Empire of the Ring

“Commander Jun, we have a message that says the Indian Navy is blocking the port of Male.”

“India must have been anxious, too. I wonder if the Maldives, an independent nation, would be silent about this.”

“What would a powerless country do? It’s not like us, Kazakhstan. Our government is supported by the powerful royal family.”

“We’re indeed blessed. As long as there is the royal family, the future of Kazakhstan is solid. If we get large submarines in the future, no one will touch Kazakhstan in the ocean, so look forward to it.”

“I heard His Highness said he would build three or four ships, not one.”

“He’s a big spender. It’s good for our Navy, but I’m afraid the Army will be jealous.”

“The Army has also built a huge missile defense network and introduced three Apache helicopters, and they have a conscience, they can’t be more greedy. What are you worried about? Besides, His Highness also used to be in the Navy. He favors the Navy. Wouldn’t he back us up more?”

“You’ve got a point. Should I ask for more then? It’ll be great if we had an aircraft carrier, too?”

“Oh, now you’re being greedy, but an assault ship is a hundred times more efficient than an aircraft carrier.”

“Hahaha…”

“Any other orders from the U.S. Navy command ship?”

“There was no special order. I think we’re just going to wait and see.”

The U.S. Navy was only standing by without special action because it believed that the Chinese Navy would not be able to use force recklessly, as such action could lead to political, military, and economic conflicts. It was especially so because the U.S. and China were the biggest trade partners to each other.

“The Chinese people who are crawling into a place that is like a courtyard of others are very quite crazy. They want to keep the world in their palm. Why is the U.S. keeping quiet?”

“Do you think the U.S. is just watching? If China goes on like this, it’s like encouraging China’s behavior.”

“Well, since the U.S. is in charge, it’s none of our business.”

“Commander, I don’t think you are very interested in this.”

“His Highness told me to take it easy, but personally, I’d like to launch a missile to the Chinese fleet near the port of Male. It’s all because of them that we missed the first commission ceremony of the Naval Academy.”

“But I hope you feel better now that we have shown the status of our navy, properly to the Chinese navy.”

“In that sense, we gave our hand to India and the U.S. in the Maldives, and we’ve shown our navy’s status to China, so we’ve killed two birds with one stone. We’ll have a lot to say when we get home.”

“It won’t be enough to talk all night. I’ve got it all recorded in a video, so I’ll show it off to everyone.”

“That’s right. Sometimes this kind of power struggle without an actual fight has a greater propaganda effect than winning a small battle.”

“I hope the operation will be over soon.”

“Why? To return to the royal territory and show off?”

“Yes, we should brag about it. We must also let the public know about their morale.”

“Well, just take a lot of plausible footage.”

***

“Your Highness, the Chinese navy sneaked out as the Indian Navy displayed its will to fight.”

“It’s so bland. Well, I guess it’s better to be patient with each other.”

“The situation is not over yet. Seventy percent of the Maldives’ foreign debt is owed to China. If you pay off the Maldives’ debts, it would change. At this rate, the Maldives will be gulped down by China.”

Suh Min-seok displayed the data he retrieved about the Maldives.

“Is this from our intelligence service?”

“Yes, it is. It also details the activities of the opposition party of the Maldives. The politicians of the opposition party are strongly opposing the current administration for selling the Maldives to the Chinese government.”

With China accounting for more than 70 percent of the Maldives’ external debt, China was rushing to hand over management control of its ports and other infrastructure facilities, just like Sri Lanka, instead of debt repayment.

China’s colonial looting was already well-received.

This was a typical way to take over land or infrastructure and operate if the debt could not be paid back.

“The U.S. intelligence is working on it, so it’ll be taken care of. If it released part of the intelligence service budget, the amount of Maldives’ debt is not a matter.”

“But it’s true that the Maldives is under Chinese influence. The fact that China’s leadership visits the Maldives in person and the President of the Maldives recently visited China does not seem to be normal.”

Although it was a small island country, it was a strategic point that China or India was so hung up on it.

“It’s known as a country with a lot of islands. How many are there?”

“The data shows that there are 1,190 islands and only 200 of them are inhabited.”

“Since the island of Somalia is not an answer, should I buy an uninhabited island in the Maldives?”

“Wouldn’t China be in a rage?”

“Maldives is still an independent country. India is trying so hard, so let’s give it a hand.”

Youngho had been thinking about this since he was told that the Kazak naval vessels needed oil supply. This was because if a base was in the Indian Ocean, it could operate more efficiently.

