USSR 1991

"Well, this can be regarded as a helpless move." John Major said helplessly, he held his forehead and said to himself, "I just don't know how our NATO allies, the French, are feeling now, and I sincerely hope that this time After the incident, it can continue to maintain close contact with NATO."

"Don't worry, Prime Minister." Tom King said confidently, "Although the French have always held a lukewarm attitude towards the strong rise of the United States, they are definitely on the same side as us on the issue of Soviet Russia. Allies. Nobody wants to have a shady neighbor.”

The French did not take it to heart like the British. In fact, seeing the sluggish expressions of Germany and the United Kingdom, they still laughed secretly. As a French leader who always wanted to restore the glory of Napoleon and become the leader of European countries, Since the era of Charles de Gaulle, they have been looking for a possible way out on the thorny road to recovery.It is a pity that France has nothing but slogans, and the British, who have always been uncomfortable, are closely united with the United States.Although they shook hands with the world-enemy Germany decades ago, the French, who have always claimed to be European orthodox, hold deep prejudices against Germany in their hearts.

Perhaps France was only for symbolic reasons, and the Soviet Union was merciful to France's actions. It just didn't directly say that the Paris Commune in France was the first great attempt of communism. Make irrational actions, and hope to have deeper exchanges with France, not just limited to ideological confrontation.

According to the rules of diplomatic terminology, the first two sentences are not important, and the focus is on the last sentence. Deeper exchanges are not limited to ideological confrontation.It is clear that the Americans are sniffing out danger signals here.

"You mean that the Soviet Union intends to win over the French? How is this possible? According to their foreign policy, they want to spread the brilliance of communism all over Europe. It is a fantasy to win over France. Besides, from the time of Charles de Gaulle, it is almost impossible to oppose communism. become one of their national policies." Bush was obviously not satisfied with the report submitted by the think tank.

"You can't say that, Your Excellency. Francois Mitterrand's political inclination is against Gaullistism and nationalism. It is not impossible to get close to the Soviet Union. So we must contain it. This is a sign." Blount became anxious, and said more directly, "In fact, we should not let European countries retreat, and we need our allies to force the Soviet Union one more time. If I guessed correctly, the seemingly powerful Soviet has actually used its trump cards. The toughness shown now is just the end of the bow."

"That's enough, Blunt!" Bush, who had been patient all this time, suddenly challenged him, "You don't need to teach me about foreign policy! And just after you put forward that ridiculous suggestion of forcing the Soviet Union by force, I told you that the intelligence agency sent back What kind of information, they monitored through satellites that the Soviet Union’s land-based ballistic long-range missile silos are being activated, that is to say, if our allies confronted the Soviet Union head-on at that time, the whole world would have to pay for it!”

Yanayev did order the land-based missile silos to be activated, but all of this was to stage a dangerous drama for Western countries, so that Bush would back down. When the US president knew this information, he immediately chose stop.He knew that the matter had become a big mess, touched the bottom line of the Soviet Union, and might develop in the direction of World War III at any time.

"Get me connected to Moscow and our European allies. I think we need to sit at the negotiating table together to resolve these issues." Bush sighed, his face pale and haggard, as if he had aged a lot overnight.

Chapter 26 Sit Down and Negotiate

Just when Yanayev was almost losing his patience, he finally waited for the signal of the negotiation statement issued by the Americans.The Bush administration held a press conference, calling on all parties to exercise restraint. Force is not the only way to resolve disputes. It is hoped that everyone can sit at the negotiating table for friendly consultations.Of course, Bush's statement made Yanayev feel that the United States had taken the wrong speech.

The United Kingdom and Germany, which are also NATO allies, felt very awkward when they heard these words. It was you, the United States, who proposed to charge forward, and it was you, the United States of America, who came out to play the role of mediator in the end when there was a crisis.

Selling and counting the money for others, this is the only feeling German Chancellor Helmut Kohl feels at this moment, and it is also the first time that there has been a slight rift of trust in the United States, his trusted ally.It seems that the other party's face is a little strange, and he is no longer the respected international friend who selflessly provided help in times of crisis in Berlin.

Yanayev is of course willing to accept the US mediation this time, and is willing to conduct friendly consultations and exchanges with Western European countries on the conflicts that occurred in the Baltic Sea incident. He was still holding a Kalashnikov rifle with a fierce look just a second ago. In the next second, the red polar bear turned into an elegant aristocrat wearing a gentleman's gown and sitting at the negotiating table chatting happily with Western European countries. The sudden change of painting style made these guys a little at a loss.

