Father of France

Chapter 104 Prisoner of War Transfer
In the triad of nuclear strikes, bombers are actually the least necessary component. If any strategic bomber could demonstrate its importance, the major Eastern power would not stand by and watch the United States swagger with its strategic bombers while its own strategic bombers remain inactive.

If it's not that they lack the technology, then strategic bombers are truly outdated.

Both Britain and France have abandoned their triad nuclear strike strategies. After retiring its 3V bombers, Britain abandoned the option of developing strategic bombers.

France nominally abandoned land-based missiles, but in reality, it also abandoned strategic bombers. The fundamental reason, according to Koeman, is its land area. For countries with such a small land area as Britain and France, land-based missiles are inherently difficult to hide, and the same applies to strategic bombers. Ultimately, they all put their nuclear weapons on nuclear submarines.

However, this is only a passive choice. If France and Britain retain a considerable amount of overseas territory, they will not give up the triad of nuclear strike capabilities.

Whether France will possess a triad of nuclear strike capabilities in the future depends primarily on the future size of France.

Major Williams interpreted Coman's attitude as a sign of yielding, an attitude that would further solidify the friendship forged since the Hundred Years' War between England and France, a thought that secretly pleased him.

Koeman, however, knew how to console himself. More than a dozen major airlines went bankrupt one after another, leaving only Rolls-Royce in the future. Having lost the ability to manufacture fighter jets, it could only make parts.

He wasn't in the mood to argue with the other person, and instead suggested that whatever they wanted to eat that day would be more nutritious.

This topic attracted Major Williams, who was British. He wasn't boasting, but Britain had a say in what was good to eat, a skill accumulated since the Industrial Revolution.

“That’s true. Nobody knows better than you what’s bad to eat.” Coman answered with genuine admiration. As the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution, Britain was also the birthplace of technology and ruthless methods. The world’s first large-scale food counterfeiting occurred in Britain.

The pursuit of tea in 19th-century Britain led to frequent trade deficits, and tea became very expensive, a symbol of wealth.

In order to demonstrate the greatness of the British Empire, it would certainly benefit all social classes, while also reaping huge profits.

Other factors, such as the worsening of already poor water quality in Britain after the Industrial Revolution, catalyzed the popularization of tea in Britain. Without the British afternoon tea habit, Western countries would not have recognized the value of tea as much.

The British discovered that tea leaves resembled the leaves of the native blackthorn plum, but the leaves of the blackthorn plum plant were different. Although the leaves of the blackthorn plum looked like tea leaves, their color was different.

To give the leaves of the blackthorn plum the color of tea leaves, producers boil the leaves together with copper until the leaves turn green.

At that time, blackthorn leaves accounted for a large share of the tea circulating in the British market. For many British people, the tea they had drunk all their lives was the taste of blackthorn leaves.

Coleman was completely honest in describing the inventions and creations of the British people, and there was absolutely no disrespect for the British Empire. However, Major Williams's embarrassed expression seemed to tell Coleman that he did not think so.

"How's the food?" An American officer squeezed into the discussion, asking with a hostile attitude, or rather, reminding us, "This is all shipped from the country to Europe. At present, perhaps only the United States can provide such strong logistical support."

Even the poorest patriots in East London would proudly puff out their chests when they spoke of the British Empire's industry and wealth.

This statement now applies to Major Oliver's homeland, the United States of America, although the American society as a whole will maintain a biased view of Europe for some time.

But as American soldiers who participated in this world war return home and exert influence across all levels of society, the filter of the United States towards Europe will disappear in at most ten years.

“Very good. The United States has an overwhelming industrial and agricultural advantage.” After saying this, Koman added in his mind, “Only in this particular time.”

This answer was enough to make Major Oliver happy. With a face full of pride, he said, "America has always been generous as long as everyone is happy."

Coman didn't stand on ceremony and picked out a few pieces of bread, which were unsurprisingly sweet, so he decided to just focus on getting his fill of drinks.

As they left the officers' fraternity hall, Captain Armand, who had come with them, comforted them, saying, "That's just how Americans are, arrogant and ignorant. Who made it possible for all the world's wealth to converge in America? They call themselves the chosen land, and they certainly have a knack for boasting."

"The land in the United States is indeed in good condition, but its main advantage is its size, while its population is relatively small," Coleman said frankly. "As for being the best? In terms of agricultural conditions, it is not as good as France."

While the land in the United States is certainly among the best in the world, calling it a "chosen land" is purely American self-promotion; American land does not meet the standards of a "chosen land."

Moreover, the best land in the United States was largely undeveloped by the nomadic peoples of the Americas, which provided a good foundation for immigrants.

