[Mohoender]

2011
From the beginning of the year, the global economy shows a few signs of recovering as the various policies engaged by the western countries are bringing their first positive effects. Heavier control are put on all branches of the economy, renewable energies take a larger place, low consumption engines are becoming the rule and some countries (among them Canada and USA) start to exploit oil shale. On March 2, the oil price goes down and stabilizes at about 160$. Meanwhile, It seems that NATO might soon catch up with Warsaw Pact 2.

The situation is very different when one looks at the third world. In these regions the situation is far from improving and the various unrest that evolved toward insurgency continue to grow. Food riots appear again in many countries and the various insurgent movements are quickly getting stronger, putting a heavy weight on most governments. Drug cartels are also increasingly powerful and put more weight on the authorities trying to fight them. In early fall, a nasty civil war erupts in Nigeria, involving both religious and ethnic issues, and the countrie’s oil exportation almost come to a stop (the oil price rises above 200$ again). Ethnic wars are also taking place in Central Africa and northern Cameroon while Asia isn’t spared with fightings in south-western Myanmar.
On April 24th, an Ukrainian Brigade launches an attack on a Russian Battalion in Crimea. The Russians are taken by surprise and no one survives. Three days later, it is realeased that all Russian taken prisoners had been shot in the head and that attack becomes know as the “Easter Massacre”. The Russians are outraged and the army move more units to the Ukrainian border. Claiming that Crimean is illegal, Ukraine launches an offensive on May 3rd. For a week the attack is successful and the siege of Sevastopol is laid. On May 20th, R.U.S.S. troops launch a counter-offensive along the entire Ukrainian border and, within 5 days, the Ukrainians are retreating from all positions except in Crimea.
On June 1st, most of the Ukrainian navy has been sunk, the air force has suffered heavy losses and Russian tanks are closing on the Capital at Kiev. the Ukrainian President (who remained in office despite accusation of corruption in the elections of 2010), claims that his actions were justified by the Ukrainian right to defend its territorial integrity and turns to its NATO partners for assistance. This demand receives support from countries of eastern Europe and a number of troops (Czech, Lithuanians, Poles, Romanians and Slovaks) cross the frontier into Ukraine. Within a week, Albania, Denmark, Estonia, Hungary, Italy, and Slovenia demand that these troops withdraw to their start line and (when these demands have no effect) withdraw from NATO in protest. British, German, and U.S. forces, however, cross the border to Poland and Kaliningrad falls by the end of the month. At that point, the other countries are still partners in NATO but not party to war.
In the Caucasus, Russian troops make a bid for quick victory in Azerbaijan and Georgia. This meet with tremendous success and they link with Armenian forces within three days. NATO advisors chose not to surrender and they enter Turkish Kurdistan despite protest by Turkey.
A similar attempt is made in the far north and Russian forces enter northern Norway. Nevertheless, the troops available are unable to break through to the paratroopers and marines landed in NATO's rear areas. As crack British commandoes, French Foreign Legion and U.S. Marines join the battle, the front line moves east again toward the Russian naval facilities on the Kola Peninsula. Many elite Russian paratroopers and marines are isolated and destroyed while NATO troops are pushing toward Murmansk. They are only stopped 60 miles away from the city by a massive counter-attack conducted with Russian’s third line troops.
At sea, the Soviet Red Banner Northern Fleet sorties and attempts to break through the Greenland-Iceland-United Kingdom Gap into the north Atlantic. For three weeks the opposing fleets hammer each other, and the Russian fleet performs well to western military specialist amazement. The Russians supports their fleet with bombers that prove capable of swarming two U.S. aircraft carriers with a large number of missiles. One of the carrier sunk when its magazine explodes while the other is put ashore on the Norwegian coast. The Russians also use most of their submarine fleet (including all the Delta-class SSBN) in an offensive role. These ships are equipped with a new type of anti-ship missile and they are resonsible for the loss of several NATO vessels, including the HMS Illustrious and the Foch. Finally, receiving reinforcements, the western fleets come out on top, badly bloodied but victorious. Sixty percent of the Russian northern fleet tonnage rests on the bottom of the Norwegian and North seas, the Ulianovsk and the Nakhimov are sunk but the Kuznetsov, the Orel, and the Piotr Velikiy rally Murmansk. These ships have suffered extensive damages but they may be repaired and continue to represent a serious threat to NATO control over the Atlantic. All Typhoon-class SSBN (but one) and all the new Borey-class SSBN as well as scattered commerce raiders break out, however, and by year's end the raiders are wreaking havoc on the NATO convoys bringing reinforcements, ammunition, and equipment across the Atlantic.

