Chapter 155
Chapter 155
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Translator: crow
Chapter 155
Chapter Title: Italian War (1)
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The Soviet Union applied pressure on Yugoslavia's dictator Josip Broz Tito to prepare for war ahead of time.
Unlike in the original timeline, Tito was still a member of the Comintern.
The reason was that the Soviet military was stronger than in the original timeline, and Yugoslavia was surrounded by Comintern member states.
More than anything, the fact that North Italy had become a communist state was fatal.
Taking these circumstances into account, Tito had been showing a compliant attitude toward Stalin.
'Even so, joining the war is out of the question.'
Tito decided to reject Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov's unreasonable demand.
"Our Yugoslav People's Army is already stretched thin just defending the homeland."
"Comrade Tito, this is for the greater cause of the Comintern. If you refuse to help your Italian comrades, will the other communist brother nations continue to regard you as one of their own?"
It was a threat that failure to comply could lead to expulsion from the Comintern.
Tito tried to hold firm nonetheless.
"Comrade Molotov, Yugoslavia has yet to recover from the aftereffects of war. We need more time. Please understand our situation."
"The reactionaries are in the same boat. If you're truly concerned, why not watch a demonstration the Federation is putting on for the West? Once you see it, I'm sure you'll change your mind. I guarantee it."
No matter what the Federation had prepared, Tito was convinced it wouldn't sway him.
'Who bends to a little bluff?'
Stalin's tentacles didn't stop at Yugoslavia.
The Soviet Union began squeezing its allies—Hungary, Poland, Romania, and others—to assemble volunteer forces to support North Italy.
The Soviet Union's war preparations soon became known to the West as well.
In truth, with the remnants of democratic forces still lingering in Eastern Europe, it was impossible to completely conceal Soviet movements.
The U.S. government was stunned by the news.
"The Soviets are preparing for war?"
"The Ivans clearly intend to attack Germany."
There were rumors they might strike Italy, but to the U.S. government, the German issue seemed more urgent.
Without the Allied forces, Germany was an empty house with nothing but police power.
In a rush, President Truman decided to rearm West Germany.
"But Germany is crawling with Nazis and militarists. If we rearm those bastards now and they cause trouble, what then?"
"With the reds breathing down our necks, you're worried about Nazis and militarists? Our top priority is stopping the red challenge."
With the president's resolve firm, the bureaucrats bowed their heads.
Secretary of State Acheson pointed out a key obstacle.
"This requires Korea's approval. We can't rearm West Germany without it."
"Then get Korea's approval fast."
Truman hurriedly dispatched a cable to Korea.
The Korean government readily accepted the U.S. request.
"Go ahead and do it."
Korea's response was unexpectedly straightforward.
The U.S. couldn't quite understand this shift in Korea's attitude, but given the temperament of the Lee Seong-jun regime, it wasn't all that surprising.
'The Soviets keep making moves, so we need a slightly stronger warning.'
Pyongyang viewed it as a rearmament of West Germany.
Stalin wasn't particularly rattled by Korea's "betrayal."
In fact, Korea had already sought his understanding on the matter.
"In exchange, whatever the General Secretary does, we'll turn a blind eye."
Stalin interpreted Korea's words as tacit approval for the Italian War.
In that case, rearming West Germany was tolerable.
It would take West Germany at least 15 years to challenge the Soviets even if rearmed.
By then, if Italy were communized, the West would suffer manifold losses.
Of course, no matter how troubled the West might be, they wouldn't completely ignore the Italian War, but Stalin had his own calculations.
With a massive army stationed in Central Europe and war threats looming, the West would hesitate to intervene in Italy.
'One million should suffice.'
It would be costly, but if seen as the price to deter Western meddling in the Italian War, it wasn't too steep.
And then there were the nukes.
The General Secretary summoned Black Sea Fleet Commander Sergei Gorshkov and entrusted him with transporting an important "cargo."
"There must be no mistakes in transporting this item."
"Leave it to me, Comrade General Secretary."
Gorshkov didn't know what cargo the General Secretary had assigned, but he pledged the fleet would guard it with their lives.
On May 1, 1950, a Soviet flotilla passed through the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits, heading into the Eastern Mediterranean.
The West didn't know their intentions but didn't forget to dispatch cruisers to tail them.
By May 8, when the Soviet fleet docked in Yugoslavia and fell silent, the West grew uneasy.
