Chapter 221
Chapter 221
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Red Alert
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The Soviet Union maintained its massive military even after winning World War II.
“How can we trust those Westerners who could betray us at any moment and just casually cut our military strength?”
The Soviet military, leveraging its position as the defender of the nation, held onto its bloated budget and organization.
As a result, the Soviet Army boasted a terrifying scale: 360 fully mechanized motorized rifle divisions and a force of five million troops.
Stopping this colossal army would require more than a thousand nuclear warheads.
European society was well aware of the overwhelming might of the Soviet forces.
“We know the Reds have impressive military power, but they can’t take on America with what they’ve got.”
If the world’s top superpower, America, stepped in, the Red Army would ultimately be repelled.
This belief had sustained the daily lives of Europeans.
Until now.
“Extra! Extra! Read all about the Soviet invasion of Europe scenario!”
It started with the sensationalist tabloids on the streets.
People scoffed at the talk of a European invasion but bought a copy or two out of curiosity.
“The Reds invading Europe? We’ve got the old powers here plus America. They don’t have the numbers to handle that—what makes them think they can?”
But that confidence soon faded.
“What? It takes the US military six weeks to get to Europe?”
Six weeks—how long was that?
Long enough for a great power like France to fall to a rival like Germany.
And the opponent wasn’t just any rival; it was the massive red bear that Europe as a whole couldn’t match.
“Are we really safe?”
Before long, major dailies began covering the issue.
Then young soldiers working in the military started spilling facts they knew.
“It’s an exaggeration to say it takes the US six weeks to intervene in Europe. But if Ramstein Air Base in Germany falls to the Soviets within two weeks of the war starting, it could happen. Without Ramstein, rapid US intervention becomes impossible.”
Ramstein Air Base was just 200 km from the West German border.
When the Reds came storming in with tens of thousands of tanks, could they really hold a base right on the border?
Once people learned these unknown facts, they shuddered anew at the specter of war.
“S-so that means if the Reds really wanted to, they could push all the way to the Atlantic coast?”
Considering the overwhelming maneuverability of the Soviet Army witnessed in World War II, it didn’t seem impossible.
“Could we wake up communized overnight?”
Europe was instantly gripped by fear of a Red offensive.
West German authorities, the US military, and NATO belatedly explained they were prepared for the Red threat, but it fell on deaf ears.
“Citizens, rest assured. NATO is ready to repel any invasion or provocation.”
“After six weeks?”
The seed of doubt, once planted, wouldn’t go away.
“Even if the infantry shows up, can they stand against the Reds?”
Even if they arrived heavily armed with ceremonial gear, the scale of US forces airlifted in couldn’t be massive.
They’d be crushed easily before hundreds of Red divisions.
The “Red Army threat theory” that started in Europe quickly captured America’s attention.
“What the hell? If there was this big a gap, the Defense Department should’ve come up with a fix by now. Where’d all that defense budget go? Did they buy cake with it?”
“We should’ve parked dozens of our own divisions in Europe to counter their hundreds!”
The US military had its own side to the story.
‘We’ve developed the Davy Crockett recoilless gun that fires nuclear shells. You think we’ve just been twiddling our thumbs?’
The US military planned to deploy over a thousand Davy Crocketts in West Germany.
But they couldn’t openly discuss such military secrets.
“We can only say we have countermeasures in place.”
“You’ve been saying that while sweeping it under the rug all this time!”
With the press hounding them, America’s top brass racked their brains.
The country had been in turmoil over Koreagate just recently, and now the Red Army was causing problems.
After much deliberation, the higher-ups decided to ease public anxiety.
“Let’s declassify some military secrets.”
The US military revealed the existence of the Davy Crockett infantry nuclear launcher.
“If the Reds come, infantry squads armed with Davy Crocketts will launch nuclear warheads, wiping out Soviet tank units in one strike. No matter how many tanks they have, how can they stand up to nukes?”
The problem was that if America used nukes, the Reds would use them too.
“Block them with tanks, not nukes! You lunatics! Planning to start a nuclear war?”
Fearing the nuclear domino effect, the public clamored for conventional forces to counter the Reds.
As America and Europe fell into Red Army panic, the Soviet military was thrilled.
