I Will Stage A Coup D’état - Chapter 27



Only Noblemtl

EP.27 The Art of War (3)

On December 25, 1937, as the Chinese army was making its final push for an offensive, Soviet dictator Stalin was lost in thought after receiving a letter addressed to South Korean Prime Minister No Jae-woo.

“Let’s clearly distinguish the spheres of influence of the two countries and put an end to the previous confrontation. Well, that’s not a bad story to hear.”

Secretary-General, who was already nervous about the growing threat from the West, was interested in the ‘Korea-Soviet Non-Aggression Treaty’ proposed by Lee Seong-jun, the de facto power broker in Korea.

Stalin gave these instructions to the Foreign Ministry:

“We will consider the suggestions of the Korean people.”

Foreign Minister Maxim Litvinov, following the Secretary General’s instructions, responded favorably to the Korea-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact.

“Ultimately, the enemy that threatens the survival of our Federation is Germany to the west. Geopolitically, turning Korea into an enemy will divert resources from focusing on Germany, which is not beneficial to the survival of the Federation.”

When word spread that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was considering a non-aggression pact between the Soviet Union and Korea, concerns were raised in some parts of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.

“The Korean militarists are the greatest enemies of the proletarian brothers of East Asia. If we join hands with them, there is a danger that the faith of the socialist brothers of East Asia in the Comintern will collapse. Moreover, aren’t the Koreans, standing shoulder to shoulder with the fascists, butchering the proletarian comrades of Spain?”

Despite opposition within the party, Stalin paid no attention.

The Secretary-General, after calculating the Foreign Ministry report, concluded that the treaty was worth accepting.

“I think it would be in the Federation’s national interest to reconcile with Korea.”

As the dictator’s mind turned toward inviolability, dissenting voices within the party quickly disappeared.

Those who did not have the foresight to do so had long ago disappeared into the gulags or ‘somewhere else’, so the party could carry out Stalin’s orders as a single unit.

Stalin sent a letter to South Korean Prime Minister No Jae-woo.

In reality, it was the same as a reply sent to Lee Seong-jun.

“Dear Prime Minister Roh Jae-woo, our Federation has decided to accept your proposal positively. If our two countries intend to build a new relationship together, we must do so quickly. Therefore, I propose that you receive my Foreign Minister on January 8th, or at the latest on January 10th.”

Lee Seong-jun also sent a reply here.

Of course, the name was borrowed from Prime Minister Roh Jae-woo.

“Dear Secretary Stalin, I thank you for your letter. I hope that the political relations between Korea and the Soviet Union will improve on the occasion of the non-aggression between the two countries. I would like to inform you that the Korean government agrees to the visit of Soviet Foreign Minister Litvinov to Korea on January 8.”

Stalin’s reaction was immediate.

“Sir, please depart for Korea immediately.”

On January 8, 1938, Soviet Foreign Minister Litvinov visited Pyongyang.

At Pyongyang Nakwon Station, South Korea’s de facto power broker Lee Seong-jun personally appeared to greet Litvinov, creating a shocking scene.

Litvinov was also very pleased, knowing that Sungjun was the real power in this country.

Seong-jun went to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with Foreign Minister Lee Seo-young and observed the negotiations.

Although the format was a negotiation between Foreign Minister Lee Seo-young and Litvinov, in reality it was more like a conversation between Sung Jun and Litvinov.

The negotiations proceeded smoothly.

Seongjun agreed to work on demarcating the disputed border between Mongolia and Manchuria, where there was a territorial dispute between the Soviet Union and South Korea.

He also confirmed that the intervention forces currently stationed in Spain would be withdrawn as soon as possible.

Anyway, the Spanish Civil War was a war that had no interest to Seongjun.

Instead, Sungjun also made a few strong demands.

First, cut off all aid to China.

Second, we will restrain the Chinese Communist Party’s anti-Korean movement.

Third, it will export the resources that Korea needs.

Litvinov thought the Soviet Union had nothing to lose in the deal.

Chinese aid was only considered as a way for the Federation to fill the void left by Germany, but nothing concrete had been done yet.

The Chinese Communist Party problem was also easy.

From the beginning, the Chinese Communist Party was a force more interested in expanding its power than in anti-Korean activities.

Since they were also dependent on the International Party for funding, they could have stopped their anti-Korean activities with just one order from the Comintern.

Resource exports were also not a problem.

The Federation did not suffer any particular loss because Korea provided machinery and manufactured goods in return for payment.

These were conditions that everyone could agree to, and there was not much harm done.

In return, the Federation had a clear takeaway.

‘Stability of the eastern border.’

For the Soviet Union, which was intent on concentrating its energy on the anti-German front, this was a gain worth paying a considerable price.

When the negotiations were concluded, Litvinov and Lee Seo-young shook hands.

“Okay, let’s take a picture.”

And one photo taken shocked the world.

The Korean Empire, the most militaristic country in the world and known as the Prussia of the Far East, and the Soviet Union, which was known for its razor-sharp imperialism, joined hands and reconciled.

The person most shocked by this fact was none other than Chiang Kai-shek.

“This is nonsense. How can the Soviet communists join hands with the Korean imperialists?”

