Chapter 927 Mountbatten, Commander-in-Chief of the Third Army

There were two main threats to British rule in Malaya, geopolitical threats and the one that jumped higher was Indonesia.

The other one is across the South China Sea. Alan Wilson has not ignored the latter, but he will not publicize it everywhere.

Even he didn't know whether a certain big country in the midst of a revolutionary period would liberate the world as soon as its head got hot. According to the context of the Soviet Union in the period after World War I, there is still a high possibility.

But no matter who it is, considering the importance of the Malayan colonies to Britain, no one can have any wrong ideas. According to his idea, he would rather blow up Malaya with nuclear bombs than give it to his opponent at a discount.

"Actually, you are also worried about the threat from the north, but you usually don't say whether it is right or not, and you still play down the threat when others ask." Pamela Mountbatten asked as she walked away from Mountbatten's home.

"I didn't threaten to talk. I said the things that are not worth mentioning are at the cultural level. China's cultural competitiveness is not strong, but it does not include Marx's set of ideas. The spread of that set of ideas is very strong."

Alan Wilson put his hands in his pockets, "Because of the number of Chinese, the objective threats faced by the Malayan colonies certainly exist. But it is not impossible to cope with it. First of all, we must maintain communication. Lin Lianyu always went to Xiangjiang to contact the Beijing government to avoid misunderstandings. .”

"What you mean is that it is inevitable for China to spread its influence like the Soviet Union." Pamela Mountbatten looked thoughtful, "Can you block this threat?"

"With the current living standards in the Malayan colonies, it's not difficult. But if it's like that in Africa, it would be difficult." Alan Wilson told the truth, "That set of ideas spread quickly in poverty-stricken and war-torn places. , Africa has both.”

"Can't deal with it?" Pamela Mountbatten stopped and asked seriously.

"Don't worry, it depends on the mode of infiltration. If it is just waiting for an opportunity to expand its influence under the guise of aid, then the UK can acquiesce. After all, it seems to be an overreaction to go to war. To say the least, there are other countries carrying out attacks on Africa. A certain amount of construction is also good for us, and it can be a win-win situation to a certain extent.”

Alan Wilson said to his wife, "But if we want to follow the example of the Soviet Union in establishing allies and eliminating British influence? Then we may have to use some less visible methods."

"What about?" Pamela Mountbatten saw the cold look on her husband's face and felt that the matter was not simple.

"For example?" Alan Wilson stopped for a moment and suddenly said while walking, "For example, sending the established Chinese armored division to Africa, sacrificing a colonial capital, and using the British hegemony of public opinion to spread it widely, but I don't want it to really happen. kind of situation."

Alan Wilson was uneducated and not very good at speaking. He really got to that point and wanted to counteract the penetration of British Africa.

He had only one way, to form a Chinese armored division to massacre cities in Africa.

Then Britain would naturally apologize for its lax management and randomly select two unlucky people to shoot.

At the same time, public opinion was used to shirk responsibility and direct the withdrawal to the Chinese. This should not be difficult. After all, black Africans are not very good at distinguishing the difference. At least the vast majority of black people do not have this ability.

This trick has actually been used by some people. If you think about the CIA's process of overthrowing the Sukarno government, it is actually similar. It’s just that Chinese Indonesians are in the situation of black people in Alan Wilson’s words.

Considering the distribution of British East African colonies, Alan Wilson felt that the former German colony of Tanzania was a suitable victim, which could at least relieve Britain of a moral burden that did not exist at all.

After this conversation, Alan Wilson and his wife stayed in London for a few days. The two of them didn't spend much time in their hometown. This time, he also took advantage of Mountbatten's promotion to marshal to return to London.

A few days after the year, the official cabinet appointment was issued. Mountbatten, who was already a field marshal, was appointed chief of the defense staff and chairman of the chiefs of staff committee. Considering that the defense minister is restricted by the term of the elected government, he is usually just a layman. Mountbatten was already the de facto commander-in-chief of the British Empire.

Mountbatten knew the purpose of the cabinet in promoting him to marshal and making him chief of general staff and chairman of the chiefs of staff committee.

To change the fact that the British army, navy and air force operate independently, he can achieve this goal by leveraging his strong connections in the political field and good relations with the various services.

So he and his assistants quickly proposed three options for the government to choose from for Britain's future defense structure: 1. Only make some simple repairs to the current system; 2. Establish a fully unified and functional Ministry of Defense; 3. The respective headquarters of the army, navy and air services are allowed to exist independently, but they must accept the overall leadership of the Ministry of National Defense. Among them, Mountbatten believed that the most ideal plan was the second plan.

As for which plan to implement, it depends on how courageous the current cabinet is. When he came home to see Mountbatten and his wife, Mountbatten also said to Alan Wilson, “The second plan is of course the best. Once in place, implement the third plan first, and then transition to the second.”