In the Baltic sea, while most NATO vessels are fighting off the coast of Norway, various raids are launched against the depleted German and Polish harbours. These attacks are essentiualy conducted by commandoes coming from by sea and by air, using fast assault boats, helicopters, and hovercrafts. Most attacks are highly successful and NATO ports are baddly damaged while many of the remaining ships, through minor vessels, are sunk.
In the Balkan, when Romanian police shoot and kill a man crossing the border between Hungary and Romania, the Hungarian government suspends diplomatic relations. The Romanians claim he was a smuggler, bringing arms to antigovernment forces. Three days later, a Romanian railway station in Cluj is blown up and the Romanians conduct mass arrests of Magyars throughout Romania. However, police sweeps are met with armed resistance and, within a week, a secessionist Magyar government declares independence from Romania. As what little remains of Romanian troops move north to crush the rebellion, the Hungarian government protests, is ignored, and then declares war. This conflict remains local, however, and a cease fire is signed within two weeks, Romanian troops withdraw and Hungarian units enter the secessionist region as peacekeepers.
As Hungarian troops enter Romania, Serbia joins with Warsaw Pact 2 and, within 24 hours, a Serbian expeditionary corps cross into Romania, strengthening the front that had already been opened by Bulgaria. That second front is a real threat to Romania and Greece is charged with breaking the will to fight of the Bulgarians but the modernized Bulgarian army fights well and the Greeks are stuck on the southern mountain range making only marginal gains in the south-east. As the situation slowly evolves toward stalemate, NATO offers full membership to Ushtria Çlirimtare e Kosovës (UÇK), to Croatia and to Bosnia-Herzegovina, which they accept. They launch their own offensive and, despite fierce resistance by the Serbs, they are quickly advancing toward Beograd but, when several Russian units are shipped to Bulgaria, the balance is tipped again.
In Italy, the government’s decision toward NATO results in a major political crisis and huge demonstrations are taking place in Rome and in the south. After two weeks of unrest, a majority of the army moves in on behalf of the Lega Nord (LN) led by a young man named Stephano Rossi. Allmost all of the navy and a fair part of the air foce join with the army in backing up the Lega Nord bid for power and they establishes the Republic of Padania over the industrial north with a capital at Ravenna. In Rome order is restored under an initiative from Pope Benoit XVI and the Catholic Church takes over the Lazio and Sardegna, composing a much wider Vatican state. Over the southern part of the peninsula, including Sicily, the Partito Popolare Italiano (PPI) under Toni Saglione creates the Napoli Republic, immediately reviving the membership to NATO.
In Latin America, over July, a revived and strengthened Sendaro Luminoso (Shining Path) guerillas, claiming that all socialists have betrayed the revolutionary spirit, turns to U.S. for support and make a bid for control of Peru (it is rumored that U.S. special forces were involved). They fail to overthrow the government but they end up controlling about half of the country, however.

2012
In February, the Greeks appears increasingly tired of the war and they start to blame Turkey for their army’s lack of success. Anti-turk demonstrations are held all over the country and in Cyprus. On the island, the Cypriot national guard fires at Turkish units and Ankara reacts by sending reinforcements while Greece dispatches military advisors and diverts a number of combat aircrafts to support the island national guard. More fighting occures and Turkey declares war on Greece, attacking in Cyprus and launching a large offensive in Thrace and East Macedonia. The Turks are quickly progressing in the Greek rear areas toward Thessaloniki and several units are taken out of the Bulgarian front to face this new threat.
In late March, Macedonia and Padania concludes a defense pact with Turkey. While both countries are not obligated by the pact to enter the Greco-Turkish war, both governments declare the war to be a regional conflict unrelated to the more general war raging over Europe, promising to intervene on Turkey’s side if NATO tried to tip the balance in Greece’s favor. Within a week, Turkey declared a naval blockade against Greece and warns the world’s shipping that the Aegean is now considered a war zone.

