When Shi Fangwen came again. It's already evening. The two made a little preparation and went to the General Staff by car. Although according to the new establishment system, after Pei Chengyi went to the Physics Experiment Center, all the work was responsible to the Military Intelligence Bureau. Yuan Chenhao is responsible to the Ministry of National Defense, but according to Xiang Linghui's request, those who attend important high-level meetings will be the first to report to the General Staff Headquarters, and then go to the Yuan Mansion together. It may seem like an ordinary arrangement, but it has an extraordinary significance. Even soldiers who no longer understand politics can see that Xiang Linghui expressed the attitude of the army through this move, that is, no matter who is the chief of the general staff, the army is a big piece of iron.

Is that really the case?

On the way to the General Staff, Pei Chengyi and Yuan Chenhao did not talk about internal affairs in the army, but focused on a hot spot in Ping. That is, the situation in the Middle East.

After World War II, the region of the Middle East was called the "powder keg of the world", counting the four or seven years of the Iranian War, in just a few years, the region broke out three Middle East wars, the Iran-Iraq War, the Gulf War, the Iraq War, a total of seven wars, as well as countless armed conflicts, large and small. In terms of the frequency of wars, the Middle East is undoubtedly the most lively region in the world. It wasn't until the end of the Iranian war that the region calmed down a little. For the same reason, all previous wars in the region were related to oil, and when oil was no longer the number one strategic resource, the situation in the region naturally eased a lot. In a sense. Israel was able to reconcile with the Arab countries, in particular by allowing Palestinian statehood. It is because the Middle East is no longer the most important strategic point in the world.

Rise because of oil. and decline because of oil. It is probably the truest portrayal of the Middle East.

More importantly, the reality is that with the end of the Great Depression, the gradual formation of the Sino-US Cold War, the unwillingness of Europe and Russia to become second-rate countries, and the desire of regional powers such as Iran, Israel, and Egypt to play a more important role in international affairs, the Middle East has once again become a strategic hot spot. The hottest of these is none other than Israel's long-standing feud with Iran.

Simply put, there is no contradiction between Israel and Iran.

Historically, Judah and the Persians did not have a blood feud.

The contradictions between Israel and Iran, so to speak. It is who controls the contradictions in the Middle East.

When the United States brazenly sent troops to attack Iran, it was the strong support of the Republic and Russia that Iran did not become a second Iraq, but finally became an aggressor after several years of arduous resistance and became one of the largest powers in the Middle East.

It's just that the current Iran is no longer the Iran of the power years ago, and the current republic is not the republic of the blade years ago.

In fact, during the Iran war. It is not the republics that actively support Iran, but Russia. At that time, the Republic of China had just experienced the East China Sea War, and the army had exposed a lot of problems, and Zhao Rundong was engaged in military reform, and used military reform to compete with Zhang Maobang for military power, so neither Zhao Rundong nor Peng Maobang paid much attention to the situation in the Middle East. After Russia made it clear that it would support Imin, the republic was naturally happy to be a good man, and did not take more proactive actions other than to provide necessary military assistance such as weapons and equipment.

This attitude of the republic had a great impact on the situation in the Middle East after the Iranian war.

Although the Iranian authorities have never denied the help provided by the Republic, many Iranians, including some Iranian politicians and military personnel, have always believed it. If only the Republic could be more active, as it did when it helped Pakistan. If more aid is provided to Iran during the war, the Iranian war will not last for several years, Iran's losses will be much smaller, and the price to the United States will be much greater. More importantly, the final outcome of the Iran war is not the withdrawal of US troops from Iran, but the emergence of Iran as the hegemon in the Middle East.

As a direct consequence of this thinking, Iran is more inclined to cooperate with Russia in its foreign policy.

Not to mention, after the end of the Iranian war, the Iranian authorities did not give more preferential treatment to the oil enterprises of the Republic except for the transfer of the exploitation rights of some oil fields to the oil enterprises of the Republic in accordance with the agreements reached with the Communist Party of China during the war, and even increased the nationalization rate of the oil fields after the war, and competed with OPEC for energy pricing power by withdrawing from OPEC and forming an "oil and gas exporting group" with Russia, Venezuela, and Libya and Syria, which eventually led to a situation of confrontation between the two energy blocs.

There is no doubt that this is a situation that the republic does not want to see.

In fact, OPEC is dominated by the financial conglomerates on Wall Street in the United States, while the newly formed energy conglomerates are dominated by Russia. Because OPEC mainly exports oil, while energy groups mainly export natural gas, the two groups dominate the international fossil energy market. What's more, there are no seats for republics in this system, that is, republics have no voice. There is no pricing power. Prior to this, the Republic of China had accelerated the development of controlled fusion nuclear power plants on the one hand, obtained energy pricing power through "inter-state bargaining" on the other, and achieved some achievements with the help of the global financial crisis. With the creation of the Energy Group, all the achievements of the republic were in vain. Although the biggest promoter of the energy group is Russia, Iran's role in it cannot be underestimated, you know, in the energy group first controlled the pricing power of natural gas exports, Iran is the world's second largest natural gas exporter, and it is also the second largest day of the republic

It can be said that the influence of the energy group on the Republic is far greater than that of any other international.