"If the cabinet discussion decides to adopt the second option, then the Labor cabinet is really respectable." Alan Wilson nodded and said, "Would you like me to ask Whitehall about it?"

If the Attlee cabinet were to get it right, they would choose to merge into a unified Ministry of Defense to take charge of everything.

That is really courageous. You must know that the democratically elected government is limited by its term of office and public opinion, so it is actually very difficult to do things.

For example, if you understand Wang, is he very poor? The fundamentals of all the problems are grasped very accurately, but they are too eager for quick success and instant benefits.

For example, regarding the attitude towards Russia, it is right to divide China and Russia, but it is just about how to balance the interests of Europe, that is, Germany and France.

It was right for Wang to choose the United States to sell European energy at low prices, but the execution was out of shape. Everyone wanted to make some money from it, and the price turned out to be ridiculous.

For example, regarding the epidemic, the American system and folk customs are not suitable for epidemic prevention.

Therefore, it is right for Wang to simply give up and speed up vaccine development. The Sleeping King came to power, and Dr. Fauci also said that the situation in the United States now was worse than if it had not locked down the city at that time, and it could not have been prevented anyway.

Generally, politicians occupy both sides, and as a result, neither side is satisfied. They only care about their own supporters. He is eager for quick success and quick gains and wants to fulfill his election promises, but he is also forced to serve a four-year term. Can the issue of alliance with Russia be changed in just four years, which has been the established policy of the United States for decades?

Therefore, for a democratically elected government, it is generally a matter of wrangling with the opposition parties during its term of office, and is rarely able to implement any long-term plans. The Attlee cabinet is going to reorganize the military command structure. If it really chooses the second option, it will be really serious. .

It is precisely the enemies of the free world who are making long-term plans. The advantage of the system lies on the other side, not on our own side.

"No need, just wait." Mountbatten shook his head slightly, "I have been handling the handover with Charles Ram these days. He will hand over to me as First Sea Lord. I will go to the Ministry of Defense to take up my post. From now on, I will It doesn’t just belong to the Navy.”

"A person always needs a bigger stage." Alan Wilson flattered him without any trace, and then said, "Actually, I came here to say goodbye. An incident occurred in Kuala Lumpur, and I have to rush back to deal with it. The matter is urgent."

"What's the big deal?" Mountbatten looked serious after hearing this. There were not many things that could make this son-in-law anxious.

"I can handle it." Alan Wilson looked solemn, but in fact he didn't take it seriously at all. It was his previous fishing for law enforcement that finally led to the Chinese storming the East Africa Office in Kuala Lumpur and killing the black people inside on the spot.

How many people died was not mentioned in the telegram. It was only known after returning. Mountbatten did not ask any more questions, "I haven't seen Pamela for a long time. I really hope she stays for a while."

"I'll tell her directly, but it's up to her to make her own decision." Alan Wilson can also understand. Mountbatten is also almost sixty. Although his appearance is worthy of the rank of marshal, at this age he begins to value Family is human nature.

"Then I will stay for a while, and then I will find you." Pamela Mountbatten felt a little guilty. She didn't live in London very much now, and her parents were taken care of by her sister Patricia.

"Well, I'm not in a hurry. I hope my subordinates have figured out how to make excuses before I arrive in Kuala Lumpur."

Alan Wilson made a joke, and he was already thinking about how long it would take to pass through Paris, Rome, and finally reach Kuala Lumpur. He was giving his subordinates a time to verify their abilities, and it was definitely not about test driving a luxury car.

A few days later, Chief of the Defense Staff Field Marshal Mountbatten went to No. 10 Downing Street at the invitation of Prime Minister Attlee. Prime Minister Attlee saw Mountbatten coming and directly informed the cabinet meeting of the results of the discussion on the reorganization of the military command structure, "I "We and the ministers all believe that the establishment of a Ministry of National Defense with unified military responsibility will play a good role in streamlining military command structures and responding to rapid response threats."

"I thought the cabinet would choose a transitional plan." Mountbatten did not hide his surprise in front of the Prime Minister. "In fact, for a government, adopting a transitional plan is the general choice."

"Yes, but I chose to do it in one step." Prime Minister Attlee raised his head slightly, with a killer instinct bursting out.

Seeing that the command structures of the Ministry of War, the Ministry of the Navy and the Ministry of the Air Force were merged into the Ministry of Defense, Mountbatten was actually the commander-in-chief of the British armed forces. In a sense, he was more effective than the Secretary of Defense.

Mountbatten also knew what he was going to face, and could only promise, "I will complete this work as soon as possible."

He knew that his position as commander-in-chief was not for nothing. The Labor cabinet gave him such great power just to streamline the reorganization of the military organization.