Beijing, ChinaJanuary 2, 2015 – 0700-LOCALThe door closed with a curt snap. Within the brilliantly lit room, sunlight from the dawn flowing in through the large panels of glass that looked out over the small lake and over to the Forbidden Palace creating a dazzling dance of light and a wonderful view, a gathering of more than twenty men in suits (and the occasional military uniform) sat around a large oak conference table. Xi Jinping, the Zhuxi (lit. Chairman, though used to address the President), slowly strolled to the head of the table as the entire room stood with those in uniform offering firm salutes.
He returned the gesture, half-heartedly, before adjusting his blazer and nodding to them all, “Good morning, gentlemen.”
“Good morning, Xi Zhuxi!” they chorused before each taking their seats. Pulling notes from within his messenger bag, the President clicked his stylishly expensive pen and cleared his throat. The agenda before him was long, and the morning was projected to be very rough. A sip from the hot tea in front of him relaxed his nerves before he heaved a heavy sigh and dove in, “Right, so this meeting comes to order at,” a glance at his watch, “Seven in the morning. Shall we begin with the first agenda item?”
There was a pause as he looked around the table, beginning at his right with Premier Li Keqiang, and working his way down. The silence broke once more when a man, three seats down from Keqiang, spoke. His voice was commanding, captivating the audience, “Operation Hei Hu (Black Tiger), I assume you mean?”
“Indeed,” Zhuxi replied, offering the floor to the Defence Minister.
Chang Wangquan, a tall man old man wearing a Liberation Army uniform decorated with a breast of medals and a shoulder of stars, stood and cleared his throat, “Well, as you all know from our meeting last week, we have an Operational Exercise taking place at the end of the month that will continue from the trials we conducted last month in the Central Pacific. Operation Hei Hu is designed to allow us to enact varying levels of sea-trials with our blue-water capabilities. The Defence Ministry is devoting the Liaoning, as well as an LPD, three LTDs, four nuclear submarines, and three destroyers to the exercise all from the North Sea Fleet.”
“What is the exercises goals?” Keqiang asked quietly, his voice conniving and looming, “Or should I ask, what is the Operational Plan?”
“The Operation will take place over the course of five days. The first three days will allow our twelve-vessel Task Force to practice coordination, minor Carrier operations, anti-submarine warfare, high-speed manoeuvres, and operational planning including tactical procedures. The last two days will act as a jumping-off point for launching a Marine Expeditionary Force. We will be landing roughly fourteen hundred Marines and their vehicles in a zone that has been pre-agreed upon between China and Indonesia,” Wangquan said plainly, offering notes and OPORDERS to the staff.
Zhuxi leaned forward, sipping from his tea. A marine-expeditionary landing exercise was good. The PLA had been working on developing an expeditionary force for years, and with this blue-water exercise force, they were within six months of having the capability of putting 1,400 troops anywhere within twelve thousand miles in less than a week. Grinning, he nodded, “Exceptionally well-developed, Buzhang (Minister), thank you.”
“My pleasure, Zhuxi!” he replied before retaking his seat. Turning to the man directly across from him, the President cleared his throat, “Wang Buzhang, I believe you are next on the agenda, no?”
“Yes, Zhuxi,” Wang Yi, the Foreign Minister, said with a firm nod. A small spiral notebook in front of him flipped open and he placed a pair of horn-rimmed reading glasses on his face which seemed to be perpetually locked in a grimace, “The next agenda item, Buzhang, is the coming Peace Talks that we are planning to mediate between North and South Korea in Shanghai.”
“Are they scheduled?” the Zhuxi asked.
“Not yet, Zhuxi,” Wang Yi quipped, “but we are working feverously at achieving an agreed-upon agenda for the meeting. Xinsen Dashi (Dashi is used for Ambassador, Zhang Xinsen is for S. Korea) and Hongcai Dashi (N. Korea) are keeping me updated on the talks between Pyongyang and Seoul which are coming along slowly. We’re trying our best to accelerate the talks, with Japan’s aggressiveness growing, we need the Korean Peninsula to be at peace in case Japan were to become a threat that we will need to deal with.”
“Nicely put,” Chang Wangquan inserted quietly.
“What is the closest estimate to a schedule?” Zhuxi inquired, cutting over the Defence Minister’s input and taking a gulp of his tea.
Wang Yi took a drink of water from a glass before him and continued on deliberately, his speech slow and concise, “Well, the Dashi want to try and make sure the Koreans agree to meet in Shanghai by the end of the month, though it could take until the end of March.”
“Make it happen before the end of the month, at any cost, understood?” Zhuxi ordered quietly.
“At any cost, Zhuxi, of course.”
“Good,” Xi Jinping sighed and leaned back in his chair. Turning slightly to his left, he looked out at the bustling city that was beginning its busy day, and the beautiful Forbidden Palace, “We’ve discussed the issues rising with Japan, as they continue to disobey our Air Defence Zone in the South China Sea… But what about Taiwan?”
“They released a statement last week stating that they believe we could invade them by the end of the winter,” Wang Yi stated plainly.
