Soviet Union 1991

First update

After the Indian delegation's military sales visit, the Soviet Union started the so-called "Far East Development Project", which may be the last major event that Yanayev has to complete as the general secretary. 〈??[Compared with international political struggles, the total amount of natural gas, oil and coal stored in the Far East will bring the Soviet Union's future profits. This is the last plan that Yanayev needs to complete during his two years in office. As long as the economic foundation is laid for this huge empire, they will move forward on the road of history according to inertia. Even if a leader is replaced, as long as the basic national policy is not changed, the Soviet Union will continue to maintain a high momentum and move forward.

Although Yanayev may not be able to see the steel torrent return to Europe during his term, he can meet the rise of a red empire transformed from an old shell, which is undoubtedly a nightmare for the West. Therefore, Yanayev's Far East Development Project has attracted the attention of other countries from the beginning. In particular, European countries that hope to lock the Soviet Union in Eastern Europe are eager to trip up the Soviet Union's rise.

The Soviet Union's plan to develop the Far East first attracted the attention of Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto. Since the Soviet Union and Japan cooperated on military projects, the previous diplomatic dilemma has been opened. Moreover, the Soviet Union's concession on the issue of the Southern Kuril Islands is the greatest political benefit for Japan. When the director of the Special Committee on Northern Issues, Matsushita Nakahiro, met with the Soviet delegation, he emphasized the cooperative relationship between the two countries. It was also because of that ice-breaking trip that laid the foundation for the friendly development between the Soviet Union and Japan.

With this relationship, Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto naturally noticed the Far East development project proposed by Yanayev, and naturally smelled business opportunities from this project.

Ryutaro Hashimoto believed that this was an opportunity for the Soviet Union to revitalize. The Far East development project meant that the Soviet Union was transforming the backward infrastructure in the Far East, and Japanese companies could also take advantage of this opportunity to transport oil from the Far East to Japan. After all, Japan had a time to trade oil with the Soviet Union, but because of the international situation, Japan had been importing crude oil from Saudi Arabia. When crude oil prices rose, the increase in transportation costs also caused Japan to have to find new oil countries.

Yanayev was considering another move, about the oil transportation plan between Japan and China.

As early as the beginning of 1997, the Chinese and Japanese governments had sent delegations to Moscow to discuss the oil project plan. They deeply realized the importance of cooperation with the Soviet Union, a major oil-producing country. As the Middle East region has already begun to fight, unstable oil sources will become a restriction for developing countries. And this is even more of a constraint for a country with scarce resources like Japan.

At this time, the Soviet Union's Far East development project coincided with Japan's predicament. For Japan, the Soviet Union's abundant oil and various minerals can just meet the needs of Japan's production development, and mining is cheaper. Moreover, Yanayev believed that Ryutaro Hashimoto had the idea of ​​building a pipeline from the Far East to Japan.

In the original history, the dispute over the Far East oil pipeline was finally settled in 2005. At that time, the Russian government abandoned the Anda Line and the Anna Line that China and Japan were fighting for, and decided that the Russian state-owned oil transportation company would build an oil transportation pipeline from Taishet to Nakhodka, which is commonly known as the Taina Line.

Of course, Yanaev will first plan to build the Taina line this time, relying on oil sources in Western Siberia, Irkutsk Oblast and the Yakut Autonomous Republic, to supply oil to the Asia-Pacific region. The Soviet Union is the biggest winner of the construction of this oil pipeline.

The Anda line proposed by China can only supply oil to China, while the Taina line also supplies oil to Asian countries such as Japan, South Korea and China, and can also cross the Pacific Ocean and transport it to the west coast of the United States. This is not only conducive to the Soviet Union to obtain more lucrative oil profits, but also conducive to the Soviet Union using the energy card in great power diplomacy to maximize its international interests.

In a word, the current deployment of oil pipelines is completely in the hands of the Soviet Union. What Yanaev needs to consider is the maximization of the Soviet Union's political interests. On this point, Yanaev still needs to discuss with Comrade Ryzhkov.

"Maximize strategic interests?" Ryzhkov coughed. Since he had been in the position of Chairman of the Council of Ministers for a long time, he realized that his position was at this step. There is also Pavlov above him, and he can no longer climb up.

"General Secretary Yanaev, what you need to consider now is not the relationship between you and Japan, but the relationship between you and China. Although the Soviet Union and China are now cooperating because of Japan, this friendship is fragile at present, and it stems from the mutual vigilance and distrust between the two sides."

"What do you mean?" Yanaev asked.

"If the Soviet Union really wants to cheat China, it means that it is very likely to push China to the United States because of the oil issue. Yanaev needs to consider one thing clearly. In the current international situation, whoever can win over China to form an alliance will have the advantage of dominating the world. The United States no longer has this opportunity because of its own relationship policy."

Ryzhkov said, "We need to use an oil pipeline to tie China and the Soviet Union to the same line. Even if we are attacked by the United States, it is a relationship of lips and teeth, rather than watching the other side kick us when we are down."

"So?" Yanayev said with a wry smile. He didn't expect that the Soviet Union, which carried the banner alone, would eventually fall to the point of forming a political group with its former enemy.

Ryzhkov said, "The Anda Line cannot be cancelled, but because nearly one-third of the Anda Line pipeline is laid in other countries, we need to compromise this plan. In short, we must take into account the feelings of the Chinese side and maximize our interests."

"This is really a difficult choice." Yanayev scratched his head. If according to Ryzhkov's statement, the next negotiations will be a tough tug-of-war, and there may even be a stalemate.

Ryzhkov said, "Believe me, General Secretary Yanayev, this is the most cautious approach. But we don't have to worry too much. The Soviet oil company will properly solve this problem." (To be continued.)8