Yanayev is not surprised at all. The Slavic people are not rude robbers. They are good at the war aesthetics of weapons and violence, and they are also good at the elegant art of music and painting. What impressed Yanayev most is that during the Great Patriotic War. Soviet soldiers playing the piano amidst the ruins of the city.And this time, the elegant Russian aristocrats will come from Moscow to Munich for negotiations with sincerity.

It is said that the two leaders who escaped, Vytautas and Anatoly, will also appear at the meeting.

"Comrade Putin, do you know that from the moment things like nuclear weapons were developed, communism almost lost the chance to unify the world. No matter how powerful the Soviet was in the eyes of others, he was A country with fatal flaws." Putin, who was riding in the car with Yanayev, was at a loss as to how to respond to the president's sentiments.

But Yanayev did not give Putin a chance to answer, and continued to say to himself, "Marx said before that the proletariat wants to liberate the world through struggle and break the chains of bondage. But the invention of the atomic bomb made the world war a An impossible war. Because once the nuclear thermal war breaks out, the earth will enter the most terrible winter, and no country can stand up from the ruins. This makes the proletariat unable to get rid of the shackles of the old age and gain a new life , do you understand me when I say this?"

"Unable to uniformly distribute the interests of the world, coupled with the abnormal development of the state-planned economy in the later period, the Communist Party of the Soviet Union finally came to the brink of collapse. In order to realize our great ideals, we need to change our approach. From now on, economic construction must be more important than Ideological struggle is more important. Of course, I will tell you these words, Comrade Putin. Don’t spread it, otherwise there will be a lot of trouble.”

Yanayev lit a cigarette, took a deep breath, and looked into the distance with a slightly melancholy look, "I am old, and I may not have much time to squander. And you, full of vigor and spirit, should not be with you." This sluggish red empire is getting old together. When the Soviet Union passes through this most difficult period, a new, stable and huge empire will be delivered to your hands. At that time, I hope you can lead the people to victory .”

How long was the most difficult period?Yanayev didn't know either, anyway, he knew that the Soviet Union could not return to the most powerful level during the Brezhnev period.Before discussing the effectiveness of economic reforms with Ryzhkov, the other party also said that even if a stable reform plan is followed, a new stable economic situation will not be formed until at least 1999.This does not guarantee the risk of failure of the Western European countries in the United States.

In 1999, let’s say it was 1999. The rule of the lifetime responsibility system for the supreme leader should be changed.Is it necessary to let the Western world criticize, saying that the replacement of Soviet leaders depends on a coup?

This passage can be said to be the final word on Comrade Vladimir's political career in the future. The sudden surprise made the young Putin stunned.After being dazed for a while, he cautiously asked the question he had always wanted to ask, "Why me?"

Why is that you?Facing this question, Yanayev was at a loss for words for a while, yes, if it wasn’t for the damn timetravel that gave me such a bad body, I wouldn’t have to be so anxious to retire from the top position of the supreme leader down.But Yanayev is now the supreme leader of the CPSU, and his words and deeds will represent the entire country.He could only pretend to be deep and said, "In the entire Moscow political arena, you are the only seedling I have found that is worth cultivating, and I have always believed that you are the best candidate to lead the Soviet Union to glory. You have stayed by my side these few years See the outside world, although you have been exposed to many things when you were a KGB agent, but when you reach the leadership level, you will see things from another angle."

Some people in the outside world have speculated about the relationship between Putin and Yanayev before. Some people even think that Putin is Yanayev’s illegitimate son. In fact, Yanayev’s fancy Putin’s ability is just based on the inertial thinking of a historical traveler. .If the time had been a few years earlier, he could have prevented the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and the US plan to use oil to attack the Soviet Union. These two events can be said to be the biggest indirect drivers of the disintegration of the Soviet Union.But all of this has become an established fact, and what Yanayev can do is to prevent some future things from happening.

Putin was so moved by Yanayev's words that he couldn't speak, and bowed deeply to Yanayev, "I will never forget the general secretary's cultivation of me."

"Hehe, I just played the role of a guide. It is your ability that can't be concealed that has attracted many admirers. I also hope that you can learn something new from this Baltic Sea crisis. For example Diplomatic means, political means, as you can see, if Western European countries did not choose the negotiating table in the end, we would lose in a mess. This kind of political risk-taking means will only increase in the future, so I also hope that you can be mentally prepared first .”

Putin nodded, and just as he was about to speak, the car stopped.They finally arrived at their destination, the conference building in Munich.Decades ago, Britain and France chose appeasement here, and Western European countries also chose compromise here decades later.

"Now my assistant to the General Secretary's Office, go with me to crush the last line of defense of the Soviet enemy." Yanayev smiled at Putin.