Because the main power to price energy was in the hands of other countries, the republic had to make a concerted effort and bet all its bets on new energy sources, which later became controlled fusion nuclear power plants. Affected by this. Since the beginning of the fourth year, the Republic has invested trillions of dollars in the development of new energy and the infrastructure related to the promotion and popularization of new energy. If there is no other way, it is impossible for the controlled fusion nuclear power plant to be officially put into operation in the era of gravity, let alone enable the Republic to achieve an absolute leading edge in this field.

In addition to technology, the greatest impact is the basic strategy of the republic.

Prior to this, the republic's tendency towards alliance with Russia was very pronounced. Although the leaders of the two countries know in their hearts that two neighboring and ambitious powers cannot become allies in the true sense of the word, and in addition to the historical problems between the two countries, any degree of cooperation is a temporary cooperation of interests, not a long-term military and political alliance, but before the Korean Peninsula War, that is, before the Republic has to face the challenge of the United States. The relationship between the republic and Russia is more like a paramilitary alliance, that is, the attitude and tactics of the two countries are basically the same on international issues of interest. The most representative. It is the Iran war, which has allowed the United States to taste defeat for the first time in the century.

After that, not only did the republic not have the possibility of an alliance with Russia, but it was fortunate that it did not become enemies. In fact. If it weren't for the Great Depression that swept the world, which made Western countries with the United States take care of themselves, and made Russia, which had just ignited its ambitions, honest, I am afraid that soon after the end of the Iran war, the United States would have used Russia to contain the republic, or even let the republic fight with Russia first.

In a sense. The republic, not under the influence of the Great Depression, concentrated its efforts to sweep the surrounding areas, had the effect of warning Russia. In particular, three regional wars of great scale. The Republic swept the Korean Peninsula like a whirlwind, then destroyed Japan like a wreck, and finally defeated India like Mount Tai, all of which had a great deterrent effect on Russia. It can even be said that the concessions made by the Russian president at the London summit and the signing of the Treaty of Ethics have a lot to do with the republic's performance in the previous three regional wars, especially against the nuclear forces of Japan and India. No one denies Russia's status as a nuclear power. However, no one denies that as the national strategic defense system of the republic matures, Russia's nuclear weapons will sooner or later become decorations, and even cause death. In fact, at that time, the Republic had already reached a tacit understanding with the United States that if Russia was unwilling to make substantial concessions in the negotiations on the complete elimination of nuclear weapons, in addition to considering various sanctions, it was very likely that the two major powers would join forces to overthrow the Russian regime.

It can be seen that after the Iran war, the relationship between the republic and Russia was more of a competition and confrontation.

Although several top leaders of the country of the republic have made it clear. There are no serious territorial disputes between the republic and Russia, and the problems left over from history have long been properly resolved, in order to reassure the Russian authorities. The leadership of the republic has even repeatedly stated publicly that the republic will not seek to change the current state of relations with Russia and will not do anything that will harm relations between the two countries, for which 2 years later. The authorities of the Republic have rejected Mongolia's request for the return of Mongolia three times in a row and have repeatedly restricted the activities of private enterprises in Mongolia in the Republic. But the more the republic deliberately downplays the contradictions with Russia, the more it unsettles the Russian authorities. In the words of a deputy of the Russian State Duma: The republic dares to kill more than 100 million Japanese, and can attack India, which has a population of 1.7 billion, and will certainly not have any concerns about annexing Siberia to the Far East.

In fact, Russia has been strengthening its military forces in the Far East for many years.

After the Peninsular War, Russia accelerated the pace of its strategy to consolidate the Far East. Four years later, the construction of the second railway line from Tyumen to Komsomolsk between Siberia and the Far East began, and although the Russian authorities announced that they would invest trillions of rubles to build the railway within the year, the actual progress of the project should be obtained quickly, and by the beginning of the mine it had been opened to traffic in sections, and it is expected that the entire line will be opened to traffic before the beginning of the year. In other words, the railway, which was originally built in the year of the sword, was actually only built in the old year, for which the Russian authorities will pay more rubles, that is, the cost of the project with interest. Obviously, the Russian authorities attach great importance to this railway, and the root cause is the high concern of the Russian authorities about the republic, believing that the republic, after solving other peripheral problems, will point the finger at Russia.

The fact is that in the face of the threat of the republic, Russia has almost no other options.

Although no one denies that Russia has the strength to destroy any adversary, or even the entire human race, no one denies the strategic strike power of the republic, as well as the strategic defense strength. Because Russia's national defense system is far from being capable of actual combat, the gap between Russia and Russia is too obvious when it comes to competing for strategic forces.