In an attempt to take advantage of the situation, Russian, Bulgarian, and Serbian troops return to the offensive on the entire front. They make some significant gains when Latvia, Lithuania, and Kaliningrad fall to their advancing forces. With the coming of spring, however, and with more reinforcement coming in (Belgium, Canada, France, and the Netherland are sending troops), the Warsaw Pact offensive comes to an halt and, in April, the first NATO troops cross the frontier into Belarus. By June 17th, Riga is within gun range, Minsk is surrounded, and Belarus army units as well as the citizens of the city prepare for a siege.
By late spring, NATO’s Atlantic fleet has hunted down the last of the Soviet commerce raiders. Attack carriers and missile cruisers move again to northern waters in order to face the continuous threat of the surviving Russian capital units. The NATO drive in the north has been pushed back in and bogged down on the banks of the Tana River, but the Northern Front commander plans on a bold move to destroy the Russian naval and ground power there. While ground units attempt a rapid outflanking move through northern Finland, the NATO Atlantic Fleet close in on Murmansk and Severomorsk. subjecting the Soviet fleet anchorages and air bases to massive bombardments.
On June 7th the ground offensive is launched and the fleet closes in on the Kola Peninsula shortly thereafter. Finland had been expected to offer token resistance to the violation of its territory; instead the Finnish Army fights tenaciously, forcing the flanking move to abort. At sea the plan fares even worse, as coastal missile boats and the remnants of Northern Fleet supported by what was left of the shore-based naval aviation cripple the NATO fleet. By mid June, the Russian capital ships have finally been destroyed but NATO losses are tremandous and, at that moment, two major naval fleet in the world have been shattered.
In the south, the fronts in the Balkans stabilize and enter a period of attritional warfare but as Turkey pressure on the Greek left flank in Thrace builds, it becomes clear that, without aid, the Greek Army will have to fall back or be defeated. On June 27th, a NATO convoy, accompanied by a strong covering force, attempts the run to the Greek port of Thessaloniki with badly needed ammunition and equipment. Fleet elements of the Padanian and Turkish Navy intercept the convoy and, in a confused night action off Thessaloniki, inflict substantial losses and escape virtually unharmed. Two days later, NATO retaliates with air strikes on Padanian and Turks naval bases.
On July 1st, Turkey declares war against NATO while Macedonia and Padania, in compliance with their treaty obligations, follow suit on the 2nd. Then, Padanian airmobile, alpine, and armored units cross the passes into Tyrolia where scattered elements of the Austrian Army resist briefly before being overwhelmed. By mid-month, Padanian mechanized forces are debouching from the Alpine passes into southern Germany and advanced elements are attacking German territorial troops in the suburbs of Munich. In the meantime, Macedonian units are slowly pushing toward Thessaloniki while the Napoli Republic is alreeay reduced to Sicily. For a time, the Macedonian and Padanian armies enjoy tremendous success as most of their opponents had already been at war for six months or more. The Macedonians and Padanians have intact peacetime stockpiles to draw on but, as time goes by, they began feeling the logistical pinch, aggravated by the increasing flow of munitions and equipment from the factories of their opponents.
With the coming of the fall season, it becomes obvious to the Russian central command that the recovering industrial machine of the western countries will soon tip the balance in favor of NATO. Despite the stalemate in the Balkan and in the Arctic, and continuing successes in Ukraine, Moscow will certainly have to commit more troops to the war effort. If victory is not coming quickly, it may even have to draw on mobilization-only divisions that are still largely leg mobile and poorly stiffened with a sprinkling of obsolete tanks and armored personnel carriers. Its own industry is already working at its best but more equipements will quickly be needed and, by late November, a call is made on China for fresh equipments. Beijing, more than happy to remain outside of the conflict comply and Chinese-made weapons are sent in large quantities through the Transsiberian.
In the U.S., the presidential election has been cancelled because of the war and Congress confirmed the current President in office. However, the heavy losses endured by the navy chocked the population and the secretary of defense is arrested on charge of treason while an unknown Admiral becomes the new Secretary of Defense.

