Update: 2002
Peaceful Events
Alaska successfully exploited natural oil resources.
(+1 Alaskan ASP)
Quebec joined the Northern Collective a major effort to smash up the Arctic ice and improve the quantity of northern shipping. Profound economic dividends were still to come by the end of 2002.
The Oregon Liberation Front began an internet campaign blitz showing various Deseret acts of violence. Despite Deseret’s allegations that many of the images were staged, the OLF’s cyber front did its part to drive down the enemy’s morale.
(Deseret approval decrease)
The Confederacy continued economic development, especially in regard to AK-47 production and Louisiana’s tobacco industry. This latter emphasis led to what many Deseret officials considered an unacceptable increase in smokers on their side of the border.
(+1 Confederate ASP)
In the American Federation, President Stassen’s Economic Recovery Act of 2001 began to enrich the nation.
(+1 American ASP)
Early in the year, a corporation suspiciously associated with Quebec and NADTA attempted to buy out the Japanese owners of Chindōgu, but the deal went very bad and very public when some funds supposedly from Alaska never arrived. Meanwhile, emboldened by its technological partnership with the Chicago Pact, Chindōgu began yet another unexpected phase of growth on the international stage, becoming a primary supplier for international armies associated with the American Federation.
(+1 Chindōgu ASP)
Venezuela engaged in a technological boom as efforts to mechanize the mining industry paid off in a big way. Venezuela also markedly improved its national system of commercial airplanes.
(+1 Venezuelan ASP)
Brazil was finally admitted to the Chicago Pact in the aftermath of the Treaty of Manaus, which firmly reconciled that nation with the Lima Republic by creating the also-Chicago Pact buffer state of Amazonia between them. This agreement created mixed feelings within the Brazilian nation, especially as one of the clauses the government seemed eager to adopt was that of war guilt in the 1990s Wars of Expansion, which might not have carried a financial cost, but was nevertheless humiliating. Too, the Brazilian government’s efforts to label old political leaders as ‘war criminals’ and ship them off to Lima caused sizable riots on behalf of the old guard, though the government was far too well entrenched to fall in an attempted reactionary coup. Thirdly, Brazil handed out a good faith loan to Lima and some economic charity to Amazonia, which caused many of the critics of the prior year’s economic mess to start screaming again, but both beneficiary nations put the gifts to good use and Brazil’s international prestige skyrocketed as a result of its selfless acts, which somewhat abated the tense internal situation.
(+Amazonia, +1 Amazonian ASP, +1 Lima ASP, Brazilian approval decrease)
One of the less-hyped provisions of the Treaty of Manaus had indicated that the South African Union was supposed to restore Patagonia to Argentina, but at the time when Brazilian diplomats had put the section forth, it seemed unlikely that South Africa would give up so much territory without recompense when the Lima Republic was holding onto Amazonia so tightly. The various South Americans were stunned when the South African Union agreed to withdraw from their continent if the results of a regional plebiscite supported that decision. In any event, the plebiscite did indeed support the unification of Patagonia to Argentina, and so did Brazil’s neighbor to the south almost double in size. South African officials sold their retreat at home by emphasizing how easy it had been to conquer the land in the first place, but jingoist elements of the public weren’t buying.
(Argentine approval increase, South African approval decrease)
In the Islamic Courts Union’s thick jungle interior, Mount Nyiragongo erupted while almost half a million people fled their homes in its wake. Perhaps the volcano was an omen for the man-made events that occurred in Africa later that year.
(See Military Events)
Muammar al-Qaddafi’s emphasis on transportation and irrigation began to enrich the Tunisian nation even while its armed forces engaged in a massive military drill aimed at preparedness for a possible capitalist invasion.
(+1 Tunisian ASP)
Iberia’s southern coast and French border became increasingly well fortified while government railway development brought dividends for the economy as a whole.
(+1 Iberian ASP)
Led by the Liberation Party, the Central European Union ascended into the Chicago Pact even as it began various quasi-socialist reform efforts to improve quality of life within the nation.
