Empire of the Ring

With the help of Kazakh intelligence agents, all of Aliyev and his family’s money deposited in tax havens were withdrawn and real estate in each country was disposed of.

Apart from gold bars, a combined 19.4 billion dollars were collected from cash and real estate sales even though the Kazakh royal family was yet to find out all the real estate and investment funds purchased under the names of Aliyev’s aides.

Despite harsh interrogations, the Aliyev family still did not open their mouths to any unlisted real estate or deposits.

Although the intelligence agents threatened the family that it could not leave the royal territory unless they confessed what they knew, they did not budge.

It was because Aliyev knew that the more time he took, the safer such properties would be as it would give time for his aides to dispose of them.

Aliyev’s jet, super-sized yacht, and the island in the Virgin Islands were not disposed of but registered as royal property.

They would not be sold at their proper prices anyway, so they would be used for external business purposes.

“Why don’t you meet Aliyev in person since he’s not opening his mouth?”

Park Jong-il, who had been struggling with Aliyev for days, asked Youngho for help as no further progress was made.

“If I come in, he will be too ashamed to open his mouth.”

Aliyev had promised Youngho to leave with dignity, but what he did was the complete opposite.

“It’s because over time, his aides will dispose of the properties arbitrarily.”

“All of his aides are under house arrest or serving jail time, so just take your time and persuade him and his family.”

“I’m glad then, but we can’t keep them here forever. It would be fatal to the royal family if the word spreads out.”

The Aliyev family was staying at a safety house at the Arirang royal territory.

Although it was to be kept secret, many people were involved to monitor the Aliyev family, so rumors could spread over time.

It would not have been a problem if they had been arrested and taken to Azerbaijan right away, but the royal family would be in trouble if it was rumored to have taken the Aliyev family in secret. People could think that the royal family had a secret political deal with Aliyev.

“If it’s that disturbing, move them to the royal villa in Kyrgyzstan. Also, scare them that they will never be able to leave Central Asia if they don’t open accounts or real estate under borrowed names.”

“Why don’t we just make a compromise and tell him that we will preserve a certain amount of property for him?’

“We’ve been more generous than enough not to tell the whole world about his crimes, but you want me to pay them, too?”

“I’m not saying we should give them a lot, but wouldn’t they change their mind if we promised enough money to spend their old age comfortably?”

“Hmmm… That’s a way… Well, I’ll leave that up to you.”

Aliev’s properties under borrowed names must be secured, even if Youngho had to make a compromise.

The money found so far was an astronomical amount of money, so the wealth Aliyev accumulated under borrowed names would be formidable as well.

“I’m going to start buying fighter jets with the slush funds we’ve seized this time.”

Youngho wanted to buy more F-35 fighters through Michael from the U.S. CIA.

Kazakhstan had been continuing to bring in fighter jets, but this time he was planning to buy more aircrafts to establish up to three fighter squadrons and two more attack helicopter squadrons to increase Kazakhstan’s land deterrence which was comparatively weak compared to the naval deterrence.

***

As a result of the increased money from Aliyev, the royal family increased the amount invested in Krasnoyarsk.

The Russian government also welcomed the development of Siberia which was pushed back among Kazakhstan’s priorities due to the battles with China.

Soon after, the Volga-Baltic Waterway would also open, so Putin was eager to develop Siberia.

This was because mineral and forest resources in Siberia must be developed to benefit from the opening of the canal.

Putin was anxious when the development slowed down due to the circumstance, but when the Kazakh royal family spurred the development, he was immensely thankful.

When 500 million dollars was deposited into Russia’s Alfa Bank from the Kazakh royal family, Putin immediately called Youngho.

-Your Royal Highness, I see you deposited funds into Alfa Bank.

“I heard that your foreign exchange situation is a little difficult these days. It’s a small amount, but I hope it helps. Sooner or later, more money will be deposited into the Bank.”

-I’m so grateful… Thanks to you, foreign investors would have been relieved of a lot of anxiety.

“The opening of the Volga-Baltic Waterway will give Russia wings. European countries that need raw materials will never turn away from the canal.”

When the canal was announced to open soon, the interest of European countries was great.

If the volume of trans-Siberian train was added together, the volume of the canal would be beyond imagination.

If that happened, Europe would also benefit as well.

