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Chapter 150: Time to Show Some Strength
🕑 Added 2025-01-11 06:21:22 +0000 UTCTime passed like an arrow.
In the blink of an eye, seventy years have passed.
Just kidding—actually, only seven months have passed, and it's now the beginning of 1946.
For the past six months or so, since the surrender of Japan, the world has experienced its most peaceful period since the beginning of World War II. After more than a decade of war, every nation was exhausted and in desperate need of rest.
But this peace lasted only six months.
As countries began to regain some strength, unrest began to grow in parts of the world. The rivalry between the two major camps, the Red and the Blue, gradually reignited. (TL/N: The Red = Soviet & The Blue = USA)
But it wasn't the ancient civilization to the east that faced trouble first; it was Greece, which descended into civil war.
Greece had long been an important ally of Great Britain. At the end of World War II, as part of a deal, Britain betrayed the Polish and Yugoslavian governments-in-exile to secure a promise from the Soviet Union to stay out of Greek affairs.
With British military protection, the Greek royal family and government-in-exile returned to Greece and suppressed the Red Faction, which had initially seized control of the country.
But even without Soviet interference, the Greek Red Faction wasn't going to give up easily.
At first, the Reds, backed by the British army, were no match for the Greek Blue faction. But soon an event shifted the balance—Britain lost the ability to handle the situation in Greece as its most critical colony, India, began to fight for independence.
As Britain's largest supplier of resources, India's push for independence dealt a severe blow to Britain's economy. However, Britain was too weak to maintain enough military power to continue controlling India, so it began preparing to accept Indian independence after extracting whatever benefits it could.
In this context, the Greek Red Faction, which had been severely suppressed, saw an opportunity. They attempted to regain power and organized forces to start a civil war.
Under these circumstances, Josh could no longer enjoy a peaceful life at home and had to set foot on the European continent once again.
Wait, what does the Greek Civil War have to do with Josh? Well, it does.
The Greek Democratic Army wasn't unprepared when it started the civil war.
Although the Soviet Union had agreed not to interfere in Greece, that didn't mean other countries wouldn't get involved.
One such country was the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia.
The Greek Democratic Army received military aid from Yugoslavia, a dominant power in Eastern Europe, which gave them the confidence to start the war.
But that's not the point.
The real significance of the Greek civil war was that it removed the only threat to Yugoslavia's back.
Now Yugoslavia's only opponents were the Kingdom of Yugoslavia to the northwest and Austria, which supported the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.
Although Austria and the Soviet Union had a secret agreement in which the Soviet Union recognized the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and promised not to interfere with Austria's control over it, the situation remained tense.
Josip Broz Tito of the Yugoslav Partisans would never recognize the existence of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. His ambition was to destroy the Kingdom and achieve complete unification.
The secret agreement between Austria and the Soviet Union, though binding, couldn't be made public. This meant that while the Soviet Union agreed not to intervene, it couldn't stop the Yugoslav Partisans from interfering.
Moreover, even if the Soviet Union wanted to stop Yugoslavia, it's doubtful that it would listen. After all, Yugoslavia's reputation as the "Eastern European bully" wasn't for nothing—its army's combat equipment was almost on par with the Soviets.
Especially now, during the honeymoon period between the Yugoslav Federation and the Soviet Union, the Yugoslav military was almost entirely equipped with Soviet-style weaponry.
During World War II, even without sufficient heavy weapons, Yugoslavia's army had grown stronger while fighting the German army and Hydra forces. Now, with modern Soviet equipment, they were an even greater force to reckon with.
Their leader, Josip Broz Tito, was a strong-willed figure who had openly challenged the Soviet dictator himself. With such a combination of military strength and leadership, Yugoslavia was brimming with confidence.
As a result, from the very beginning of the Greek Civil War, Yugoslavia began to cause frequent trouble along the borders of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.
The only thing that kept them from an outright invasion was the presence of U.S. troops stationed in Austria. Otherwise, they would have already launched an attack to the north.
And the Austrian army? Tito didn't take it seriously at all. Even in their weakest days, Yugoslavia had stood firm against the peak of the German Army and the Hydra forces. Why should they fear Austria, a nation that only gained prominence by clinging to America?
To the rest of the world, Austria was considered fortunate to have aligned itself with the United States.
Under these circumstances, the Balkans began to resemble the "powder keg" of pre-World War I. (TL/N: The Balkan Peninsula before World War I was known as the "powder keg of Europe" because of the many factors that contributed to tension in the region)
At this critical moment, Josh flew overnight to Vienna. Without delay, he went straight to the presidential palace, where he met with President Karl Renner and several high-ranking Austrian military officials.
Among those present was a rather unique figure—the young King Peter II of Yugoslavia, a 23-year-old monarch.
"Josh, you're finally here!" President Renner, who had looked serious moments before, relaxed slightly at Josh's arrival. "I hope you brought good news."
Compared to their last meeting, Renner now looked older and more tired. It was clear that the 70-year-old leader had devoted much of his energy to his country.
"It's neither good news nor bad news," Josh replied. "The Americans won't be sending troops directly, but they are willing to provide $300 million in aid and a significant amount of weapons. Of course, there's a condition-we have to help Greece after we defeat the Yugoslavia military ambitions."
"But that's in line with our goals, isn't it?" Josh added with a smile.
Though neither Josh nor the Austrian government were short of funds, additional financial and military support was always welcome. Defeating the Yugoslav Partisans and aiding Greece were already in Austria's best interests.
"So what's your plan?" Renner asked, a hint of optimism in his expression. Beside him, King Peter II's eyes lit up with anticipation.
"That's right," Josh nodded with a grin. "This time I've decided to use our new weapons. Not only will we show the arrogant Partisans what we're capable of, but it's also time to show the world our strength. We can't let others think that we're just lucky to have American support. Otherwise, even the Americans may begin to see us as expendable.
The "new weapons" Josh was referring to weren't cutting-edge, but rather basic military equipment acquired through a deal with Yuri over the past two years.
These included items such as FAMAS assault rifles, AA-52 machine guns, AMX-30 tanks, SA330 Puma medium helicopters, SA341/342 Gazelle attack helicopters, and Mirage III jet fighters.
If these weapons seem unfamiliar to the Red Alert universe, it's because they belong to the early Cold War era, developed in the 1950s and 60s before the global conflict really escalated.
Josh wanted to show Austria's strength, but not too much. Overwhelming power could make Austria a target for both the Red and Blue camps. After all, Austria's economy, while relatively strong in Europe, was still modest, and the nation's resources were limited.
These weapons were carefully chosen—easily mass-produced with Austria's current industrial capacity, and developed using technology provided by Yuri.
Interestingly, all of these weapons had a common origin; they were the first generation of post-WWII equipment developed by France in the 50s and 60s.
Yes, Josh had once again "borrowed" from the French heritage.
Why France, you ask? Josh's reasoning followed an old saying; "Revenge is a dish best served from morning till night."
Perhaps inspired by a certain wise man... maybe Lu Xun?