(Central European approval increase)
The Northern Collective established the Top Space Science University, and within the year, rumors began to circulate about very impressive technological discoveries. While taking steps close to home to secure its border with the tumultuous Muscovite Republic, the Collective also expanded its trade network throughout the world, specifically forming an economic partnership with the Confederate States.
(+1 Collective ASP)
The Russian Empire attempted to hold nationwide elections on schedule. Many representatives’ seats were left unfilled because of the open rebellion in large parts of the country, but the effort was yet another admirable gesture on the part of Prime Minister Petrov’s government, and large numbers of volunteers flocked to fill the ranks of the Russian Army so they could do their part to destroy the Muscovite scourge. In the various regions of Imperial Russia, impounded mafia assets were redistributed amongst the people.
(Imperial Russian approval increase, +5 Imperial Russian divisions)
Pakistan financed some missionaries to head off to Tibet to try to convert the native population to Islam, though this effort didn’t have much of an effect because a) the native populace liked Buddhism, and b) with the People’s Republic of China’s newly militarized footing, all areas of their nation were essentially war zones, so not many missionaries reached their intended destination.
The Indian Republic began to invest in developing old lands regained from China, but peacetime was needed before dividends would show up.
The first sign the western remnants of the People’s Republic of China had reorganized came when rumors began to float that the same President Qui-Jun who had agreed to unconditionally surrender had in fact been executed, embalmed, and displayed somewhere for people to see. In response to those who claimed that the Chinese leadership was turning on itself and in a state of disarray, former Procurator-General of the People's Party Hui Zemin Shih was loudly proclaimed the new president. Hui immediately declared a Patriotic War of Liberation against all occupiers of China, Comintern and Chicago Pact alike. Images of FEAR gassings and massacres became widely disseminated across China and across the world, while on the home front President Hui issued a massive conscription order across the territories he still controlled, which essentially called for every able-bodied man, woman, and child to take up arms and fight.
(+30 Chinese conscript divisions)
Throughout the year, strange groups around Chengdu forced many of the locals to convert to Islam.
Triad groups in ASEAN appeared to have gone crazy, driving down government confidence in the Guangdong region by beginning an endless stream of minor attacks against civilian and military targets.
(ASEAN approval decrease)
Eager to begin the process of moving forward in the wake of the disastrous Treaty of Shanghai, ASEAN started a great effort to increase the productivity of the nation, especially in the Malay area. Work was begun on a tunnel to connect the Malay peninsula with the island of Sumatra, and ground was broken for a canal across the Kra isthmus that would make the world’s shipping 600 miles more efficient.
FEAR (and Morocco, belatedly) shut down air and sea contact with the American Federation in response to various events better explained elsewhere.
(See Spotlight)
Military Events
Armed with new and intriguing anti-tank weaponry, the Oregon Liberation Front attempted to take their fight to the streets of Portland, but overwhelming Deseret military superiority and tactical knowhow would have crushed the group within the year had it not been for the North American continent’s new and massive war.
(See Spotlight)
(-2 American ASP, American approval decrease, -8 American divisions, -2 American squadrons, -1 American group, -4 ASEAN squadrons, -2 Confederate ASP, -8 Confederate divisions, -1 Confederate squadron, -1 Confederate group, -1 Deseret ASP, -2 Deseret divisions, -6 Deseret squadrons, -1 Venezuelan division, Alaskan approval decrease)
Imperial Russia and its Scandinavian ally pumped thousands of soldiers into a straightforward attack on the upstart Muscovite Republic, bypassing the Don River by trying to create a breakthrough in the north. For some months, the frantic Muscovite line of defense held, but the mafia state had failed to secure any external allies, and thusly had no real chance for victory. Outnumbered roughly three to one on the ground and five to one in the skies, Muscovite forces were ground down by attrition, and finally their slow retreat turned into a rout. By middle of the year, it looked as if the mafia state was on its absolute last legs, but the game shifted one final time when Imperial Russian troops closed in on Moscow. Since Russian commanders were unwilling to bomb their traditional capital, their absolute supremacy in the skies was negated, and their resulting hunt for a new set of tactics left the Muscovites time to dig a new line of defense. Meanwhile, the neglected Uzbek rebellion continued to grow in Russian Central Asia.