Europe was also struggling in the swamp of recession, so expectations for the canal were very high.

-It’s all thanks to you.

If Putin, who was known for his pride and arrogance, expressed his gratitude this much, he was being frank.

“It was possible because you made a proactive decision. Also, I’m investing because it’ll be profitable for me, too.”

-Anyway, thanks to your support, we’ve been able to dilute the image of a rogue country by a lot. I’ll be preparing a separate gift as a token of gratitude.

Putin’s praise continued after that.

Although Youngho was embarrassed, Youngho accepted Putin’s debt because it was desirable for Kazakhstan’s well-being.

“Your praise makes me feel a bit proud. How did you know that I’m very weak at compliments? I can’t wait to see what kind of gift it is.”

-Hahaha… Yaniv told me that Your Highness is very greedy for land. Russia has plenty of lands, right? It might not be very useful, but I’d like to give it to you.

There was no useless land.

Even the abandoned Siberia turned out to have all kinds of inexhaustible underground minerals and oil.

“No gift is as precious as land to me. It’s also an opportunity to attract more Western capital into Russia. All you have to do is hold your hands behind your back and relax.”

-Hahaha…

Putin’s smile was especially frequent today.

How could it not be welcomed? The more foreign capital came in, the higher his approval rating would be.

-With your involvement, the relationship between Russia and Kazakhstan is getting stronger. Let me know if there’s anything we can do to help. I’ll do everything I can.

It was what Youngho wanted to hear.

Russia was the next country after the United States in terms of military power, although it had recently been reduced to a paper tiger.

Even if China was pouring huge military spending, it could not keep up with Russia, which had formidable destructive power.

Thinking that it was an opportunity, Youngho hinted at Putin.

“Your Excellency, as you know, China and our country can no longer go back to the way it was before because of the Uyghur and Tibet incidents. Of course, international relations can change but it will be quite difficult to restore our relationship. Our country can no longer step down as well. So I’m telling you, China and our country are likely to clash.”

From the moment Youngho mentioned China, Putin listened without replying.

Although Russia’s relationship with China was not very good, he was in a position to speak for China in the international community because both were socialist countries.

It was also a very burdensome story for Putin.

“There may be times when our relationship with China may put you in trouble. If that happens, could you take a neutral stance?”

As long as Russia would not side with either side, Kazakhstan could focus its force on China only.

-I understand what you mean. As far as the two countries are concerned, I will take a neutral stance in any case. I fully understand your position in supporting the independence of Uyghur and Tibet.

“Thank you for understanding. Tibet handed over the ball to India, so we’re not burdened, but we have to help Uyghur because it is of the same people. We can’t ignore the public sentiment.”

-I understand. You couldn’t have allowed the suffering of the same people.

Putin seemed to fully sympathize in following the public sentiment.

Putin was also keen on the direction of public sentiment.

“I don’t want to run Uyghur. I’m going to be satisfied by helping the people become independent and providing a foundation for their self-reliance.”

Putin would be afraid that the neighboring country Kazakhstan was becoming bigger and bigger as a federal country.

This would definitely be an obstacle for Putin, who dreamed of becoming a tsar.

That was why Youngho mentioned that he had no intention of absorbing Uyghur.

-Russia has made it a rule not to get involved in the affairs of neighboring countries. We would be happy to give a boost to Kazakhstan, once our federal state, but we won’t give a boost to China.

Seeing that he made quite sensitive remarks, Youngho thought he should deposit more investment funds in Moscow’s Alfa Bank soon.

The dollar would be more welcomed than the friendship with China for now.

“Just by listening to your word, I feel like I’ve won thousands of troops and horses.”

-Our countries have been blood allies since the Soviet era. It’s still the same. Will your arms be bent inward or outward? Russia will always support Kazakhstan.

Since Putin made it clear to his support for Kazakhstan even by citing a blood alliance, Youngho added what Putin wanted to hear.

“I will visit Moscow with my foreign friends at the opening ceremony of the Volga-Baltic Waterway.”

-You are welcome anytime. I’d like to hold a ceremony by the end of this year. Does that work for you, Your Highness?

Putin was eager to have Youngho’s visit soon. It seemed his approval rating had fallen a lot these days.

“It’s the final stage, so we can have a ceremony within this year. Then I’ll see you in Moscow next time.”