The door of the presidential seat was opened, and the flashing spotlights outside the window were dazzling. Yanayev got out of the car and waved to the reporters who were waiting outside the cordon. Putin followed closely behind him, revealing for the first time The resolute look of the superior, behind Yanayev, walked firmly to the door of the Munich conference hall.

Hello, enemies of the Soviet Union, here comes the red polar bear.

Chapter 27 Sit Down and Negotiate

The selection of Munich as the venue for the negotiations also has a deep meaning. On September 1938, 9, British Prime Minister Chamberlain, French Prime Minister Daladier, Nazi Germany Hitler, and Italian Mussolini signed the "Munich Treaty" at the Munich Conference.In order to avoid the outbreak of war, Britain and France continued to promote the policy of appeasement, sacrificed the interests of Czechoslovakia, and ceded the Sudetenland to Nazi Germany.

And today in 1991, the heads of six countries including Britain, the United States, Germany, the Soviet Union, Lithuania and Latvia also gathered in this place to discuss the issues of the three Baltic countries. The location of the meeting clearly told the Soviet that this meeting was just a formality. If you come to a pretentious negotiation, the Western European countries will go downhill and give the people an explanation that they deserve.As for what you want to do with the regime in the Baltic states, that's up to you.

Of course, the Soviet Union will respect the decisions of Western European countries, so I am afraid that the only ones who have not seen the situation clearly are the leaders of two small countries, Vytautas and Anatoly.They also thought that they had found a strong back-up that could deal with the Soviet Union, but they didn't know that they had already been clearly priced and thrown out as a bargaining chip.

The Western world was afraid of the simple and crude methods of the Soviet Union, and they chose to compromise after the failure of deterrent actions.

Brent also attended this meeting. His goal was not to participate in the discussion, but to secretly observe Yanayev's every move, and analyze his character through Yanayev's behavior to achieve the purpose of understanding his opponent. .However, Brent also had another unexpected discovery. He found that the young man following Yanayev always looked at him with a kind of not very kind eyes, the kind of eyes he only had when dealing with CIA agents abroad. met.A look that seems to be able to penetrate people's hearts, revealing the darkest secrets in the heart.

"What an interesting young man." Brent touched his chin subconsciously because of nervousness. He decided not to continue to observe the guys around Yanayev, but to focus on the negotiating table and quietly wait for the parliamentary decision. start.

Like all summit meetings, there is always a concluding speech with little substance, and the opportunity to speak is naturally given to President Bush of the United States. It is nothing more than celebrating that everyone can resolve disputes at the negotiating table It's an honor to host this meeting or something.After listening to these boring and hypocritical speeches, Yanayev was about to fall asleep. He glanced at the leaders of other countries and showed the same impatient look.

At this moment, Yanayev felt that it was much easier for him to activate the dead hand system than to intrigue here. When is it the turn of you Americans to dictate the internal affairs of the Soviets.

"That's enough, Mr. Bush. Your speech was wonderful, but I don't have enough time, so can you cut down the nonsense and go straight to the topic? Don't you just look at everyone's impatient expressions?" Yanayev said directly asked.His short answer was rough, even a little rude, directly blocking Bush's original speech that was going to continue.

"The personality is more impulsive and irritable. Well, this is the criticism of the Soviet leaders. From Stalin, to Khrushchev, and then to Brezhnev, it seems to be an insoluble vicious circle." Brun He carefully recorded the data he saw on the paper, but Yanayev, who was sitting directly opposite, was also watching his every move intentionally or unintentionally.

He noticed Brent's name in the parliamentary list provided by the KGB before. After reading the information collected by various parties, Yanayev discovered that this think tank had once served as a profiler for the CIA, so Yanayev Deliberately showing an impulsive personality that does not conform to it at the meeting, in order to make them have data deviations due to personality problems when analyzing problems.They just love the restless Soviet leader.

"I'm sorry President Yanayev, it seems that this sincere speech doesn't seem to touch your hearts." Bush said with something in his words, "Since you don't like a kind speech, then I will directly Off topic. As the recent turmoil in the Baltic Sea, all parties in the world have expressed great concern. I also hope that the prime ministers of the three Baltic countries and the President of the Soviet Union can exercise restraint. We also express our gratitude to the unfair judgment that happened to the President of Estonia Great attention, and will continue to follow up on the incident..."

When Bush said this, Vytautas and Anatoly looked at each other and smiled. What Bush said had already expressed NATO's attitude and point of view. Even Yanayev on the opposite side frowned slightly. Bush's remarks It was slightly different from what he expected. Could it be that this meeting was not as simple as imagined?

