Anti-War Game: Starting from Normandy Campaign-Chapter 603 - 289: Soviet Expansion and the United States’ Contraction
"At this moment, the United States is torn into two camps because of anti-war sentiments."
"At the same time, the United States has suffered heavy losses on the Vietnam Federation battlefield, bearing a huge financial burden, yet the battlefield remains at a standstill."
"With the Republic backing the Vietnam Federation, the United States sees no hope of military victory."
"From the stunted progress in recent years, one can tell how tough this ’Vietnam Federation’ is to tackle."
"Bear in mind, this is the United States we’re talking about."
"One of the only two superpowers in the world."
"From 180,000 to 380,000, and then 540,000... deploying so many troops could sweep several countries in Europe."
"But here in the Vietnam Federation."
"Even with 540,000 troops committed, this long and narrow region hasn’t yielded any advantage."
"And despite the massive troop and financial commitment, the situation on the battlefield remains unchanged from before."
"What do the American people think?"
"Could it be that those in high places are embezzling, causing this mess?"
"540,000 American soldiers can’t subdue a Vietnam Federation? Do they take us for fools?"
"So, it’s urgent to withdraw from this quagmire of war."
"Because it’s not just about this."
"Being mired in war has given the Soviet Union a chance to expand, posing a greater threat than the Republic."
"Bear in mind, even if the Vietnam Federation is conquered, it only places a thorn at the side of the Republic."
"But what the Soviet Union has been doing in the Middle East these past two years."
"That’s like choking them."
"The Soviets have already secured the rights to use the Suez Canal and Persian Gulf ports, no longer allowing the United States to dominate alone."
"How can this be allowed."
"They must pull out from the Vietnam region and come up with a counterstrategy."
Yu Feng analyzed the situation and continued:
"Then in June 1969, the new American president who took office in January began fulfilling his promises."
"Initiating the withdrawal plan from the Vietnam Federation."
"But it’s not just about withdrawing troops."
"Because right next door is the Cambodia Federation, which is closely allied with forces opposed to the United States in Vietnam."
"Thus, while withdrawing troops, the United States secretly bombed Cambodia Federation."
"The aim was to pressure Cambodia Federation’s leadership to impose pressure on the Vietnam Federation’s leadership, forcing the forces in Vietnam to negotiate."
"It’s a kind of moral coercion."
"That tactic truly is a bit disgusting."
Blue Star viewers in the live broadcast nodded at these words.
But there was nothing to be done.
Weaker nations have no diplomacy; if they say they’ll bomb you, they’ll bomb you.
Yu Feng continued:
"However, although the withdrawal began."
"The numbers weren’t large initially, and with rising internal conflicts in the United States, the sociologist Martin Luther King, who previously criticized the U.S. government’s war efforts, was assassinated this year."
"This sparked large public demonstrations."
"The United States needed to stabilize the domestic situation, which required some effort."
"Then came 1970."
"As mentioned earlier, to force Vietnam’s forces to negotiate, the United States bombed Cambodia."
"But there’s a background to this."
"Look at the map."
With that, Yu Feng displayed a map in the live broadcast room.
The map showed the territories of the Cambodia Federation and Vietnam Federation.
From the map, it was clear that Vietnam Federation and Cambodia Federation were neighbors, nestled closely together.
Yu Feng continued:
"Due to the complex situation in Vietnam Federation, some resources couldn’t be entirely routed through Vietnam Federation."
"Cambodia Federation became the transit hub."
"70% of the materials delivered to Vietnam Federation were transported through Cambodia Federation."
"Hence, the United States sought to force the Vietnam Federation’s forces into negotiations by bombing Cambodia Federation."
"The bombing caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of civilians, destroying farms and villages."
"However, it didn’t achieve the intended effect."
"So in 1970, the United States launched a bombing campaign on Cambodia Federation, marking the start of a war plan."
"The U.S. president, in office for only a year, wouldn’t have imagined."
"That there would be widespread student protests."
"More than 450 universities in the United States experienced strikes."
"Even the National Guard opened fire on four students, which further intensified anti-war sentiment within the United States."
"Countries worldwide criticized the United States for violating international law and infringing on other nations’ sovereignty."
"Cambodia Federation had always maintained a neutral image."
"With such indiscriminate bombing by the United States, other federations naturally worried about how to respond if the U.S. did the same to them."
"Hence, nations around the world criticized the United States."
"But... "
Yu Feng shrugged, and the corners of the Blue Star audience’s mouths twitched.
No need to think.
It was of no effect.
All these years since World War II, Blue Star players have figured out the ways of these two ’superpowers’ on Earth.
It’s simply a case of ’You criticize, I fight.’
After all, no combined nation could stand against either of them.
Do they care about your opinion?
This plot.
The Blue Star players are a bit tired of it.
But there’s nothing to be done.
Considering the global might on ’Earth’, the United States does whatever it pleases.
At this time, apart from worrying about the ’Soviet Union’ and ’Republic’, the U.S. had no rival, even if you insult the founding president of the United States.
That wouldn’t change their aggression toward you.
Yu Feng continued:
"Criticism had no effect on the United States. "
"Given their scale, they are untouchable."
"But domestic conditions are also becoming difficult to ignore."
"An economic crisis was already looming."
"The signs of the US Dollar decoupling from gold were becoming apparent."
"If the US Dollar is decoupled from gold, its exchange rate would freely float, directly weakening the United States’ control over financial hegemony."
"So compared to those criticisms."
"The United States was more concerned with the aspects tied to wealth, like the US Dollar and gold."
"At the same time."
"Due to the fallout between the Soviet Union and the Republic."
"The United States saw a slight opportunity for easing tensions because the rapid Soviet expansion in recent years was also overwhelming for the United States."
"It urgently needed to seek an ally."
"Thus, in 1969, when the Soviet Union leaked information to test whom the United States would support."
"The United States claimed a neutral stance, not openly supporting any side."
"But internally, it was considering normalizing relations with the Republic."
"As for why not with the Soviet Union... evidently, there were too many conflict points between the United States and the Soviet Union, leaving no room for reconciliation."
"The global strategies of the Soviet Union and the United States had no areas of non-conflict."
"As for the Republic, since its founding and further embroilment in the Peninsula War, it was isolated by the western bloc, and showed no significant international moves."
"Just focused on its own development."
"Even with the development of an atomic bomb now, compared to the Soviet Union’s threat to the United States."
"It seemed better to attempt a relationship thaw with the Republic."
Yu Feng continued describing the situation in the United States and provided an analysis.
Who could have thought that the United States, which initially led the isolation of the Republic, would seek to ease relations, considering they’re still at odds in Vietnam.
But conflict is conflict.
In this situation, breaking the ice was the best option.
Because the Soviet Union had expanded too fast in these years.
The domestic situation in the United States hadn’t stabilized, and over 500,000 American soldiers were bogged down in the Vietnam Federation’s war.
There’s bound to be an awkward situation if a conflict with the Soviet Union arises in some part of the world, with the troops all in the Vietnam Federation, and too late to redeploy.