(-6 Muscovite divisions, -2 Muscovite groups, -3 Imperial Russian divisions)
Joined by its allies Sudan and the Islamic Courts Union, the Kingdom of Morocco launched a massive and well organized attack on Nigeria. The closest thing to a declaration of war came when Morocco began bombing Nigerian airbases, crippling the nation’s air force before it even got off the ground. Supply depots and railroads were also targeted, which played havoc with the Nigerian government’s ability to organize a response. Still with the initiative, the King of Morocco ordered numerous divisions to cross the border and head straight for Lagos, but the Nigerians had somewhat expected this, and had stationed a large number of soldiers around their vulnerable capital far before the war began. Their efforts could not prevent Lagos from falling by the end of the year, but Moroccan forces had no other successes in southern Nigeria proper. In contrast, the Moroccan offensive was far more successful in northern Nigeria proper, and the king’s forces met up along the Tunisian border with Sudanese troops coming through Islamic Courts Union territory. Meanwhile, at sea, Moroccan commanders frantically rebased aircraft to their pocket carriers in an attempt to defeat Nigeria’s admittedly superior navy. The effort succeeded because Nigeria didn’t have enough sky materiel to counter, and so were the Nigerian fleets smashed and the various battles of the South Atlantic won. Still, Nigerian admirals regrouped a considerable amount of ships around Angola, and their presence dissuaded Moroccan landings in the extreme south of the country. Nevertheless, Marine deployments did in fact take place on the secure coastlines along and north of the Congo River, and the brand new type of Moroccan soldier proved its worth by smashing Nigerian resistance on the beachheads, though the troopers became stalled once they reached further into the interior. Coming from near the source of the Congo, Islamic Courts Union forces joined hands with the Moroccan Marines and completed the task of seizing the river, though they had equal terrain problems once they started to push inland. Meanwhile, an Ovambo rebellion began against the Nigerian remnants in old Namibia. Overall, the first year of Dar al-Islam’s invasion into unallied Nigeria had resulted in the chopping of the nation into two unconnected and faltering pieces, but the Moroccan King had not achieved his goal of destroying the nation utterly.
(-15 Nigerian divisions, -6 Nigerian squadrons, -9 Nigerian groups, -5 Moroccan divisions, -1 Moroccan Marines divisions, -4 Moroccan squadrons, -1 Sudanese division, -1 Islamic Courts division)
Arab socialists in Egypt took up arms against the Mesopotamian Union and succeeded in driving the loyalists away from the Upper Nile, though analysts predicted the rebellion would be swiftly crushed once Mesopotamian soldiers entered the region in force.
(-1 Mesopotamian division)
The Oceanic Confederation launched an invasion of FEAR that was audacious enough to actually have a chance of success. Tens of thousands of troops loaded inside almost the entirety of Oceania’s fleet and headed north for old Soviet coastline. Such a huge armada was easily spotted; Indonesia passed word to FEAR and then joined in to help their defenses. Still, the final confrontation did not come until the Oceanic forces had drawn in sight of Vladivostok. There, with Indonesian and FEAR preparations in place, the Oceanic armada was attacked and almost completely eliminated. Nevertheless, the cost was tremendous, and the victory was not total. Small groups of Oceanic soldiers escaped to FEAR’s mainland, where they became a constant irritant, while a couple of Oceanic squadrons (including some planes on their attendant pocket carriers) managed to escape and limp home.