“Your Highness, Our task force can stay in the Indian Ocean without provoking China. There is an Indian military base in Seychelles, north of Madagascar. The data shows that port construction and runway construction are currently underway.”

“Really? There is a military base in India in Seychelles?”

Seychelles was an island country about 1,650 kilometers east of the African continent.

India’s ambitious military base on Assumption Island in Seychelles, a small island country in the Indian Ocean, was built to counter China’s One Belt One Road.

India was keen on China’s advance into the Indian Ocean because there was an important route that accounted for 50 percent of the world’s oil supply.

About 40 million barrels of oil a day were passing through the Strait of Hormuz, the Strait of Malacca, and the strait south of the Red Sea between the Arabian Peninsula and the African continent.

Also, more than 70 percent of India’s trade volume was carried out via the Indian Ocean. Thus, the construction of a Chinese military base in Maldives was a threatening move for India.

“We’ll have to leave it up to Mittal. Secretary Suh, call Mittal’s secretary’s office and check if he’s available now.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll check it out immediately.”

The reason why Youngho suddenly wanted to visit the steel king of India was that he was close to Indian politicians.

Mittal, who tied India and Kazakhstan to military cooperation, also helped Youngho to take a step in the development of the Iranian port of Chabahar.

Youngho remembered Mittal when he heard that there was an Indian military base in Seychelles.

“King of Steel” would remind people of Carnegie in the United States, but the steel king of the 21st century was Lakshmi Mittal, the chairman of the world’s largest steelmaker.

The company’s annual production capacity currently stood at 113 million tons, more than double that of Nippon Steel Corp which was the second-largest steelmaker.

He was ranked third to fourth in the world in terms of wealth, which was equivalent to that of Bill Gates and Warren Buffett.

A friendship with a man of enormous financial strength was necessary for Kazakhstan as well. This was because Mittal would invest more in Kazakhstan.

Another reason why Youngho wanted to include Mittal was that he was patriotic to his nation, India. He would thank Youngho for including him for a political matter.

After busily making a phone call and talking, Min-seok handed over a phone to Youngho.

“Mr. Mittal. It’s been a long time since I talked to you.”

-Your Highness. How have you been? The Kazakh navy is very active these days. Thank you on behalf of India.

“I’m embarrassed to be thanked for nothing. Of course, we should help each other.”

-India also has a lot of praise for Kazakhstan’s Royal Navy. The Kazakh and U.S. navies backed us up and drove out the Chinese Navy from the Maldives.

“The captain of our fleet said that our fleet didn’t do anything except for sailing around the waters of the Maldives.”

-It’s because such great ships were around that the Chinese Navy didn’t attempt to do anything reckless.

“It’s good that no armed conflict has occurred, but I’m worried about the future.”

-Well, we can’t help it. The Indian government will never sit back and watch China make inroads into the Indian Ocean. I heard that the reason why the Indian Navy refrained from attacking the Chinese fleet was because it did not want to be disgraceful to our allies.

India must have been very determined as Mittal said it and even expected an armed conflict.

“Kazakhstan is very supportive of the Indian government’s free navigation policy. In the future, we will often see our navy’s activities in the Arabian and Indian seas.”

-Thank you. Your Highness, I must convey your message to the Indian government. Do you have any other needs?

Mittal was indeed a merchant.

He knew that Youngho did not just call to have a small talk.

“There’s a military base in Seychelles. I’d like to use it for our navy, but I need your help.”

-If that’s the case, you could’ve talked to the Indian Prime Minister directly.

“Yes, but wouldn’t it be smoother if you stepped in?”

-Thank you for involving me in this important work. If the Kazakh Navy were to use it as a military base, the Indian government would welcome it. We welcome a strong ally, and there is no reason to oppose it. I’ll have the ambassador based in Kazakhstan visit you tomorrow.

“You don’t have to do that. If the chairman opens the door, we’ll formally request it from the Indian government.”

-All right. The use of the Seychelle Base is a done deal, so don’t worry.

The fact that he showed confidence for a job that had yet to be accepted by the Indian government was that he had the ability to control the Indian government with his influence.

What would Kazakhstan mean by requesting to share a naval base? It would mean to see China as a common enemy. This arbitration meant much more than that, so the position of Mittal in India would be strengthened.

-Your Highness. You gave me this big gift. What should I do in return?

“I didn’t expect anything, but would you like to come to Kazakhstan if time permits?”

-If you request it, then I shall visit you before any work.