly, Ren Lingyu does not want the Indonesian army to simply become a replica of the Chinese army. Only an army with guiding ideology suitable for its own specific situation can truly defend its country independently. However, Ren Lingyu never thought that this idea would open a door to destruction for him.

  This September in Moscow, the temperature was unusually low. Indian Ambassador to Russia Bonsal, who had been in Russia for nearly five years, seemed still unable to adapt to Russia's harsh winter. The motorcade was now driving through the biting wind towards the power center of this ancient empire - the Kremlin.

  The streets of Moscow are still as desolate as ever, with a few old men wearing Soviet-era medals, humming along to the melody of an accordion playing grand military songs from the past; a young wounded soldier, leaning on crutches, hobbles by alongside the embassy motorcade, perhaps from Chechnya, or Central Asia, or possibly from the Caspian battlefield in the Near East - every wound on the imperial map is bleeding at this moment.

  With Putin's assassination, the era of a strongman came to an abrupt end, and Russia was ruthlessly dragged back from its reviving dream to the cruel reality. After the energy and military-industrial oligarchs took joint power, Russia continued to grope in the long dark night. The new master of the Kremlin, Alexei, 55 years old, is a typical Russian, fond of drinking, sex, and with a stout figure. In the eyes of the West, he is completely a product of compromise among various forces in Russia.

  But nominally, he still controls this once incredibly powerful empire. To ambassadors like Banzol, Alexei has always been arrogant. But under the current international situation, Russia values India, its southern ally, more than ever.

  China's series of victories in Southeast Asia has little impact on Russia's international strategy - Russia is still mired in economic recovery and ethnic division, with no time to spare for other things. However, for the ruling Russian energy and military-industrial oligarchs, it is a painful blow.

  After the end of the Vietnam War in 2005, China's arms purchases from Russia were basically stagnant. Even when the Russians took out treasures like the SU-47, the Chinese showed no interest. On the contrary, cheap Chinese weapons began to comprehensively squeeze out Russia's market share in Vietnam with the help of political east wind.

  What is even more unsettling for Russia's energy oligarchs, however, is that experts predict that with China's comprehensive exploitation of oil in the South China Sea and the western Pacific continental shelf, China will basically achieve self-sufficiency in oil. If we add to this the five Central Asian countries that are gradually breaking away from Russia's traditional sphere of influence and the numerous Chinese oil extraction platforms in Southeast Asia, then if China is willing, it can become a major energy-exporting country at any time.

  China's victory over Japan has left a lasting impact, and in the Sino-Japanese Weihai Agreement, China demanded that Japan open its domestic petrochemical market and made various "small moves" to export oil to Japan, which made Russian energy oligarchs who had always seen Japan as a potential major customer look on with envy.

  However, facing the increasingly powerful China, Russia no longer has an effective deterrent with its own strength alone. Fortunately, one of the two trump cards on the southern front is still India, and Russian politicians must show it off. Fortunately, short-sighted India also opposes China's expansion in Southeast Asia, so Russia is more enthusiastic than ever, urging India to go all out to confront China head-on. Russia's declining military-industrial enterprises did not forget to take advantage of the situation, with just one company, Sukhoi Group, successfully taking $32 billion from India's pockets.

  But at this moment, India has embarked on a one-way road to war and is almost desperately pouring money into the hands of Russian arms dealers, buying equipment that may not be practical but is better than waiting for another decade or so.

  This time, Bansal brought a package of military procurement agreements when meeting with Alexei. In order to gain an absolute advantage over China on the Southeast Asian battlefield, India spared no effort in taking out 25% of its GDP that year to make a big gamble.

  "3 months. We can wait at most 3 more months. In early 2008, the Indian Navy must break through the Strait of Malacca." Perhaps with a huge sum of money as backing, Indians who had always been timid and humble in front of Russia, could finally stand up straight and speak loudly in the Kremlin Palace. "No problem, please believe that if your country can trade with international hard currency, Russia's powerful military production line can provide you with world-class weapons." Aleksey said coldly, taking advantage of the war to suppress Japan's recent rising US dollar exchange rate. "No problem. Because we have already bet on India's tomorrow." Bansal said proudly, but his mouth twitched slightly.