“I am aware,” the President replied, “but is their fear accurate? And General,” he said, turning to the General Chief of Staff for the PLA, General Fang Fenghui, a man he called Feng Ge as he took many lessons from the man who had known his father very well, “do you feel that we
should be conveying that to Taipei, or should we loosen our grip?”
“Zhuxi,” the General leaned forward, folding his hands in front of him, “Taipei is correct in their fears. Depending on the success of Operation Hei Hu we could theoretically strike at Taiwan within the next two months. However…” the room waited with baited breath as the General reviewed his notes, “The United States is sworn to defend Taiwan if we attack. As is most of NATO. I say that instead of military action, it would be better to let Wang Buzhang take care the situation… Pressure Taipei into joining the People’s Republic as a Special Administration Region, like Hong Kong.”
“This could take time, but I’m sure I could do it,” Wang Yi inserted quietly.
“Then make it happen.”
“Of course, Zhuxi.”
“While we’re on the subject of Foreign Affairs,” Li Keqiang said from his slouched position in the chair to the right of the President, “it would be best that we address Romania.”
Wang Yi paused for a moment and the room was silent. Nobody had any drastic opinions either way, or so Zhuxi thought. Romania was far away in Europe, and it did not directly matter to the Internal Affairs of Zhongguo (China) at that moment. But he did like Keqiang’s ability to address the hard questions and think outside of the box. They made a strong team. Eying up Wang Buzhang, he waited for a reply, but received it from the opposite side of the table, “I propose that we send a Security Force to Romania. Placing troops in Europe would, of course, enrage NATO, but if we do not aid our allies to the north in their stance against the Imperialists than what kind of ‘Protector of the Weak’ are we?”
“Absolutely not! We do not have the capabilities to send a Security Force into a NATO-controlled state and still take the blunt repercussions that would follow!” Wang Yi exclaimed.
“Then we send a Fleet. Or a Task Group. We station them in the Black Sea! It’s practically controlled by Russia, anyway, and they’re our strongest military ally!” Chang Wangquan said flatly, cutting off the Foreign Minister, “My point is that we need to become more involved in Global Security if we are to meet our goal of becoming a super-power in the next ten years. People need to know that we will come to the aid of the weak!”
Zhuxi raised his hand, calming the wolves, “Sending a Security Force to Europe is risky, of course, but what is more risky is siding with these Romanian separatists… We don’t know how badly this is going to play out. And what about the economic ramifications?”
“Zhuxi,” a voice from the far end, on the left, brought the argument to a sudden halt, “if I may interject?”
It was Zhou Xiaochuan, the Governor of China’s Central Bank. He was the man who could easily affect the decision on Romania and so the President leaned forward, “Go ahead, Zhou Guanli (Supervisor).”
“The Yuan has grown in strength over the past two weeks. People are losing faith in the Eurozone. In fact, the Euro fell almost thirty percent last week alone! We gained a value of twenty percent against the American dollar, so a strong Chinese economy is actually a benefit from what is happening in Romania. People are investing in the yuan, the ruble, the yen, the won, and the rupee… Eastern currencies.”
“Well then,” Zhuxi said plainly, “I see no reason why we cannot place a Task Force in the Black Sea to aid in Security in Romania. Russia will, undoubtedly, welcome us. Perhaps we could send the task group from Operation Hei Hu to the Black Sea upon success of the exercises, yes?”
“That could easily be done,” Wu Shengli inserted from the silence he had been sitting in. The Supreme Admiral of the Chinese Navy sat next to the General Chief of Staff, his uniform the only white in the room of black and green. President Xi Jinping nodded and made a small note on his pad, “Then let it be done! What is next on the agenda?”
“I do believe that is me,” the Admiral replied, “Zhuxi. I’ve got a task group gearing up to leave later this evening from port in Guangzhou. Task Ground Africa, part of the Chinese Anti-Pirate Security Force, or TGA-CNAPSF, is heading for Zanzibar, Tanzania where they will make port for a six month deployment to the Horn of Africa.”
A series of nods went around the table as the President sipped his tea. Silence fell on the room again before Xi Jinping waved his hand toward the Admiral, motioning for him to continue. The rap of a pen on the table cracked loudly before he spoke once more, “The Task Group consists of Hulls 999, 570, 568, and 170. That is, in order, the Jing Gangshan, an LPD; the Huangshang and Hengyang, two Frigates; and the Lanzhou, a Destroyer. Their mission is the security of shipping lanes at the four hundred to five hundred mile distance from the Somali Coast and the conduction of combat operations against pirate vessels within their Area of Operation. Pang Da Xiao (Commodore Pang) is the CO and Senior Officer aboard the Jing Gangshan.”
“Is that all, Wu Shang Jiang ((Supreme) Admiral Wu)?” the President asked flatly.
“It is.”
“Right then, and the Operational dangers are?” Zhuxi inquired.
The Admiral cleared his throat and scanned his notes, “Most notably, it is the weather, actually. Weather in the region has been uncharacteristically bad as of late, with rough seas and bad storms.”
“Alright. Be sure that we have a strong Replenishment route, and see if you can’t attach a Hospital Ship to the Task Group.”