Bush's next speech can be said to be a twist, and the smiles of Vytautas and Anatoly froze on their faces, "Of course, we fully respect the opinions of the Soviet Union, saying that the Baltic Sea is a sacred and inalienable part of the Soviet Union's inherent territory. , I hope that the Soviet leader can give a satisfactory answer at this meeting."

"President Bush, you are different from what I said." Anatoly became anxious, and began to speak nonsense, "You promised us that NATO will provide strong support to the three Baltic countries and deal with threats from the East. Express close attention. How can this all change?"

"And you promised us to provide economic and military assistance once we become independent. Are you going to go back on it?" Vytautas stood up and questioned Bush, and the expressions on the faces of the leaders of other countries suddenly became more exciting.

"Ahem." Bush coughed, and continued, "Yes, I did say that, but all issues are based on the fact that the Soviet Union has indisputable sovereignty over the three Baltic countries before we can investigate domestic human rights issues. .”

Yanayev watched them play the drama that sovereignty over human rights with a blank face, and when Anatoly wanted to argue, he directly interrupted his speech, "President Anatoly, are you deaf? Still not thinking clearly? President Bush has made it very clear that all human rights cannot override sovereignty. Besides, this meeting is a negotiation between me and NATO, and neither Lithuania nor Latvia has the right to intervene. The reason why you can have a seat at this negotiating table is not because you fought for it yourself, but because we use you as a bargaining chip, understand?"

"Bastard!" Vytautas swears at Yanayev directly, but to Yanayev, who is used to the previous NATO military coercion pressure, this swearing is as weak as hitting cotton powerless.He said reluctantly, "The fate of a small country is to be played by a big country as a hand. Don't talk about international morality and justice. Truth only exists within the range of artillery fire. Unfortunately, the Soviet Union's artillery fire in the Baltic Sea Longer range than other self-proclaimed impartial powers, am I right, President Bush?"

Hearing Yanayev's question, Bush smiled awkwardly, while the leaders of other countries looked at each other carefully. These are the "truths" that everyone keeps secret.It was embarrassing to be directly pointed out by the Soviet leader. If NATO hadn't chosen to tolerate the military pressure of the polar bear this time, others might have lost their temper on the spot.

"You cowards, the people of the three Baltic countries and international justice will never forget your history of condoning violent totalitarianism." Vytautas slammed the door angrily and left. Lithuania and Latvia are now occupied by Soviet troops, plus Besieged by civil turmoil, Vytautas and Anatole could no longer return to their homeland and could only drift around.So before leaving, Vytautas threatened Yanayev and said, "Don't think that you can intimidate the people of Lithuania by supporting a brutal puppet regime. We will establish a government in exile overseas and continue to fight against you!"

Yanayev curled his lips and said indifferently, "Okay, I'll wait. The last person who threatened us was Hitler, and later he committed suicide in the prime minister's office of this country, so I have to admit, Vytautas You really have the courage to face death."

Chapter 28 laying the groundwork for a new war

The Soviet Union used the most brutal means to resolve the Baltic Sea crisis, and the compromise of the Western European countries to the Soviet Union caused concerns among the remaining member countries.It is undoubtedly a major blow to Georgia, Armenia and Moldavia, the other three countries that are bent on removing the hat of the Soviet Socialist Republic.Moldavia and Armenia immediately chose to shut up and stopped chanting separation slogans.

Other member countries with less centrifugal tendency protested against the Soviet Union's unilateral revision of the Supreme Constitution, but because they were given great economic autonomy, their complaints were not too loud.The previous national autonomy was to have great political rights but only limited economic autonomy, while Yanayev's current approach is the opposite.The franchise countries finally got the autonomy of economic development they dreamed of, so it doesn't matter whether they are independent or not.

But one of the most radical leaders of the Confederate States, Georgian President Zvyad Gamsakhurdia, who once chanted "Georgia belongs to Georgians", has also become restrained after witnessing the tragic end of the three Baltic states.As an extreme nationalist, what he likes is Gorbachev's weakness, but after seeing Yanayev's steel torrent, Zvyad began to consider another way to break away from the Soviet Union's rule.As the member country that most wanted to get rid of the rule of the Soviet Union, even Stalin, who was born in Georgia, carried out a high-pressure ethnic policy on this country.

So Zviard set his sights on the Americans. He believed that the reason for the failure of the independence of the three Baltic countries was that they did not have a strong armed force and relied too much on foreign aid, so he needed to buy the most advanced tanks and fighter jets from the United States. .Especially before Yanayev's revised constitution came into effect, it had an armed force capable of countering the Soviet army.Zviad never thought of resisting the Soviet Union's offensive head-on, but only wanted to reach a situation where the opponent fell into the Afghan crisis.Even if most of Georgia falls, he can continue to fight guerrilla warfare with the Soviets.