Chapter 1183 Occupation of Lubumbashi

When Alan Wilson was still in Moscow, the repeater kept talking about Asia and Africa every day.

At the British Embassy, ​​the Deputy Secretary sent several telegrams to Northern Rhodesia, telling Grace that it was impossible for the two superpowers to really fight. Taking advantage of the current situation, when the United States and the Soviet Union were distracted, they must move quickly. The battle is decided quickly.

"Start laying mines 20 kilometers north of Lubumbashi. Drive out all the indigenous people." Grace called to his subordinates and ordered, "Let me release all the mines accumulated over the years."

Having taken root in Northern Rhodesia for more than ten years, these Slavs have also developed some armaments, such as mine-laying vehicles. Northern Rhodesia's mine-laying vehicles look like the Katyusha rocket launchers used by the Soviet Union in World War II.

This mine-laying vehicle can launch 208 anti-tank mines at one time. The launch efficiency of conventional mines is even higher. It is considered a special equipment accumulated in Northern Rhodesia for many years. The opening mechanism is used to control The mines move from the mine storage rack to the conveyor belt; the output mechanism ensures the mine distance; the conversion mechanism puts the mines into combat status.

The entire process is automated. No operator assistance is required. Combined with heavy-duty trucks transporting mines, a twenty-kilometer-long area can be turned into a minefield within a day.

In order to speed up efficiency, the mine-laying vehicles in Northern Rhodesia have already been concentrated, and Lubumbashi has stored a large amount of mines as raw materials for the mine-laying vehicles.

In the entire place north of Lubumbashi, there are scenes of goddesses scattering flowers all the time. Sometimes, there will even be explosions, and the launched mines will be shaken and explode directly.

But overall, it can be said that the tribe was driven out in an orderly manner. Seeing this scene from a distance, they immediately hesitated. As early as when Tshombe was assassinated, Grace tore off the disguise and began to drive northward. In his mind A black tribe that belongs to its own territory.

At this time, these people have no warmth at all, and it is really impossible to get these elm-headed people to move without going on a killing spree. Ordinary colonists would not dare to do this for fear of arousing the resentment of the vast majority of people, but these ruthless people from the Balkans did just that.

"We need to go faster!" Grace used a telescope to supervise the efficiency of mine laying, and said deeply, "You can't just focus on speed, if you don't really kill a group of people, maybe those black people will come back. After that, barbed wire fences will be deployed to seal the area. Separate it, put up warning signs, and don’t let people from Lubumbashi come near this place in the future.”

"Don't worry, Colonel, all five million landmines will be launched in a week at most." The officer following Grace was full of confidence.

"Five million is only enough for the time being, and mines have to be replenished every year." Grace shook her head slightly, "In order for us to be able to be stable and free from racial problems for a long time, these investments now are cost-effective.

Don't be like the South Africans who want black people to be slaves and not resist. The memory of Yugoslavia tells us that this will cause big problems in the future. "

Northern Rhodesia has a population of only six to seven million, but it does not have time to deal with these black aborigines who are ten times their number. Now that we have the opportunity to solve the problem, we must solve the problem all at once.

So far, they have expelled more than half a million people, and thousands of black people who wanted to resist have been shot dead. Having already achieved this step, there is no need to go a little further.

"Colonel, are all the more than 80,000 Belgian immigrants staying?" the officer frowned and asked unwillingly.

"Do you think we are offending the French?" Grace turned around and asked. Although the Belgian Congo is a colony of Belgium, Belgium speaks French. This was something he had already discussed with Alan Wilson before. in conclusion.

The number of Belgian immigrants of more than 80,000 is not that large. If they are expelled, they may offend France and Belgium. If they stay, they can build good relations with the two European countries.

Although they did not take over the entire Katanga province, they were overjoyed enough to get the land south of Lubumbashi. Copper mines controlled by the Belgians have also been acquired.

Grace has already negotiated with the leader of the Belgian immigrants to protect the Belgians' rights to the distribution of copper mine profits. It’s just that the history of relying on black labor for extraction is coming to an end, and the Belgians are also going to end their colonial history in a sense, and they have to have enough food and clothing on their own.

At the British Embassy in Moscow, Fan Sid came in with a complaint on his face. He seemed to be complaining that his immediate boss was unkind. At the critical moment, he pushed himself out to accept the Soviet people's words, "Secretary General, it is you who Gromyko wants to see."

"You are the British ambassador." Alan Wilson retorted calmly, "When the British Empire needs you, as an outstanding diplomat, you must shoulder the responsibility. You must be worthy of British training."

