Middle Eastern tyrants

Chapter 108 "Operation Five Cents"

“I appreciate your kindness, and I will pass on the goodwill from Ant to my son.”

Inside the meeting room, Prince Mohammed hung up the phone, turned to General Thomas of the United States beside him, and said helplessly, "As you can see, Ant wants to support us with weapons and equipment."

General Thomas immediately understood what Ant was planning: the forces they had previously supported were no longer of any use, and now they wanted to switch to a dark horse to continue their bet.

You, Ant, have bet on so many countries in the Middle East and haven't won, so now you want to snatch this last one from me?

The general thought to himself, "Blame your own incompetent subordinates!"

The situation in the Middle East is very delicate. After World War II, Ant and the United States joined forces to dismantle the colonial empire, but ideological and other factors have led to competition and antagonism between them, resulting in a major arms race.

General Thomas immediately expressed his support: "We will gather support supplies as quickly as possible and send them to the Western Front and Canam by air. Weapons and equipment will be provided according to his existing organization, but you will have to figure out the personnel yourself."

When he said this, he had long forgotten about the previous disagreement with Lu Lin during the military procurement. At that time, he had mocked Lu Lin as a noble young master who had risen to power through nepotism.

Of course, it could also be selective amnesia, after all, the United States is best at pretending to be ignorant when it knows the truth.

Prince Muhammad nodded: "Then it's definitely better to use the United States' equipment. My son needs a lot of shells, especially 155mm heavy artillery. The larger the caliber, the more comfortable he is with it. The more shells he has, the more fiercely he can fire!"

“That’s no problem,” General Thomas said, readily agreeing to do him a favor. “You can ask him if there’s anything else he wants, and I can send it over with him.”

Before the war, the United States not only demanded exorbitant prices for the equipment it provided, but also provided downgraded versions. However, after witnessing the defeats of other Arab countries, it began to reconsider whether it should loosen its grip a little.

Prince Muhammad: "The price is negotiable; the rest is up to you."

"Helping our allies is the United States' duty," General Thomas said with a "big brother" smile, then added, "Since we're going to be continuously airlifting supplies, for the sake of secrecy, let's give the operation a code name—'Operation Nickel Grass'!"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

When Lu Lin received a call from the prince inquiring about specific military supplies, he blurted out, "We need the air force! We need air force support!"

Indeed, the United States' "Top Number" operation was so effective that Lu Lin still vividly remembered it. After the anti-radiation missile destroyed the enemy's air defenses, the pressure on his frontal attack was greatly reduced.

Furthermore, since other Arab countries can no longer restrict Zion's air force, they are likely to become the next target of their attention.

It would be better to bring in Americans to share some of the pressure.

"Anything else?" Prince Mehmed asked. "Is there anything else you'd like?"

Lu Lin thought for a moment and said, "Anti-tank missiles, I'd say. In the current stage of defensive operations, anti-tank missiles are more effective than mobile tanks."

The main threat Ghanam now faces is to the north, where the remnants of the 38th Zion Division have retreated to Hit, no more than 200 kilometers away.

Meanwhile, there are also the Kurds further north, whose oil export routes have been cut off by Lu Lin, posing a potential threat as well.

As for Al-Iraq on the east side of the Euphrates River, this group is just waiting for Lu Lin to suffer a setback so they can jump out and negotiate.

Therefore, the Northern Expeditionary Force must seize the time to set up a defensive line.

Urban defense warfare has always faced four major threats: armored group assaults, air strikes, artillery suppression, and infantry infiltration.

The "Oakstick" missiles we bought from the United States were quite powerful, but their accuracy dropped significantly at a range of over 1000 meters, which was still within the range of enemy tanks.

What he really wanted was the TOW anti-tank missile from the United States. That thing was the real game-changer.

"Do you want the weapons from Ant?" Prince Muhammad asked.

Lu Lin: "Ant?"

Prince Muhammad: "General Vasily, whom you met once at the United Nations, greatly admired your performance in Al-Iraq and said he would support you with two armored brigades and a heavy artillery brigade. He hopes you can continue your efforts."

Lu Lin never believed in unwarranted kindness, but he couldn't figure out what was wrong with it.

"Alright, then bring it over." There's no reason to refuse something that's offered to you, so Lu Lin accepted it without hesitation.

After chatting with the old prince for a few more minutes, Lu Lin hung up the phone. Bandar came up to him and said, "I just went to the outskirts of Canam and took a look. Most of the permanent fortifications they built can still be used after some repairs. This is a good thing for us."

Lu Lin and his team were equipped with the M109, a high-explosive shell capable of penetrating 0.5-1.2m of reinforced concrete. However, the Zionians not only made it thicker than 1.5 meters, but also added a double-layer steel mesh and a sloping design.

Unless the same spot is hit repeatedly, it will at most create a deep crater on the surface.

Lu Lin thought for a moment: "There are quite a few broken-down tanks outside the city that need spare parts to repair. Let's pick some that still have their main guns firing and put them in there as gun mounts."

“Okay, I’ll get someone to get it done right now,” Bandar said. “And while we’re at it, we can remove the machine guns, which will give an infantry platoon some extra firepower.”

Bandar was referring to the commander's M85 machine gun, not the loader's coaxial machine gun. That thing has a huge recoil, but its power is also considerable.

The M85 can easily suppress lightly armored targets. It can be placed on the ground and set up on a tripod to become a fixed stronghold. Light tanks like the AMX series, which are favorites of the Kurds, have armor as thin as cardboard in front of the M85.

Just then, Yehena walked in carrying a can of cola. Bandar's eyes lit up, and he whistled, "Great! This is exactly what I wanted!"

Lu Lin picked up a glass as well and then asked, "Aren't you currently working with Taimiye to interrogate enemy personnel?"

Yehena explained, “The Imam Taymiyah has set up a ‘people’s court’ in the city to try those Zion’s prisoners and those who have committed serious crimes according to Islamic law, and then hand them over to the people to carry out the trials themselves. So there’s no need for me now.”

Lu Lin raised an eyebrow. Was this an attempt to win over the people?

However, publicly executing those executioners is indeed the best way to boost morale.

Yehena continued, "The Grand Imam specifically instructed that the most important task now is to take good care of the Major General, so he sent me here to be your orderly."

Lu Lin couldn't help but picture her in a maid outfit.

Bandar joked, "That's absolutely right. Taking good care of the major general is the top priority. That way, I can come to the command post more often to get some Coke!"

"I think you'd love to replace all the saline and glucose supplies for the tank crews with cola!" Just after saying this, Lu Lin slapped his forehead: "Oh no!"

"What's wrong?" Bandar asked anxiously.

Lu Lin was somewhat annoyed: "When I was reporting the supply needs just now, I forgot to ask for Coke!"

　I'll switch to longer chapters from now on, 3-4k, so everyone can read them more comfortably.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)