2013
When the U.S. citizens get word of Chinese equipments being sent to Russia, they are outraged and the U.S. President send an ultimatum to Beijing, leaving two days for the Chinese President to resign from Warsaw Pact 2. On the following, day, two major offensive are launched in Asia and Russian troops are landing in Hokkaido (Japan) while Chinese and North Korean troops cross the 38th parrallel into South Korea.
The Pact is highly successful in Korea, destroying the South Korean air force, sinking its navy before it can leave to the open sea, and conquering most of country except for a small area covering 50 miles around Pusan. However, the operations in Japan are an entirely different matter as the Russians fail to take the JGSDF by surprise. After, limited initial success, the landing forces is expelled and the retrating troops are shipped back to Vladivostok.
In february, the U.S. navy has gathered an important fleet and launches a joint operation with the Japanese and Taiwanese fleets. This will last for two months but when the operation come to an end the joints fleets virtually destroyed their opposing forces: only small ships survive in China and North Korea while the Russian Pacific Fleet has lost almost ninety percent of its naval surface vessels. At that time, more reinforcements from Japan and ANZUS have been brought to South Korea and they start their own push toward the 38th parrallel, crossing it within weeks and bringing fighting to Pyongyang. The allied naval forces are badly battered but they remain operational and have enough strength to launch a major landing in the Hong Kong area. This is involving troops from ANZUS, Japan, the Philippines and U.K., and they start a push toward central China. Meanwhile, Viertnam has joined with the allied and its army is crossing in Yunnan and Guangxi facing heavy fighting in southern China. The allied enjoy rapid initial success, and tank columns roared deep into southern and central China. However, the Chinese surpassed the expectations of most military analyst in their ability to mobilize reserves from the interior and shift them to the fighting front. While the allied continued to make impressive gains, their losses mounted and the tempo of advance went down.
Pakistan falls to a Taliban regime and the country drift into war with India through a spiral of border incidents, mobilization, and armed clashes. Tensions over the Kargil district of Kashmir are growing quickly and, if the new Taliban regime blame the fighting entirely on independent Kashmiri insurgents, documents left behind by casualties show involvement of Pakistani paramilitary forces, led by Pakistani Generals. As a result, the Second Kargil War is initiated; limited at first, it turns to outright war in the early fall and, by year’s end, the Indian Army is slowly advancing across the length of the front, despite fierce resistance.
This far, the Middle East was spared despite several arm clashes on Iraqi-Turkish border but that changes when China gets into the war. The allied have assembled a large coalition, including troops from Egypt, France, Iraq, Jordania, Saudi Arabia, U.K. and the U.S., and they move against Syria and eastern Turkey with Israel launching its own offensive against Syria and Lebanon. Turkey sends as much troops as it can to face this new threat and the allied are finally stopped on a line running from Batman to Erzurum and Kars. Meanwhile, Syria and Lebanese are doing great and the allied attack is stopped at Dayr-ez-Zor while heavy fightings are taking place in the Bekaa Valley and in South Lebanon. Hezbollah and the regular armies are using small infantry fighting teams equipped with a large number of the best Russian RPGs. Both Tsahal and the allied are losing tanks fast and only the timely arrival of airborne troops prevent total disaster. In April, a major Shia insurgency begins in Baghdad and, at the end of the month, when it becomes clear that Iran is behind it, NATO declares war on Teheran.
By the beginning of May, the Iranians are using land based anti-ship missiles and effectively cut down shipping in the region. Several vessels are taken out of Asia and rushed to the Persian Gulf where landings are made at Bender Busher and Bender Abbas. These are conducted by British, French, and U.S. troops that quiclky move north as other forces enter Iran from the west. Also facing icreasing involvement of Jundullah in the Baluchi’s region, Teheran is well aware that it cannot meet this invasion alone and the Mullahs legalize the Tudeh again (Iranian Communist Party) as Pact units from the Caucasus and Central Asia enter the Middle East.

In Europe, the Pact is bringing in more troops and the progression of NATO is not as impressive as expected. It is only by early october that advanced elements are closing up on the Russio-Belarus frontier, while continuing the siege of Pact-held Minsk. On the Italian Front, with the French still stuck on the Alpine range and the Napoli Republic reduced to the sole Sicily, Padanian forces are holding their grounds and the southern frontier of Germany as well as most of Austria remain under their control.
In Africa, ethnic tensions are now spreading like a plague and only a few countries escape the growing chaos. Latin America, however, remains outside of the conflict but experiences growing tensions and instability. Several people in Europe and in the USA expected the Latin Social Union to ally with Warsaw Pact 2 but they remain neutral and, despite several verbal attack, Venezuela keep selling oil to the western world.