"But I don't know anything about the Congo. According to the Soviets, you always mentioned it two days ago." Fan Xiide was very depressed. He felt that the deputy secretary of state deliberately let him go out to take bullets.

This feeling is not wrong, this is the purpose. Alan Wilson calmly comforted, "Then what do you want me to do? You have to know that currency needs physical support, and the support can be gold, silver and other things. But it certainly cannot be directly printed on the printing plate. Print money. When we competed with France in the colonial era, wasn’t it because we in the UK were trustworthy that we made the pound the world currency?”

"The copper mines in Katanga have a huge supporting effect on the British currency." Alan Wilson said neither to be happy with things nor to be sad with oneself. "Money will not be despicable because it is stained with blood, nor will it be despicable because it has no money." It is noble if it is stained with blood. After all, it is printed by a machine and it is people who give it important value."

"If we don't have important raw materials in our hands, if we don't have the Kuching steel base in Malaya, would Britain still be Britain? To put it bluntly, at this moment, why should I come to Moscow and sit calmly opposite the Soviets? , do you think this can be achieved with the help of the Three Kingdoms of England?"

"The British Isles cannot support the value of the pound. Once the pound depreciates, countries that have pounds in their hands will sell off their pounds. No matter what the outcome is, it will be an extremely uncomfortable consequence for the UK."

Fanshide opened his mouth. He couldn't refute the British permanent undersecretary of foreign affairs, not just because the other party was more senior than him.

This time, Britain attacked from the west to the east, and then settled in the south, for the copper mine, which is as famous as the Chilean mine.

Alan Wilson was not greedy. Didn’t he leave most of Katanga’s land behind? The remaining land can still support the local people. Just farm the land honestly. How dangerous is it to be a miner?

So much so that, with the help of the Cuban Missile Crisis, Alan Wilson himself appeased the insecure anti-Tito elements. Britain also got a very loyal thug, which was already a profit.

"But it seems like it's a foregone conclusion. We don't need to avoid the Soviets?" Fan Xide wondered. Even if he was in Moscow, as a senior British official, could the Soviets still arrest the British Deputy Secretary?

"I am here to respect the Soviets and prevent them and the UK from being embarrassed." The British permanent secretary hiding in the embassy was tough. "What's the point of arguing? The Soviet Union cannot agree to our conditions, and vice versa."

There is another reason that cannot be explained clearly to avoid entanglement with the Soviet Union on the issue of Northern Rhodesia. That is that the main inhabitants of Northern Rhodesia, whether Croats or Serbs, are Slavs.

The Slavs of the Balkan Peninsula and the Slavs of the Soviet Union are inseparable. According to the original evaluation of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia by diplomats of the Third Reich, half of the people in this country were pro-Soviet and half were pro-Russian.

That is to say, half of the people in the entire country lean towards the Soviet Union and half towards Russia. The former is socialist or nationalist. Such a country was a huge threat to the Germans after Operation Barbarossa began.

The people in Grace were not born after the war. Many of them are remnants of the war. Even if they are not pro-Soviet, they do not reject Slavic nationalism. At least for now, when these people are not dead, Britain cannot establish this If a group of people remain loyal to Britain, perhaps the situation will change for the next generation.

Faced with the ambassador who accepted the accusations from the Soviet Union on his behalf, Alan Wilson did not want to go too far, so he told Fan Xide, "You talk more about things in Asia to put pressure on the Soviet Union. Things in Katanga are important, and they are important." Will you survive a war between two countries with large populations?"

In the final analysis, Congo is very important in Africa, but it still cannot be put on the table in the world.

While Alan Wilson was hiding in the embassy and pretending to be dead, Kennedy, who wanted to monopolize the glory, also got rid of the role of Britain and France and responded to Khrushchev's previous letter. However, before replying to the letter, the Soviet Union's second The letter was sent to the White House. Compared with the first letter, the attitude of the second letter was obviously much tougher, and completely inconsistent with the attitude of Khrushchev's first personal letter.

"There are also hard-liners exerting pressure in the Soviet Union." Robert Kennedy also saw this letter and said to his brother, the president, "Replying to the first letter can relieve this embarrassment, and the second letter must be hidden from Britain and France. Faith exists.”

After saying this, Robert Kennedy did not leave and reported to Kennedy, "John, we have received news from Africa that British Northern Rhodesia has occupied the Lubumbashi area and seized the local giant copper mines. Have it for yourself.”

"Have the British been waiting for this opportunity for a long time? They really waited for it." Kennedy looked unswerving, and he even had doubts about the purpose of Britain and France coming to Washington this time.