Battlefield Pacific

The Xi’an Accords — Eastern Alliance

The city of Xi’an had once been known as Chang’an, which translated in English as “eternal peace.” It was a fitting name, considering the meeting that was to take place within its city limits. The city was also the endpoint of the famed Silk Road, the meeting of East and West that had introduced Europe to Asia and spurred economic trade that still continued to this day. In addition, the city was also home to the famed Bingmayong (Terra Cotta Army).

Today, the leaders of Asia who weren’t included in the new American-led Global Defense Force would meet to discuss joining a similar alliance. It had been incredibly difficult to organize — especially with war spreading to more and more countries across the globe — but the leaders of India, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Russia and the Stan countries of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Iran, Syria, Yemen, and Sudan were set to discuss the future of the world, and a new treaty that Russia and China were spearheading in response to the West’s creation of their new Global Defense Force.

Looking out the window of the presidential suite, Xi noticed the slight drizzle of rain had now turned into a steady downpour, bringing much-needed rain to the city of Xi’an. The moisture helped to remove the pollutants in the air and lowered the level of smog in the city, at least for a few hours. Despite the rain, the hotel building was bustling with security both inside and out. High above the city, fighters patrolled the skies to help ensure no American bombers tried to attack the facility that was playing host to this crucial meeting, one which in all reality would most likely change the future of the world.

Looking in the mirror, President Xi felt confident about the proposal they would be discussing. While the Americans were negotiating the creation of a new military alliance, Xi was also negotiating a global realignment that he believed would change the course of history — one that would see America and Europe replaced as world powers, with China and Russia as the new global leaders of the 21st century. He made a last-minute adjustment to his tie and then quickly headed toward the door and the elevator that would lead them to the conference room for the negotiation.

As he walked into the ornately decorated conference room, Xi surveyed the other leaders at the table. He smiled when he spotted Petrov sipping a cup of tea, grinning and talking with President Pranab Nath Kovind of India. Sitting next to them was President Jusuf Subianto of Indonesia, who didn’t look happy to be in this meeting, and Prime Minister Najib Razak of Malaysia, who was equally unenthused.

“They will come around to our line of thinking, or they will be replaced by leaders who will see the benefit of being a part of this new world order,” thought Xi as he forced himself to keep smiling and play host and salesman.

As Xi continued into the room and slid into his spot near President Petrov, the discussions of the various leaders slowly ended, and all eyes turned to him. Petrov smiled and nodded toward Xi, which reminded President Xi of the conversation the two of them had had the night before, strategizing ways to work the room. Xi took the nod as Petrov’s signal that he was carrying out the plan they had discussed.

Xi cleared his throat. “Welcome, gentlemen. Prior to the Second World War, France, Great Britain, and the nations of Europe ruled most of the world as colonial powers. They divided the world up, drawing national borders with the intent of pitting us against each other to keep us weak — to keep us focused on fighting each other so that even in relinquishing colonial rule, they could still hold power over us.”

He tapped the table for emphasis. “Following the end of the end of World War II, the United States joined their elitist club. And what have they accomplished for the good of humanity? They brought us the two world wars, then they instigated the Cold War against the peace-loving people of the Soviet Union and spurred numerous regional wars, using them to gain access and control our national resources for their benefit, stripping us of our wealth.”

Xi surveyed the other world leaders. So far, their affect was flat. He continued, “When a government didn’t bow down to their authority or corporate interests, they interfered with our internal elections and actively worked to subvert our governments. In many cases, they’d be the driving force behind a coup or popular uprising to install their own puppet regime. Look at what the Americans did in Chile, installing that brutal dictator Pinochet rather than allowing the people to form their own socialist government. Even more recently, we can look at Libya, a nation that functioned and provided for its people. Now it’s a complete mess run by warlords and terrorists.”

Xi looked directly at each of the leaders from Muslim-dominated countries, making sure he had their full attention before he continued. “In 1949, the West unilaterally took the lands of Palestine and gave it to the Jews to create the nation of Israel. The West, led by the United States and Great Britain, have meddled endlessly in the Middle East, stoking one war after another, all in the name of ‘freedom.’ In reality, it’s just a ploy to enrich their nations at the expense of those who cannot resist them.”

Several leaders nodded, and Xi smiled inwardly. “The West looks to divide us and corrupt the minds of our youth. They insist that we accept their moral perversion of homosexuality, and this mental disease they call transgender. They pervert our religious views and insist that we change our culture, religion and belief systems to accept what they deem acceptable to their version of freedom. I say enough of this moral depravity and the insistence that we adhere to their forms of government, religion, and morality.”

More leaders nodded. The only exceptions were the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Thailand, and Malaysia, who looked on with passive expressions.

“During the past six months, the Russian Federation and my nation, China, have shown you that even the vaunted American military can be defeated on the battlefield. Now is the time to unite and finish the West off,” Xi concluded. He nodded to Petrov to take the lead.

President Petrov went over the progress his forces had made in Europe, and how the Allies had essentially fought themselves into a stalemate. He talked about the battle losses the Allies had sustained, and the estimates of what it would take for their economy to replace them. The more he talked about these specific facts, the more interested the leaders at the table seemed to be.

Seeing that the audience was moving more in his favor, Petrov decided to drive the point home. “Now is the time for everyone to unite and stand against the imperialist nations of the West. If we unite and act now, we can secure a better future for our nations. If we sit by and let this opportunity pass us by, then we will never be able to break free from their yoke of bondage they’ve kept us in,” he said, rapping his knuckles against the table. Petrov went on for some time, discussing what needed to happen for them to defeat the Americans and the nations who were allying themselves with the West.

President Reza Pahlavi of Iran interjected, “With all due respect, Mr. President, Russia is being bombed into submission by the Americans. The Americans and NATO countries are amassing hundreds of thousands of soldiers on your border. My own military advisors don’t believe your regime will survive another year of this war. Why should Iran join this alliance if it appears that it’ll be defeated within the year?”

“That’s a fair question,” responded Petrov. He leaned forward in his chair. “While the West is building up their forces in Europe, significant challenges still need to be overcome if they are to remove my forces from Ukraine and the Baltic States. Even now, we’re starting to see the Americans buckle under the strain of fighting a multifront war. They had to sacrifice the Baltic States because they had to rush forces to Korea. Now they’re having to fight a much slower war of attrition in Korea because they cannot commit their entire military to that fight without conceding defeat in Europe. Likewise, they can’t commit to defeating my forces in Europe because they’re heavily engaged in Korea.”

Petrov paused for a second, letting some of that information settle before continuing, “Gentlemen, we have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The Americans and the West are realizing that they’ve overextended themselves and are unable to respond to everything that is being thrown at them. If there were ever a time to remove the Americans from the world stage, it’s now, before they can fully retool their economy and rebuild their military. We must put them down for the count now, or we may never get another chance like this again.”