Other words. Unless Russia's leaders are willing to bear the risk of total national annihilation, it is impossible to use nuclear weapons in a confrontation with a power of the rank of a republic. Of course, the Russian authorities also have reason to believe. In the case of a limited nuclear threat, as long as the authorities of the republic regard the United States as their number one adversary, they will not risk a few pounds on their homeland. Major cities were hit by nuclear strikes, and several losses were made. Eight risks. War against Russia. It is precisely in this way that the main way for Russia to deal with the threat of the republic is to choose the right political position.

The Russian authorities did not blame the republics excessively in the war on the peninsula, the war between Japan and India. Even secretly supporting the republic, it is not difficult to understand.

To put it simply, the republic and Russia have both contradictions and cooperation.

In terms of contradictions, the most direct manifestation is geopolitics.

Although the border issue between the republic and Russia has been largely resolved, leaving only half of the Black Blind Island unresolved, there are contradictions between the two countries in many hot spots. There are three representative regions, one is Central Asia, the second is South America, and the third is the Middle East. Central Asia is Russia's traditional sphere of influence. Although the republic was very successful in Central Asia during the Great Depression by strengthening economic cooperation. But with the end of the Great Depression and the improvement of the Russian economy, the situation has again become favorable for Russia. Among other things, after the military coup d'état in Uzbekistan, the prime minister of the provisional government who came to power first visited Moscow not in Beijing. The opposite is true in South America, where Russia has long since begun to infiltrate the region, but it is ultimately America's backyard, with very limited Russian influence, and even Venezuela threw itself into the arms of the republic a few years ago.

With the end of the Falklands, the influence of the Republic in the region will be greatly strengthened, and those countries that have previously defected to Russia will make a new choice.

The real suspense is in the middle of the question.

There is no doubt that the boss in the Middle East is still the United States.

After the Iran war, the United States did everything in its power to promote reconciliation between Palestine and Israel. It seems that this move by the United States is a strategic retreat. In fact, it is an offense based on defense.

At that time, the Republic and Russia were in the limelight, and the Republic alone sold arms to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Oman, and Syria and Egypt, which had been buying weapons and equipment from the Republic, except for Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq, which had not purchased weapons from the Republic, other Middle Eastern countries had become customers of the Republic's ** fire dealers. The arms trade is a bellwether for politics, with the exception of Syria. Other Middle Eastern countries that buy weapons from the Republic are also customers of the US ** arms dealers, and they buy much more arms from the United States than from the Republic, but these countries spend money on arms from the Republic and in fact express a certain message that is not very favorable to the United States, that is, if necessary. They will take refuge in the republic.

The United States forced Israel to make concessions and did not hesitate to get rid of the two Israeli prime ministers in order to ease the contradictions in the Middle East and thus stabilize those Arab countries that were distracted.

What's more, after the Iranian War, the republic faced one conflict and three wars, and simply had no energy to advance westward. Although the Republic of China quickly became the world's largest arms exporter under the influence of the South China Sea War, the Korean Peninsula War, the Japanese War and the Indian War, among which the countries in the Middle East region made no small contribution, but in the final analysis. In the case of the temporary inability of the republic to advance westward. The United States remains the boss in the Middle East.

This raises the question of who will stand up to the United States?

Countries with a bit of power want to get a foot in the Middle East, because the Middle East doesn't have oil. Even if there is only worthless yellow sand, it is also a strategic place. Just take a look at the map. To the west of the Middle East is the Mediterranean Sea and the European Union, to the north, Turkey, which is close to the United States, and Russia, which is on the verge of movement, to the east is South Asia, which has just fallen into the hands of the Republic, and to the southwest, the last African continent that is not controlled by the great powers and is the source of humanity. Whether it is the Western world led by the United States, the Eastern Bloc led by the republic, or the European Union and Russia, which want to achieve a higher position, as long as they want to make a difference in the world, they must make a difference in the Middle East.

The United States lives in Israel, and the Republic plays the arms card, all in order to make a difference in the region.

There is no doubt that Russia does not have such good basic conditions.

For Russia, the only option to make a difference in the Middle East is to exploit Iran's ambitions to actively support Iran as a regional hegemon.

On the other hand, Iran has no other choice.

Neither the United States nor the Republic of China supports Iran as a regional hegemon, because the two major powers do not want a regional power in the Middle East. Obviously, the Iranian authorities could not count on the United States. At a time when the attitude of the republic is very ambiguous, the Iranian authorities can only pin their hopes on Russia. In fact, this is also the key reason why the Iranian authorities hitched a ride on the Russian tank after the war in Iran.

In addition to Russia, the European Union is also actively involved in the Middle East.

Although the EU's actions are not obvious, only in Libya, Lebanon and Jordan, traditional powers such as France and Germany already have good relations with countries in the Middle East, so the EU's influence cannot be underestimated, and it can even change the strategic balance in the Middle East if necessary.

It can be seen that the Middle East is the most complex region in the world.

Undoubtedly, this is the key reason for the republic's reluctance to intervene in the Middle East.