Just then, two Secret Service agents stepped in front of Kuo, blocking his view, and said in a stern voice, “I’m sorry, sir. Please move along.” Masters, Elliott, McLanahan, and the big black general Kuo recognized as Terrill Samson, commander of all the heavy bomber forces in the United States, were quickly hustled away into the Cabinet Room to wait for their meeting with the National Security Council, and Kuo was politely but firmly escorted outside.
So! Kuo thought. The President was meeting with the three-star general in charge of all the long-range bomber forces, and also with Elliott, Masters, and McLanahan. Those three had an international reputation for developing very high-tech attack weapons that were reportedly put to effective use in conflicts from Russia to eastern Europe to the Philippines. Now that he saw them all together, it made very good sense that such forces were used recently against the Islamic Republic of Iran — to extraordinarily great effectiveness. Now, with a probable conflict between China and Taiwan brewing, the President was conferring with them once again? Could the President be considering the use of stealth attack bombers in the defense of the Republic of China?
Kuo Han-min filed that brief but extremely interesting chance encounter away in his head — the information might be vital someday very soon.
“Okay. We’re getting ready to side with Taiwan against China, which is bound to stir up some shit in the Pacific for sure,” the President said. “What about Japan and South Korea? I hope they’re not reacting.”
“I’ve spoken with Japanese deputy prime minister Kubo and President Kim of South Korea, and they’re watching events closely but not reacting, except for a few South Korean reinforcements along the DMZ,” Hartman replied. “North Korea is blasting Taiwan and saying they’re provoking war in Asia, but they don’t seem to be exacerbating any conflicts— at least, not more than usual.”
Hartman looked a little uneasy, and the President picked up on it. “What else? Did Nagai have a comment?” Kazumi Nagai was the new prime minister of Japan, an ultra-left-wing politician of the new Kaishin Party, a coalition of left-wing political parties including the Japan Communist Party. Nagai was staunchly but carefully anti-West and anti-United States; he’d won the recent elections by opposing continued U.S. military bases in Japan, by extending a two-hundred-mile Japanese economic exclusion zone around islands also claimed by South Korea, Taiwan, and China, and by calling for gradual increases in japan’s military expenditures and total Japanese nuclear self-reliance. Few of his more radical programs and propositions had been passed, but the favorable attention he was receiving in Japan was cause for concern in Washington.
“Exactly what you might expect,” Hartman replied with a sigh. “Kubo told me the Prime Minister is going to give a speech tomorrow, calling for the U.S. to end its support of Taiwan as long as they claim ownership of the Senkaku Islands. The buzz is that Nagai will call for the Diet to withdraw basing rights for U.S. warships if we continue support for Taiwan.”
“Christ almighty,” the President muttered. “Jerrod…”
“I’m ahead of you, sir,” Hale shot back, getting on the phone to order the staff to schedule a call to the Japanese prime minister’s office. From his years as vice president, Martindale had learned that a simple phone call to a foreign leader was worth a dozen communiques and State Department visits, and he spent quite a bit of time on the phone.
“Okay, so Japan and South Korea aren’t saying anything about Chinese military moves,” the President summarized. “It seems no one would really shed a tear — except Taiwan, of course — if China took back Quemoy, Matsu, or even Formosa.”
“That’s because Taiwan has a fairly balanced trading ledger and is a stiff trading competitor with everyone else in Asia — except the U.S. and China,” Hartman explained. “Taiwan is the ninth-largest economy in the world and competes as an equal with Japan, Indonesia, South Korea, and Singapore. But Taiwan has a ten-billion-dollar trade surplus with the United States and holds two billion dollars’ worth of U.S. currency and bonds. Its balance of trade is even more one-sided with China — all in Taiwan’s favor. Most Asian nations see the Taiwanese Nationalists as rabble-rousers supported by the United States, similar to Israel. They feel that China should absorb Taiwan as it is absorbing Hong Kong — as long as the Communists allow them to keep making money. ”
“What’s the balance of trade between Japan and South Korea and China?” Vice President Ellen Christine Whiting asked. A former governor of Delaware, Ellen Whiting’s expertise was economic matters, whether on a local, national, or international arena — she believed the world revolved around money, and she was most often correct. “China’s total economy has got to be, what? Ten times larger than Taiwan’s?”
“Something like that,” Hartman admitted.
“China is the trading partner everyone wants. Over a billion potential customers — that’s why almost every nation in the world, officially including the United States, has abandoned Taiwan in favor of mainland China,” Whiting maintained. “If China wants Taiwan back, who says the other Asian countries would stand in their way? Why would they make an enemy of China in favor of Taiwan?”
“So we shouldn’t expect too much help from our allies in Asia, should Taiwan come under attack,” National Security Advisor Freeman summarized.
“Privately, even secretly, I think we can count on Japan’s and South Korea’s support of any actions we undertake against China,” Hartman said. “Both countries still rely on us for their security and for general stability throughout Asia. If we want to support Taiwan against China, I feel Japan and South Korea will support us.”
“So we’re it,” the President said. “If the Chinese are going after Taiwan, we’re the only ones who seem to give a shit.” He paused, and the Oval Office turned quiet — everyone knew that the President was absolutely right. “And the bottom line is, I do give a shit. I don’t want war with mainland China, but I also don’t want mainland China taking Taiwan by force. They got Hong Kong back peacefully. If Taiwan and the mainland are going to be reunited, it should be done peacefully too. It would hurt our country if Taiwan was taken back by force.”
“No question,” Vice President Whiting joined in. “Trade, financial markets, multinational business, our national debt structure, our standing in Asia would all suffer if Taiwan was attacked and absorbed by Communist China.”
“Agreed,” the President said. “Question is, if the Chinese are moving against Taiwan, what do we have to stop them?”
“Ordinarily, I’d recommend instituting economic sanctions, pulling China’s most-favored-nation trading status, setting up another embargo of high-tech and military goods,” Hartman said. “But with China amassing this naval task force, I think it’s beyond economic warfare. We should hear some military options — low-key, quiet, not too bombastic.”
“We’ve got two briefings set up for you, sir,” Freeman said. “Admiral Balboa will brief the first recommendation, and Lieutenant General Terrill Samson from Eighth Air Force will brief the second.”
“Okay, let’s get to it,” the President said. “Where’s Admiral Balboa?”
Jerrod Hale was on the phone instantly to the White House Communications Center; he got his answer a few seconds later. “En route, Mr. President,” he replied, and motioned for the Secret Service to show the others in.
The President got to his feet as Terrill Samson, Patrick McLanahan, and Jon Masters were escorted into the Oval Office. “Damn, it’s good to see you again, Patrick,” the President of the United States said warmly, as he greeted each of them. “How the hell are you?”