Chapter 1457: The Fire of War Rekindled
Twenty kilometers north of Aguachica, Highland 744.
It was the front line of the standoff between South Colombia and North Colombia. A battalion of soldiers was stationed here, as well as mortars, recoilless launchers, and other infantry support weapons.
The height of the main peak was complemented with the second peak and formed high and low firepower vantage points. The jagged terrain greatly strengthened the defense’s advantage, which made Highland 744 a nightmare for all attackers.
During the last civil war, the South Colombian guerrillas sacrificed nearly one battalion of troops before they took this position from a NATO reinforced company. The first thing the commander of South Colombia ordered after they took this position was to reinforce the fortification.
Reality proved the commander’s foresight.
When the flame of war was reignited, the highland to the east of the North Columbia defense line was like a nail smashed deep into the hinterland; it directly pierced into the palm of the North Columbia and NATO Coalition Force…
BOOM!!!
The deafening sound of artillery explosion disrupted the tranquility of the night, and bursts of smoke densely covered the defensive positions from the mountainside to the top of the mountain. One after another, the flares that crossed the top of the mountain turned the entire night sky into broad daylight.
“…This is the 6th Battalion of the 11th Mountain Brigade. We’re under bombardment by North Columbia! I Repeat, we’re under bombardment!”
Dirt and cement flew freely in the air as he tried to communicate with the command headquarters, but the buzzing around him made it impossible to hear anything.
The roar of artillery almost interrupted the call. The post located halfway up the mountain was hit by carpet bombing from North Colombia. The battalion commander was curled up in the crooked trenches as he roared into the radio with his hoarse voice.
Everything happened so unexpectedly. Even though they had made enough preparations for this day, they were still caught off guard by the ferocious attack of North Colombia.
The forces gathered by North Colombia surpassed one brigade, and the defensive scouts even saw tanks and armored vehicles under the mountain.
The suppression of the artillery stopped momentarily, and the North Colombian soldiers gathered at the foot of the mountain had already begun to attack. The gunshots appeared from the foot of the mountain all the way up. The tracer bullets fired by heavy machine guns formed countless lines of death in the air, then immediately followed was the combat with less than 30 meters in between the two forces.
The dark night disguised the bloody killing, and all deaths happened in close proximity.
When daybreak approached, the 7th Battalion and the 19th Battalion from South Colombia that arrived for reinforcement, were still a step behind. Highland 744 was lost, and the North Colombian soldiers who consolidated their position on the hilltop would require South Colombia to use significantly more force to recapture the lost position.
“These shameless liars!”
Timoshenko slammed the phone on his desk and cussed out inside his office.
Just now, the announcement of the declaration of war in North Colombia was sent to his desk along with the news of the loss of Highland 744. The nonchalant tone of the North Colombia ambassador made him feel angry. If it weren’t for the risk of offending the entire international community, he really wanted to catch the guy and gift him with a bullet.
“On my order, the 11th Infantry Division and the 13th Armored Division stationed in Medellin will mobilize to the frontline immediately. The 31st Mechanized Division who is training in Tumaco will report to me in Bogota immediately!”
“Roger!”
The officer that stood in front of the desk performed a military salute and immediately ran out.
Timoshenko took a deep breath and deliberated for a moment. Then, he grabbed the phone that he smashed onto the desk again and dialed the familiar number. He knew very well from the beginning that the power to decide the outcome of this war was not in the hands of the two protagonists on paper.
If Celestial Trade was unwilling to send troops, then the fall of South Columbia was only a matter of time.
…
After the ceasefire agreement was blatantly torn by North Colombia, the Colombian Civil War once again erupted.
The 100,000 Celestial Trade and NATO soldiers stationed in North and South Colombia were suddenly pushed from exerting pressure from the back to the forefront of the war. Now, NATO was the first to cross the ceasefire line and fulfilled its duties as an ally.
The Volunteer Army of Moro regrouped in Port Davao. This time it was not only Moro but even Country F and Madagascar, who were two countries that still had yet to establish a strong relationship with Celestial Trade, also sent a brigade of volunteers to support this war that determined the outcome in South America.
After the initial warning, Jiang Chen personally called the UA Embassy and used strong language.
“I will give you twelve hours to immediately return back to the ceasefire line. Within twelve hours, we will still recognize all the consensus reached by Sugar Cube Diplomacy. Twelve hours later, no matter what I discussed with your president a week ago, nothing will be recognized. Remember, you breached the agreement first!”
Perhaps it was because Jiang Chen didn’t mention the word “war” in the warning. Twelve hours later, instead of returning to the ceasefire line, the NATO Coalition sent five more divisions to Colombia. The provocative artillery fire even approached the Port of Tumaco where Celestial Trade was stationed. A large number of refugees poured into the Celestial Trade-controlled area from the front line. South Colombia was just like a small tree sampling in the eye of the storm; it was already on the verge of collapse.
After Jiang Chen listened to the report from the front line, he put down the phone, remained silent, then he looked up at Ivan, as well as the Celestial Trade officers that were all focused on him.
After a long time, he suddenly laughed and ridiculed in a half-joking tone.
“It seems that our warning was taken as an April Fools’ joke.”
Although the tone of this sentence sounded like a joke, Ivan, who had been with Jiang Chen for the longest, already sensed the imperceptible anger in his boss’s voice.
Someone was going to be out of luck.
…
“…They will not risk a full-scale war with the UA. After all, Sugar Cube Diplomacy had just ended. No matter whether it is recognized or not, Xin and the UA reached a consensus at least within that hour.” John McCain paused for a moment, then went on to say, “As long as we launch a blitzkrieg against South Colombia and announce the launch of the withdrawal procedure of the UA troops stationed in Nippon, it will inevitably confuse Celestial Trade and make them hesitate between war and no war, and buy time for us to win the war! ”
Graduated from West Point Military Academy, John McCain was not only an outstanding army officer but also a scholar with an international strategic vision. After Trump was elected, as a hawk on the Republican side, he was appointed as the Rainbow House National Security Advisor.
Mike Pence succeeded the unaccounted Trump as the President of the UA and retained the former president’s appointments.
Although North Columbia’s sudden tearing of the armistice agreement forced the UA into an awkward state, President Pence quickly accepted the views of John McCain and other pro-war officials, and decisively launched an all-out offensive against South Colombia.
“Are we really going to withdraw troops from Nippon?” Mike Pence frowned. “If so, our strategic triangle in East Asia will be broken, and we seem to lose more than we gain.”
Although the last president signed an agreement with Celestial Trade and Nippon on the withdrawal of troops, the cunning Hill did not initiate the withdrawal procedure during her tenure but left the issue to her successor.
Mike Pence could use Hill’s unconstitutionality as an excuse to delay or even refuse to implement the withdrawal agreement. From his perspective, it seemed like they were putting the cart before the horse and sacrificing the interest of UA in Nippon for Colombia.
“Withdraw? No, this is just our smoke bomb.” A sinister smile appeared on John McCain’s face, “We need this smoke bomb to buy us a month –”
Just now, the office door was suddenly pushed open, and their conversation was rudely interrupted.
A high-level Rainbow House official rushed in, with panic and anxiety written all over his face.
“What’s going on, Mr. Biverso, have you forgotten the basic etiquette of knocking before you come in?” Mike Pence said with dissatisfaction.
“Celestial Trade!” Gasping heavily, Biverso held the door frame as he tried to calm his breath.
“What happened to Celestial Trade?” Pence frowned.
“They, they sent troops!”