“General Secretary, comrade, look at this. What truly terrifies the West isn’t nukes—it’s our massive forces.”
The Red Army’s logic was proven by the West’s hysteria.
Talk of conventional arms reductions now fell on deaf ears.
This wasn’t welcome news for Khrushchev.
‘We’d finally positioned ourselves to cut conventional arms.’
At this rate, there’d be no telling when they could reduce spending.
Regardless of the Soviet Union’s internal burdens with military expenditures, European nations faced pressure to increase theirs.
The public, who should’ve hated arms spending, was now demanding more.
“If the Reds are that strong, we need enough forces to buy time until the US arrives!”
“What are you waiting for? Time to raise the defense budget!”
In truth, Europe had no room to increase spending.
Nations across Europe were already devoting over 3% of GNP to defense.
The US government faced a flood of demands to prepare for rapid deployment to Europe.
The military-industrial complex jumped on the bandwagon.
“This smells like a money printer.”
After quickly crunching numbers, they proposed to the government:
“The Red threat can be easily solved by parking just 5,000 more tanks in Europe. Give us five years, and we’ll put 5,000 tanks there.”
“Five... five thousand tanks? Who’s paying for that?”
“The taxpayers, of course.”
The Defense Department, eyeing budget hikes, chimed in.
“Mr. President. Nukes alone can’t deter Red ambitions. What if they exploit our mutual destruction fears and attack with conventional forces? Boosting tank strength isn’t optional—it’s essential. No more, no less: just station 16 divisions in Europe.”
“That’s...”
Even Goldwater hesitated when money was involved.
“Sir, there’s only one answer. We need minimal deterrent forces in Europe to prevent Red miscalculation.”
“Military spending is already insane—do we really need to go that far?”
Even the hawkish Goldwater knew current spending was beyond imagination.
US defense outlays were nearing 10% of GNP—far exceeding normal limits.
“Sir, this is a security issue. Think of it as the bare minimum investment for the free world.”
“I’ll allow 3,000 tanks.”
Goldwater couldn’t fully rebuff the military-industrial complex.
The US government announced plans to deploy an additional 3,000 tanks to Europe.
“3,000 tanks? Still enough to hold out until the main US force arrives.”
This seemed to quiet Europe’s security crisis for a bit.
But the KCIA wasn’t one to sit idly by.
Pyongyang rolled out a new war scenario to stoke European fears.
“The Soviet Army is prepared to use nukes tactically too. If they neutralize Brussels, Bonn, and Ramstein with nukes in the first week, NATO won’t fire a shot before losing all of Germany. You think a command-crippled NATO can leverage its qualitative edge?”
The scenario of Soviets nuking NATO’s command centers and overrunning them was plenty to terrify the West.
“The Reds firing nukes and charging in? Ridiculous.”
“No one sane would use nukes like that.”
“If they were sane, would they churn out 100,000 tanks?”
Even American society across the Atlantic pondered what if the Reds really did that.
The US Senate even held a military committee hearing over the KCIA-spread scenario.
“If the Reds launch a limited nuclear war, does our military have a strategy?”
“We have a proportional retaliation strategy ready, scaled to the enemy’s nuclear strike.”
Nuclear war and World War III.
With such absurd talk flying around, the public completely forgot about the Koreagate scandal that had dominated headlines.
“The issue of Korea trying to manipulate Washington is deadly serious.”
“With Europe on the brink of going Red, who cares about some yellow lobbying?”
Koreagate chatter died down everywhere.
Lee Seong-jun chuckled at everyone trembling over his lies.
Contrary to the KCIA’s hype, the real Soviet Army’s logistics were abysmal.
They could show overwhelming attack power at war’s outset, but couldn’t sustain momentum afterward—they were a half-baked Red Army.
The French coast?
Reaching the Rhine would already be their best effort.
The KCIA’s scenario was something the Soviet military could only dream of.
But if everyone believed that pipe dream as fact, the fantasy Soviet Army might as well be real.
As long as they believed Soviets could stroll the French coast in reality, fear of the Reds wouldn’t fade.
‘Keep fearing the Reds like this until the end of the Cold War.’
Meanwhile, Korea would keep growing.
Korea’s cunning strategist toasted his solitary victory alone in a secret room with a glass of brandy.