The Chaebol Returns To The Presidency 1967 [EN]: Chapter 200

American attendees nodded.

“Your Excellency, so you’re saying we should prepare but avoid preemptive strikes or accidental clashes?”

“That’s right!”

“That’s a highly probable interpretation, Your Excellency!”

The President, setting the tone, instructed,

“Minister of National Defense, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff!”

“Yes, Your Excellency!”

“We can exercise restraint, but Jang Seong-taek might be impatient and make a mistake, so warn the North firmly! Explain it thoroughly, and threaten that if North Korea preemptively attacks China, we will not participate!”

“I understand your meaning. I will immediately convey it to the North, Your Excellency!”

*

Jang Seong-taek frowned upon hearing the words of the First Deputy Director of the National Intelligence Service, who had been dispatched from South Korea.

“You’re saying we should never launch a preemptive strike before an all-out war?”

“That’s correct, Chairman!”

“Don’t you know that if those bastards completely surround us from the north and west, the effectiveness of our three nuclear missiles will drastically decrease if they invade all at once?”

“But you must endure!”

“A preemptive strike can break their momentum! Are you perhaps creating an excuse because South Korea and the US don’t want to participate?”

“No! It’s to avoid being swayed by China’s intentions!”

“Intentions? What on earth are China’s intentions?”

“It seems China intends to conduct a show of force rather than a real war.”

“A show of force?”

“If they simply withdraw, it’s practically a defeat, and Deng Xiaoping’s position will be jeopardized. He’s persuading the military, who oppose the war, to mobilize troops but only conduct a show of force without invading.”

“Hmm….”

“However, if the North launches a preemptive strike, they might use it as a pretext to launch a real invasion. Deng Xiaoping is aiming to gain justification to involve the Soviet Union.”

“Hmm, building a justification… If the Director’s analysis is wrong, we will miss the timing for a preemptive strike and suffer great damage.”

“Don’t worry. South Korea and the US are thoroughly prepared. If China launches a nuclear weapon, American nuclear warheads will retaliate against Beijing.”

“We must prepare clearly, not just in words but in reality! This is a war that determines the fate of North Korea, a war!”

“An American strategic submarine has already entered the West Sea [Yellow Sea].”

“Ah, a nuclear submarine!”

“Yes.”

Only then did Jang Seong-taek feel relieved.

*

The Yalu River.

North Korean border guards scanned the north side of the Yalu River with binoculars.

“Huh? Those bastards are playing in the river. They’re acting like they’re on a pleasure trip, so carefree, when they’re supposed to be waging war!”

“Could it be a deception? Appearing weak while planning a surprise attack at night.”

“Maybe.”

A week had passed since the pontoon bridge was installed on the Yalu River, but the Chinese troops along the Yalu River border and in the West Sea remained unmoved.

The South Korean President’s analysis that it was merely a show of force was proving accurate.

Having confirmed that there was no intention to invade, the United States initiated actions to divide the continent.

*

Several months ago.

Kabul.

Vic Can, the CIA Asia Regional Director, was meeting with Afghan President Mohammad Daoud Khan in secret at the Presidential Palace.

Kabul is the capital of Afghanistan, an ancient historical city that has existed for over 3,500 years, dating back to the Achaemenid Empire.

Since ancient times, Afghanistan has been a key transportation hub connecting the East and Europe, and numerous powers have fought to occupy this strategic location.

In modern times, since the 19th century, the Russian Empire, which was advancing southward to gain access to the ocean, constantly strived to expand its influence in Iran and Afghanistan, which were gateways to the Indian Ocean.

To deter Russia’s southward advance, Britain also militarily intervened in Iran and Afghanistan.

The Anglo-Afghan Wars took place in three phases.

During this process, civilian guerrillas of Islamic fundamentalists were actively involved.

In Arab countries, the activities of the Mujahideen [guerrilla fighters in a holy war] have been common since ancient times to protect religion.

Mujahideen means ‘warriors fighting in a holy war’ in Arabic.

All Islamic military organizations such as the Taliban, Hezbollah, and Hamas could be called Mujahideen in terms of what they do.

The choice of the Kingdom of Afghanistan to stop the war was a non-aligned policy.

In the 1960s, it officially declared a non-aligned policy, promoted Western-style modernization, and maintained appropriate relations with neighboring Soviet Union, which was openly aiming for it, engaging in diplomatic tightrope walking between the West and the Soviet Union.

With this balanced policy, Afghanistan was peacefully achieving modernization in the 1960s.

However, misfortune began as it militarily interacted with the Soviet Union to appease its military threats.

At that time, soldiers from the Afghan army who were sent to the Soviet Union for training returned and began to advocate for Soviet-style communism.

However, in the Afghan countryside, where the influence of Islam was immense, both Westernization and Sovietization were met with resistance, giving Islamic fundamentalists an excuse to unite.

In the meantime, a coup occurred.

The Kingdom of Afghanistan under King Mohammad Zahir Shah maintained stability through a balance of power and achieved modernization and industrialization, but Mohammad Daoud Khan, the king’s cousin, took advantage of the king’s overseas trip to stage a coup.

Daoud Khan abolished the monarchy, abruptly declared a republic, and took office as the first president of the Republic of Afghanistan.

To strengthen his dictatorial power, Daoud Khan promoted reform policies and, at the same time, cracked down on communism by enforcing anti-communist policies to check the Soviet socialists who had formed a significant force in the military.

The Daoud Khan regime became the target of attacks from both Islamic fundamentalists who opposed modernization and communists who opposed anti-communism.

The previous non-aligned balance was broken, and as the Soviet Union plotted to remove Daoud Khan, the country fell into a vortex of chaos.