'Are those bastards just sending the fleet to intimidate us?'
But the forces seemed too meager for that.
A handful of outdated destroyers and cruisers posing a threat to Western navies with carriers and battleships?
It was a force that ground-based aircraft could annihilate without the navy even getting involved.
But that assumption was a mistake.
On May 12, 1950, a sun suddenly rose 20 km off the Dalmatian coast, on an uninhabited island.
The West was shocked to belatedly realize the reds had brought nukes to Yugoslavia.
The Ivans were ready to use nukes.
Of course, the U.S. had known in advance, but European nations hadn't grasped that the Federation had deployed nukes operationally.
"If the Ivans have nukes, what are we supposed to do?"
Unsure of the exact power, everyone knew from the Americans that it was a fearsome weapon.
Thus, European nations had no choice but to recalculate the costs of clashing head-on with a nuclear-armed Federation.
'Even if America protects us, we'll be the ones eating the first nuke.'
While Western European nations were gripped by fear, Yugoslavia's Tito nearly wet himself.
'N-Nukes? This is blackmail.'
If Yugoslavia defied the Federation, there was no guarantee that horrific weapon wouldn't rain on Belgrade.
To Stalin, human lives were just numbers.
Tito submitted to the Soviet nuclear might demonstrated before his eyes.
"We will cooperate with the Federation's plans."
Tito expressed his submission with unprecedented deference.
With that, the blueprint for the Italian War was fully set.
Stalin summoned North Italian Communist Party General Secretary Grieco to Moscow.
"Comrade Grieco, this war is a matter of great interest even to the International. Victory here will convince the world that Western imperialism is utterly finished. Do you grasp the weight of the task on your shoulders?"
"Of course, Comrade General Secretary."
Having witnessed the Soviet nuclear bluff, Grieco gained full confidence in the war.
If the Westerners dared think of intervening, they'd have to reckon with the Federation's nukes first.
While they dithered, sweep away South Italy, and the war would be over.
What use would their intervention be once South Italy was gone?
"Wrap it up in exactly three weeks."
But even Grieco was taken aback by the General Secretary's words.
Even with the South Kingdom's military inferiority, North Italy couldn't possibly overrun them that easily.
"Don't worry. I'm not assigning an impossible task."
Stalin spoke of the volunteer forces from Eastern Europe.
Disguised without revealing affiliations, 100,000 volunteers would sufficiently bolster North Italy's forces.
100,000.
That was enough to decisively turn the tide.
Only then did Grieco sense the realism in Stalin's words.
'If that's the case, we can do it.'
His predecessor Togliatti had opposed war, but if unification could be achieved this easily, it was a gamble worth taking.
"Comrade General Secretary, I'd like one more form of support."
"Speak."
Grieco wanted to refine the casus belli for the war.
But North Italy lacked the skill to fabricate pretexts convincingly.
Stalin heard him out and promised aid.
"Don't worry. We'll craft a justification so airtight that anyone with ears will believe North Italy is in the right."
Grieco expressed satisfaction at Stalin's promise.
The date of the offensive was set for June 25, 1950.
It was purely coincidental that it fell on this day.
Ahead of war, the North Italian government rolled out deceptive measures.
"We propose talks to peacefully resolve the Italian question."
The South Italian Kingdom, already sensing the need for dialogue, agreed to peace negotiations.
The talks were dominated by the North from start to finish.
The Northern side raised their voices at the slightest disadvantage.
"Are those bastards here to negotiate or to pick a fight?"
The Italian Kingdom government was bewildered by the North's high-handed attitude.
The negotiations broke down after exactly one week.
The North propagandized the failure as proof of the South's conservative reactionaries' intransigence.
"These people want Italy divided forever. That's the only way they can cling to their petty power!"
While waging a fierce propaganda campaign, the North also provoked incidents along the military demarcation line.
It started with seemingly accidental clashes, escalating to constant skirmishes at the border.
"The conservative reactionaries in the South are itching to start a war on this soil."
Through such propaganda, the Communists portrayed South Italy as the aggressor.
"No matter that we're not in NATO, with the Anglo-French-Americans behind us, they wouldn't dare start a war, right?"
"The Soviets have nukes—so what? Doesn't America have nukes?"
Trusting in Western support, the South dismissed the North's provocations.
Meanwhile, North Italy was completing its war preparations.
The war was now in the final countdown.