There was a reason Chiang Kai-shek was shocked.

Chiang Kai-shek planned to fill the gap left by Germany’s military supplies with aid from the nearby Soviet Union.

However, Moscow signed a non-aggression pact with Pyongyang.

What is a non-aggression pact?

Wasn’t it a ‘quasi-alliance treaty’ that stipulated that no assistance should be given to a third country that is at war with the other party?

Chiang Kai-shek almost collapsed at the Sino-Soviet Non-Aggression Treaty, but barely managed to endure the shock.

But the shock didn’t stop there.

“In Britain and France, the sale of military supplies is strictly prohibited. The pretext is to maintain neutrality during wartime.”

Chiang Kai-shek felt a tightness in his throat.

In a situation where a significant portion of China’s industrial power was already in the hands of the Korean military, even the supply of military supplies from overseas was blocked.

The United States existed, but they were isolationists who were distant and had no interest in breaking wartime neutrality.

But Korea’s attacks did not stop there.

“Park Han-jin did not declare war on Nanjing even though he started the Sino-Korean War. Because of such foolishness, China was receiving customs fees collected from our occupied territories and using them as war funds. Shouldn’t we let this foolishness go?”

The South Korean government formally declared war on Nanjing.

Because of this, the Chinese government had to suffer the double burden of having its finances tightened.

In this situation, the Chinese military launched a large-scale offensive in an attempt to gain political gains, but failed to achieve any significant results.

The South Korean defense line, which had been fully prepared in anticipation of an offensive, was not shaken by any attack by the Chinese army.

The Chinese offensive ended in failure, with massive casualties.

The Chinese government was unable to secure even a small victory to shake the Lee Seong-jun regime.

Not only that, they were in a desperate situation.

The enormous amount of military supplies and money used for the offensive.

Now there was no way to replenish them.

In this situation, if the Korean army attacks, not only will we not be able to defend Nanjing, we will also have to give up the entire fertile Yangtze River basin.

Even Dai Li, the head of Chiang Kai-shek’s most loyal intelligence agency (Nan Yi Shi), recommended negotiations.

“Your Majesty, it is time to consider compromise with the Koreans.”

Chiang Kai-shek was prepared to fight to the end, but the enemy was squeezing China in a completely different way than with guns and swords.

He spoke bitterly, unable to hide his dark expression.

“Prepare for negotiation.”

*

The Prussian military historian Carl von Clausewitz said:

“War is an extension of politics.”

As Clausewitz said, war is nothing more than an extension of politics, but there are too many people who become engrossed in it and their vision becomes narrow.

Representative examples were the German and Japanese armies during the two world wars.

They were convinced that the victory they had earned through their blood, sweat and tears would guarantee their country’s victory, but their endless fight to achieve an unattainable goal resulted in the destruction of both themselves and their country.

The lesson they taught was simple.

We should not become too absorbed in war, which is nothing more than a ‘means’ to achieve political goals.

I acted faithfully to Clausewitz’s maxim.

All means other than war were mobilized to achieve the goal of China’s surrender.

This was the result.

The government of the Republic of China has sent word that it would like to coordinate the terms of negotiation through Britain.

It wasn’t a fatal blow in the war, nor was the capital city taken.

Still, China felt they were at a disadvantage.

Because I made you feel that way.

I requested that the Chinese side send a special envoy.

On February 9, 1938, China sent Wang Jingwei, a prominent pro-peace activist, to Pyongyang to make clear its will for dialogue.

Wang Jingwei was a traitor both in the original novel and in the webtoon, so I was happy to welcome him.

Of course, I didn’t go out to greet him in person like I did with Litvinov.

Even if he was not welcomed, Wang Jingwei was a man who was ready to surrender to Korea.

On my behalf, Foreign Minister Lee Seo-young welcomed Wang Jingwei.

I sat in the back of the conference room and just listened to the meeting.

Since we had no intention of changing the conditions anyway, all that was needed was for China to change its mind.

Wang Jingwei first pleaded, then begged, but when we didn’t budge, he gave up and accepted our demands.

The contents of the negotiation agreement thus created were as follows.

Korea-China Peace Treaty.

Article 1. The Chinese government transfers all railway lines and railway construction rights north of the redistribution to the North China Railway Company established by the Korean government.

Article 2. The North China Railway Company is guaranteed the right to establish a separate security force to protect the railways and assets owned by the company.

Article 2, Paragraph 1. The size of the guard force is limited to 15 battalions or less.

Article 2, Paragraph 2. The stationing and movement of the guards must be agreed upon by both Korea and China.

Article 3. North China Railway Company has the right to purchase land necessary for railway operations and gauge construction and to use it commercially.

Article 4. The railways and other facilities under the jurisdiction of the North China Railway Company shall be considered as extraterritorial areas of Korea.

Article 5. Chinese nationals employed by North China Railway Company shall, in principle, be subject to the provisions of Korean law.

It was a ridiculous and unequal treaty.

But China had no other choice.

What can be done when military supplies and funds are cut off and the South Korean military is entrenched right in front of the capital city of Nanjing?

It’s been exactly two and a half months since he took power through a coup.

I succeeded in bringing China to its knees.