During Chairman Wang’s time, the Soviet Union eventually assassinated Daoud Khan and invaded Afghanistan to establish a pro-Soviet regime, but the persistent resistance of the Mujahideen (Taliban) became the starting point for the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Later, the United States stationed troops in Afghanistan but failed to achieve its political goals and withdrew, leaving behind enormous human and material losses.

Now was the very beginning of that great power’s invasion and chaos.

Soviet troops were gathering at the border, and Afghanistan had to prepare for war, but if the military left for the border and a vacuum was created in the capital, President Daoud Khan was in a difficult situation because of the possibility of a fundamentalist rebellion.

At the strong request of the Korean President, the US intervention was brought forward by decades.

President Daoud Khan pursued Westernization and shared the same stance as the United States in anti-communism, so he had high expectations for US contact.

Vic Can spoke to President Daoud Khan, who was sitting on a splendid chair inlaid with jewels.

“Your Excellency, the only way to escape the Islamic fundamentalists and the imminent Soviet military threat is to focus the people’s attention on one area and unite them!”

“I heard from my aide that the area of interest is China?”

“That’s right. The Xinjiang Uyghur region was originally Afghan territory, and even now, the people are Afghan and share the same Islamic religion.”

“I know that, but China is a great power no less than the Soviet Union. If we, with our weak military and internal and external troubles, start a war, can we really handle it?”

“War is not just about guns and swords, Your Excellency! We are not talking about launching a full-scale war with tanks.”

“Then what kind of invasion are you talking about?”

“Aren’t Afghan warriors skilled in guerrilla warfare?”

“Wouldn’t that be like hitting a rock with an egg?”

“Soon, armed uprisings will occur simultaneously in Xinjiang, Uyghur, Tibet, Manchuria, and Mongolia.”

“Simultaneously?”

Vic Can opened a map and explained.

“Here, ethnic minorities in China, including Uyghurs, Tibetans, and Mongolians, account for less than 10% of the total Chinese population, but the area they inhabit accounts for 60% of China’s total territory. China has secretly tortured and executed tens of thousands of separatists, but the flames of independence are only growing stronger. If they rise up simultaneously, the Chinese public authority cannot handle it.”

“…….”

“Afghanistan will supply weapons and warriors to the Xinjiang Uyghur region through the Wakhan Corridor to promote separation and independence.”

“So, you’re saying not a full-scale war with China, but support for the separatist independence movement?”

“That’s right. Isn’t the cause of expanding Islamic territory and saving brothers a policy that fundamentalists would like?”

“Hmm, that’s right. They will welcome it as a holy war.”

“And the United States will fully supply the weapons and military supplies to support it. Isn’t saving the nation from communist forces Your Excellency’s anti-communist line?”

Khan’s eyes lit up at the mention of the United States supplying military supplies.

If half of the US military’s weapons could be diverted to the country, his throne could be strengthened with the enhanced military power.

Daoud Khan could not resist the temptation to repel the attacks of fundamentalists and the Soviet Union at the same time without shedding blood in his own country.

“Okay. I will support the separatist independence uprising in Xinjiang Uyghur on the premise that the United States provides sufficient military supplies and information.”

“That’s a wise choice.”

The United States began to secretly supply guerrilla weapons to Afghanistan.

Daoud Khan met with fundamentalist leaders and urged them to wage a holy war for the separation and independence of Xinjiang Uyghur.

The fundamentalists readily participated, calling it a holy war, with the cause of expanding Islamic territory and saving the same people.

The Taliban appeared several years earlier than during Chairman Wang’s time.

*

A few months later.

As Chinese troops moved en masse to North Korea, leaving the west defenseless, Daoud Khan finally ordered a holy war.

The legends of guerrilla warfare, the Taliban, began to move.

*

The Communist Party headquarters in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang Uyghur.

The Chinese Five-Star Red Flag and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region flag were flying side by side.

The National People’s Congress, which elects representatives to govern the autonomous region as part of the Chinese Two Sessions (Lianghui) [annual political meetings in China], was being held.

The Lianghui, which appoints leaders who praise the Chinese Communist Party, has long been a symbol of oppressive rule over ethnic minorities in China.

At that time, a three-wheeled vehicle rushed towards the front gate of the party headquarters.

Vroom~~.

Not just one, but two more were following behind.

Alarmed, the guards pointed their rifles and shouted urgently.

“Stop! Stop!”

However, the vehicles showed no signs of stopping.

Bang! Bang!

Flames erupted from the rifles, ejecting golden cartridges.

One of the three-wheeled vehicles tumbled over.

Kwattatang-.

It was an empty car without a driver.

A second car, avoiding the overturned three-wheeled vehicle, rushed towards the front gate barricade.

Bang! Bang!

But it was already too close.

Argh-.

Bang-.

With a roar, the barricade and guards flew away, crashing into the guard post.

The guardhouse window shattered and poured down.

The guards lay bleeding in the debris.

Taking advantage of this gap, the third vehicle passed through the front gate.

The party headquarters guards, who had run out after hearing the gunshots, pointed their rifles at the car.

However, the driver smiled leisurely and pressed something in his hand with force.

“Glory to Allah!”

Kwang-.

With a roar that shook the earth, crimson flames soared from the car, and the party headquarters windows shattered.

A suicide bombing vehicle loaded with explosives had exploded.

The party members inside were startled and rushed out.

At this time, a group of masked men waiting outside the fence indiscriminately fired automatic weapons at the party members.

Ttrrrruuluk- Ttrrrruuluk-.

“Agh!”

“Ugh!”

Dozens of people lay bleeding from the bullets.

Armed public security officers returned fire with pistols and rifles.

Bang! Bang!

Ttrrrruuluk- Ttrrrruuluk-.

After a long exchange, the armed men fled in a truck they had prepared.