(-18 Oceanic divisions, -12 Oceanic squadrons, -8 Oceanic groups, -5 Indonesian squadrons, -1 Indonesian group, -4 FEAR squadrons, -1 FEAR group)
Terror attacks across East Asia became almost monthly events. First, on March 3rd, a set of suicide bombers exploded in front of a primary government building in Vladivostok, causing only superficial damage to the edifice but killing several dozen people. On April 3rd, six of Vladivostok’s hotels were targeted at once, creating scores of dead and distinctly dampening the elite mood. On June 3rd, the Senate building in Kuala Lumpur was attacked by car bombs piloted by living drivers, and almost a hundred died. Finally, on November 3rd, many targets spread throughout the continent were attacked at once. FEAR government buildings were hit again. Rockets were fired against Vladimir Putin’s house and against several of his statues spread throughout Vladivostok, which resulted in pitched street battles as the police hunted down and killed the perpetrators. Back in ASEAN’s Kuala Lumpur, the city’s largest hospital was attacked in three different locations with more car bombs, and this time the dead really could be measured in hundreds. On that same auspicious day, the Indian government building was also attacked, creating numerous fatalities, while one of the primary generals of the traitorous South China Army Group died when his house exploded. All of these incidents were linked in the world press to the vengeful PRC.
(FEAR approval decrease, ASEAN approval decrease, Indian approval decrease)
In China, the Treaty of Shanghai supposedly divided the Middle Kingdom between FEAR, ASEAN, India, and an independent Tibet, but the Great East Asian War was not done, so the signing was almost pointless. Only Japan was successfully divided between the American Federation and Indonesia, with the latter annexing its share of the territory and the former holding onto north Honshu until New York could decide what to do with it. On the mainland, all was in complete chaos. We will survey the battlefronts roughly counterclockwise, beginning in India. The Himalayan border between India and the People’s Republic of China was quiet, with nothing happening but Chinese forces digging in. Moving on. The Burmese Front became an important battleground, as Indian forces slogged through masses of Chinese troops to secure most of the region, even though the area was officially ASEAN by the Treaty of Shanghai. Meanwhile, some Chinese divisions near the Mekong valiantly braved logic to push deeper into ASEAN’s borders and bring the fight to one of their oppressors. The ‘invasion’ was halted quite quickly, but Chinese troops had advanced remarkably far considering their circumstances. In the main area of China, where the Treaty of Shanghai had at least a shot of being enforced, FEAR retreated north across the Yangtze even as their armies stole, burnt, or destroyed everything in their wake. The six traitor divisions of the South China Army Group came along with their new masters, and Fuzhou’s port was obliterated. ASEAN moved in and took possession of something close to a wasteland. Both FEAR and ASEAN spent much of 2002 putting down various traumatized Chinese uprisings, ASEAN in particular being quite unable to convince the Nan Chinese that they were any different than their erstwhile allies who had decimated half the country. FEAR couldn’t smirk at this, for they had their own problems. PRC forces had invaded Gansu and FEAR Xinjiang, and also took advantage of FEAR preoccupation with Oceania and relentless Chinese rebels to mount a massive conscript assault on Chengdu, pushing into the old capital through sheer weight of arms. By the end of the year, FEAR had brutally put down both the Oceanic incursion and the last of the organized rebels in north-central China, so Chengdu did not have a good chance of staying PRC for long, but at least President Hui of the People’s Republic of China had scored a moral victory. As a coda, there was some counter to this good fortune on the naval front, which irked both the PRC and FEAR, as ASEAN ‘s Taiwan Fleet closed the year out by moving to the ignored Chinese island of Cheju-do and crushing the pathetic remnants of the PRC’s fleet, thus positioning themselves within striking distance of Vladivostok. Striking distance of Vladivostok with reasonable supply lines, that was. The strategic mistakes of the Oceanic Confederation would not be quickly forgotten by strategic planners.
(-1 Indian division, -8 Chinese divisions, -14 Chinese conscript divisions, -5 Chinese squadrons, +6 FEAR divisions, -1 FEAR division)