In terms of precipitation, because the evaporation rate in the United States is greater than that in East Asia, the United States requires 600 millimeters of precipitation per year for agricultural land, and some agricultural areas even require 800 millimeters of precipitation, while East Asia only needs 400 millimeters.

The United States doesn't truly have a land of plenty. Its southernmost latitude roughly corresponds to the Yangtze River region in East Asia, with only a small area in Florida having a climate similar to that of southern China. Therefore, the US doesn't experience simultaneous rainfall and heat. Many agricultural areas rely on groundwater irrigation, and in Coman's previous life, the US already faced a significant water shortage.

In terms of mineral resources, the United States is a well-known iron-poor country. The standard for exploitable iron ore in most countries in the world is about 30%, because iron accounts for one-third of the total mass of the Earth.

The US standard for iron ore content is 10%, which is a very deceptive standard.

In most parts of the earth, a person can grab a handful of sand, use a magnet to extract the iron filings, and then use a blasting gun to smelt iron, because the earth's surface itself contains about 5% iron.

The standard of 10% is already included, which is not much more than the iron naturally present on the Earth's surface.

It can be said that the United States has less iron ore reserves than the Eastern power that is also known for its poor iron ore reserves. During the Carnegie Steel Company era, the United States had already exhausted its high-quality iron ore reserves.

The famous Mesabi Iron Ore Belt in Minnesota, USA, accounts for 80% of all iron ore in the United States, with an average iron ore quality of 20%.

With such conditions, how could it possibly be a chosen place? It's purely because its existing resources are still abundant and haven't been exhausted yet.

Apart from the Soviet Union, there really isn't a single large country in Europe. If France were to double its size, it could rival the United States in terms of geographical advantage.

Back at the French barracks, Coman's drunkenness had subsided considerably. He asked Captain Armand, "Have the garrison received all our requests this time?"

Armand took a roll of paper from under his pillow, but immediately put it back. "I can recite everything written in these documents by heart,"

He told Coman, “For the past week, I’ve been reading these documents aloud ten or more times every day. You can take a look at them later, but wait a few more days, until I’m a little calmer and can tell you about the people and addresses listed in these documents.”

"Thank you," Koeman said succinctly. "We'll go check out the eastern part of Berlin later; the Soviet Red Army shouldn't cause us any trouble."

After a day of rest, Corman crossed the iron fence of Checkpoint Charlie the next day. A red flag fluttered above the checkpoint. The sickle and hammer stood out starkly against the gray sky.

The craters in the streets have been filled in, but the damage to the buildings remains, with huge Soviet-style propaganda posters painted on the brick walls, giving it a strong industrial feel.

Soviet Red Army cultural troupe members played the accordion, and a melody drifted over. A group of Red Army soldiers were singing in a circle, passing bottles of liquor among themselves.

"Cheers to victory, Frenchmen!" Soviet soldiers sitting on the ground raised their glasses and shouted to Koman and a few other French soldiers who had just arrived in the Soviet-occupied zone.

"Could we change our military caps?" Koeman was wearing a dress uniform instead of his combat uniform for the sake of appearances, and the black top cap was too eye-catching.

He had complained about the tall caps of the French army's dress uniforms for the umpteenth time. If the army couldn't change them, he would at least change the caps of the youth divisions.

“We have investigated Brunov Bader’s situation, but he is not in Berlin right now. He should be in Dresden. We have contacted people in the intelligence system to investigate whether he is there.”

Armand looked around, seemingly very curious about Soviet-occupied Berlin, saying, "I believe there will be news in a few days."

"We can use some Soviet prisoners of war as an exchange to mislead the Soviets for now," Koeman replied. The Soviet prisoners of war were certainly not French prisoners, but there were many factories in Germany that used Soviet prisoners of war, including those in the French-occupied territories. The number was around 100,000.

We could actually hold a friendly ceremony to repatriate prisoners of war, while simultaneously continuing the investigation into the whereabouts of Brunov-Bad and his team.

This should be easily approved by Paris. The 100,000 prisoners of war are Soviets, not French. France did not suffer significant losses in this world war and did not need the Soviet prisoners of war to join.

In fact, the issue of prisoners of war is currently a major point of communication between Moscow and the United Kingdom, France, and the United States. The Soviet Union itself knows its own situation, and there is a significant shortage of men in the country.

If it was merely a gesture of goodwill, the Youth Division already had quite a few rescued Soviet prisoners of war in its hands.

After gaining a general understanding of the Soviet-occupied zone, Corman quickly contacted his division commander, General Duval. However, Corman had to be present for the transfer of prisoners of war; he was to act as the French representative in the transfer.

(End of this chapter)