My own war game

Chapter 373 Turkish Brigade

The major was almost frightened by the red flag and ran away, but then he stopped because when the distance between the two sides shortened, the major saw clearly that it was a Turkish flag.

It turned out to be one of his own. The major relaxed and prepared to walk towards him to say hello.

But at this time he was stopped by a soldier beside him.

"Sir, I suggest you not to get too close like this. After all, what happened to the Turks before..." He Chi whispered in the major's ear.

Major Smith's face suddenly turned ugly, and he also remembered the glorious history of the Turkish troops.

The differences in the number of troops sent by each country in this "United Nations Army" are particularly great. There are countries like Luxembourg, which only brought 44 people, and there are also die-hard little brothers like Canada and Australia.

As a NATO observer country, Turkey sent troops this time as a token of surrender. It not only sent out the country's ace unit, the Turkish First Brigade, with a total of 5400 people, but also sent Brigadier General Yazici, a famous anti-British general, as the commander. (Some people also call it the First Division)

Theoretically, Türkiye's overall combat effectiveness can be ranked fourth among the "United Nations Forces".

Wait, why do you say in theory?
Because this unit's performance in the early stages of the Korean War was extremely strange. To what extent was it so strange? Turkey had twice mistaken friendly forces for enemies and beaten them up, and even captured more than 600 of Syngman Rhee's defeated soldiers in the battle.

Because of this behavior, although the Turkish divisions were quite capable, the coalition forces were very cautious in using them. (It was not until the Battle of the Han River and the Battle of Bailongshan in 1951 that the Turkish troops as defenders really achieved some results.)
This time, the U.S. 9th Army was blocked on the way home, and the coalition forces did not care about anything else. All the troops that could be mobilized nearby followed the U.S. military's outer rescue forces, and this Turkish force was pulled up.

Faced with such "friendly forces", Major Smith did not dare to be careless. He turned around and took out an American flag from the car, and held it high with both hands in the most conspicuous position above his head, for fear that the other party would not see it.

Although it's not very decent, it's the best way.

Later, among a group of Turkish soldiers wearing M1 helmets, the major and He Chi were given a special marching tent.

"Damn, these guys are still carrying cold weapons like headhunters." The major glanced at the scimitars still worn on the soldiers' waists and complained while eating instant rations.

Not only the major, but even He Chi was observing this mysterious Star-Moon Force.

The first impression is that this unit is actually very tough. They generally look physically strong. The infantry do not seem to be demoralized in the icy and cold weather, and the scimitars hanging on their waists are obviously not for decoration. These guys who claim to be descendants of Turks do have a kind of toughness.

The second impression was laxity. The soldiers seemed very casual when they were resting, people gathered in twos and threes, and some people were even talking loudly even when they were close to the battlefield.

"A team with brave individuals but poor discipline?" He Chi muttered in the corner.

But the next second, all the soldiers who were resting in various postures stood up and saluted. The supreme commander of this unit, Brigadier General Zigi, arrived.

With a thin face and a distinctive moustache, this national hero of Türkiye has an appearance that is easily remembered.

"Major Smith, the Brigadier General heard that you just came back from the front position. I need some information from you." The translator beside the Brigadier General asked in English.

Major Smith looked confused. The other party's accent was so strong that he couldn't hear clearly.

"Sir, let me do it." He Chi took the initiative to step forward and said in standard Turkish, "Mr. Brigadier General, I can convey your message."

The brigadier general looked at the soldier in front of him with some surprise, "You know Turkish?"

"Yes, one of my ancestors came to the United States from Istanbul." He Chi said nonsense. "Great! The translator assigned to us by the Allied Forces was accidentally injured, and our own people don't speak English very well. You really helped me solve a big problem." The brigadier general patted He Chi's shoulder happily. He looked like a bandit leader instead of a general of a country.

He Chi looked at the other person and suddenly remembered that this famous anti-British general in history had never learned English because of his national sentiment, and often had to carry a translator with him during the war to communicate with English-speaking countries.

This seems to be a good thing.

In the following time, He Chi completely integrated into the role of translator. The communication between the two parties depended entirely on him alone, and even the previous translator left.

"I just received news that the Chinese troops have occupied the entire Sansoli area. Since you have just withdrawn from there, I hope to know the situation there." said the brigadier general.

"We were evacuated in a hurry and didn't know much." (Major)

"We know that place well, please feel free to ask." (He Chi)

"How many people are there on the other side?" (Brigadier General)

"Very few, we only encountered one company, there should be a small force nearby." (Major)

"Quite a lot. We encountered one regiment alone, and there should be a large enemy force behind them." (He Chi)

"What is the enemy's weapon configuration?" (Brigadier General)

"It should be mainly light weapons. The most I saw was a recoilless rifle." (Major)

"They came with heavy weapons. I even saw a T34 tank." (He Chi)

...............

Similar conversations lasted for half an hour. Due to the contradictory news, the difficulty of the battle in Sansoli was infinitely magnified in Brigadier General Yazigi's mind.

The result was that the Turkish Brigade, which intended to avenge its previous defeat in this battle, should have historically requested to join the Allied Forces and been deployed to the front line.

Now, due to the commander's hesitation, the first echelon is composed of two American cavalry divisions, while the Turkish brigade is deployed to the second line of defense.

The tragic fighting in Sansho on the next day indirectly confirmed the authenticity of the information provided by the soldier. Looking at the heavy losses suffered by the 1st, 2nd and 7th Cavalry Divisions of the US Army, the general was very glad that he had made the right choice.

Of course, not everything on the battlefield can go as planned.

The coalition command was overwhelmed by the crisis of the Ninth Army, so there was a small problem when deploying the troops.

They arranged the camp of the British 7th Brigade, which was the second-line force, next to the Turkish troops.

Ever since these two feuding troops became "neighbors", the smell of gunpowder has been lingering around.

(End of this chapter)