The Ukrainian attacks had ceased, and a deceptive calm had settled over the forward base. North Korean Garrison Commander Major Kim gazed out of his tent’s small window, watching his men splash in the stream, their laughter a stark contrast to the grim reality of their situation. The Russians, their co-defenders, had left. Supplies had dwindled to a trickle. The peace was a mirage, and Kim knew it. The Russian command had abandoned them, a consequence, he suspected, of his refusal to attack a column of refugees months prior.
In the face of this betrayal, Kim’s mind drifted to the news from Beijing, where a grand military parade was being held to celebrate cooperation between Russia, China, and North Korea. From the briefings he had received, the spectacle was a display of advanced technology, showcasing China’s growing military prowess. Analysts like Ying-Yu Lin and Raymond Kuo had been keenly watching, reporting on a new emphasis on counter-drone systems and airborne early warning aircraft, a clear lesson drawn from the widespread use of drones in this very war. China, it seemed, was preparing for the future of “system-of-systems operations,” a concept that felt impossibly remote to Kim, trapped in this isolated pocket of the past.
The parade had also highlighted China’s developing nuclear “triad”—a combination of land-based, air-launched, and sea-launched nuclear weapons. Kuo had noted the development of new land-based silos, as well as the progress of bombers like the H-6, and the stealthy, sea-launched JL-3 ICBM. The idea of a nuclear submarine launching a missile with five minutes’ warning, a capability designed to offset the weaknesses of other systems, was a chilling thought. It was a testament to a global power no longer content with a doctrine of “minimal retaliation” but instead building an arsenal to ensure its survival in the face of a perceived threat from the United States.
Yet, as he watched his soldiers, Kim felt an immense disconnect. The high-tech displays in Beijing seemed to belong to a different world. Here, the reality was one of abandonment and impending doom. The grand cooperation his country’s leaders were so proud of, a partnership built on military aid and a shared opposition to the West, had proven disastrous for his company. It had delivered his men to a forgotten outpost, where they were to be sacrificed for a cause that no longer seemed to include them. The young soldiers in the stream were not combatants in a grand strategic game; they were boys. And as the sun began to set, casting long shadows across the stream, Major Kim wondered how he could possibly convince them to die for an alliance that had already chosen to let them.
All names of people and organizations appearing in this story are pseudonyms
Leaders gather in Beijing for military display – as it happened
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