“Of course, Zhuxi,” the Admiral replied, making a note on his tablet.
A short beat, and a familiar voice broke the silence once again. Wang Yi cleared his throat before beginning, his words seeming to be chosen very delicately, “What does the Board think about the purposed UN-Security Council humanitarian aid to the Ebola affected areas of Africa?”
“What exactly are the nations affected?” Li Keqiang asked after swallowing a mouthful of tea whilst scribbling notes on his legal pad in half-hearted English mixed with Chinese characters.
“As of now, the outbreak is affecting twelve million people in the Congo, Kenya, the Sudan, and the Central nations between them. It is showing signs of spreading into Somali and Ethiopia as well, and a few cases have popped up on Tanzania’s western border,” Wang Buzhang replied, “and the UNSC, along with the WHO, is pushing for a Security Council-led quarantine and aid effort.”
“I purpose, myself, that we send a detachment of our Medical Aid teams to the Sudan. They’ve been a strong African ally, and we’ve invested in them heavily. Perhaps three hundred doctors, a few hundred nurses, and a few hundred troops to protect them?” Chang Wangquan stated.
Zhuxi nodded slightly, “I see no problem with that, all in favour?”
Nearly the entire room raised their hand, those who did not were those who were not affected about the situation in any way, shape, or form. The last agenda item was, following the noticeable trend, military-oriented, and so Zhuxi turned to Chang Buzhang, “Buzhang, you sent me message yesterday about a purposed Security Plan for Afghanistan.”
“Ah!” he exclaimed, the rest of the room slightly caught off guard, “Yes, Zhuxi, thank you for reminding me! As some of you might have heard, the United States has stated their intent to go back on their agreement with the Afghanis and withdrawal most of their troops from Afghanistan within the year. So…” he passed around a brief OPORDER detailing a planned joint Chinese-Indian Forward Operating Base in Afghanistan, “I purposed to Zhuxi yesterday, Long Jidi (FOB Dragon). It would, with Wang Buzhang’s help, be the first of many optimistic bilateral cooperation agreements between China and her newest ally to the south. While we have not yet received the go-ahead from India, or Afghanistan, we plan to construct the base that will house roughly three thousand troops of both India and China, in the Wakhan Corridor where Afghanistan borders China, India, Pakistan, and Tajikistan; with whom I remind you we have a Defence Agreement.”
The room was silent. This would take longer than a simple meeting to persuade the Board to deploy three thousand troops into a nation that was now experiencing a brutal resurgence of fighting from the new force, Jundallah al-Afghani. Turning his chair to face the windows as the Board continued to talk, Xi Jinping merely stared at the Forbidden Palace. Only time would tell where China would go from here…
500km from Somali Coast, CNS 999 Jinggang ShanJanuary 12, 2015 – 0200-LOCALRough seas rolled and bolstered the floating beast, attempting with all their might to roll her. But she was strong, persistent. At the helm, a uniformed sailor fought the current and the vicious swells while the Skipper, Pang Wonin, held night vision binoculars to his eyes and scanned the seas ahead of them. The forty-year old Commodore had experienced rough seas before, and he was not affected, but the young sailor, on his first deployment, was indeed shaking under the pressure.
They had fought brutal waves ever since drawing within 1000km of Somali, and they were still more than 1000km from port. Within the belly of the Jinggang Shan, 800 Chinese Marines and their amphibious vehicles sat for sickening ride as the Commodore attempted to find a softer lane. He turned to the helmsman and spoke loudly and deliberately so the entire Bridge heard him, “Helm, bring our course to 233, port five degrees!”
“Aye, Commodore, port five degrees rudder!” the sailor answered almost instantly and the vessel slowly began to turn to the left.
“XO?” the Commodore asked, turning to his Executive Officer, a Captain, “What is our power output?”
“Green, sir.”
“Helm,” Pang Wonin cried once more, “All-full ahead!”
“Full power, aye, Commodore!”
Rough seas and dark skies were their only partners in the next three days until the Task Group reached Tanzania. He resumed his watch. Six more months, he reminded himself, only six more.
In this two week long period, China has sent five Naval Vessels in TGA-CNAPSF to Zanzibar, Tanzania as well as begun planning the dispatch of 1,000 doctors, nurses, and soldiers to the Sudan for humanitarian aid efforts. The Ambassador of China to India, Zhang Dan, has been informed of the planned FOB Dragon and is working diligently to get the Indian approval. Afghanistan is planning to give China their answer by the end of the month.
Operation Black Tiger, a twelve-vessel and 1,400 marine “Expeditionary Force Landing Training Exercise” and a “Naval Deep-Water Manoeuvring Exercise”, will begin on January 20, 2015 and is scheduled to last 5 days. After the exercise, if deemed a success, Task Group Black Tiger will be dispatched to the Black Sea (against NATO’s demands for Eastern powers to remain uninvolved in Romania). Korean Peace Talks are also in the process of being discussed.
Troops Abroad: 1,010 Sailors and 800 Marines (TGA-CNAPSF)
Value of Yuan: 元1.00 = US$0.20
