Empire of the Ring

Chapter 746: Baby Steps (2)

As a result of the negotiation between the U.S. and China, Kashgar in Xinjiang Uyghur and Ngari Prefecture in Tibet were designated as special autonomous republics.

The Chinese government gave itself a lot of credit as it announced it, emphasizing that there had never been a designation of special autonomous republics before, except for autonomous regions.

It was promoted so as to emphasize that those autonomous republics were still Chinese territory.

However, such a decision was only limited to the Chinese government’s thought.

The Uyghurs and Tibetans who now thought that the foundation for independence was set began moving into Kashgar and Ngari respectively.

Only then, the Han people living in those areas left like a fall of tide.

Even so, the Chinese government did not stop people from moving in. Rather, it welcomed such a move. It had decided that containing the two groups that called for independence causing troubles in those two regions was the best option since such a small population was no threat to China.

Whatever China’s intentions may be, Kashgar the Ngari, which were already like independent countries, had begun to build complete walls against China, including building defense lines on the border.

They were determined not to engage in any exchanges with China.

New roads were planned along the border with the Federal Kingdom of Kazakhstan, and various construction materials and daily necessities provided by the Kazakh government were being supplied to the two regions.

Although they did not regain their full territories, the two peoples were cheerful at the fact they were free and they could live together.

However, Kazakhstan had to help from one to ten, as those only laid the foundation for independence and were not ready for self-sufficiency.

Some of the militias were helping with security and administrative work, but they were not enough, so officials dispatched from the Kazakh government were the main players to take care of the inconveniences of the residents.

In the case of Uyghur, the heads of independent forces were in charge of the provisional government because there was no leader, but so far, the influence of the Kazakh government had been fully reflected.

Tibet was in a better situation as the exiled government in India would return soon.

The exile government led by the Dalai Lama could lead Ngari Prefecture with just economic support as its population was only 100,000.

***

Kazakhstan became even busier than the two areas designated as special autonomous republics.

Kazakhstan had to stabilize the two regions that were just taking baby steps and focus on their borders.

With such a reason, the conference room in the integrated government building in Astana where each minister was gathered was boisterous with all sorts of opinions.

“Everyone, calm down. His Highness is here. Please maintain your etiquette.”

“Prime Minister, it’s difficult to spend the amount the minister of the interior just asked for. It hasn’t been budgeted. He’ll have to request it to the national assembly to arrange that.”

“We can get the national assembly’s agreement later after putting out the immediate fire. We should have made our independence a fait accompli and reflected it in the budget in advance. Does it make sense to deal with the budget now?”

“If we had publicly set aside independent funds, would China have stayed still? We’d have been in big trouble.”

Since everyone had his own opinion, everyone was raising his voice.

They all had a point.

Nobody predicted that independence would be achieved this fast, so it caused a huge confusion.

When everyone had his say and it got quiet, Youngho opened his mouth.

“We achieved a little victory because of each and everyone of you. We could win partial independence, but the real problem starts now. Supporting the two regions is supporting the future of Kazakhstan. We’ve finally become a country where our future generations can live without worries now that we have a buffer zone. We need to put our heads together to make wise decisions. And as for the funds, the royal family will pay it first considering the time to get the approval of the national assembly.”

“Your Highness, you shouldn’t have to do that. If we ask for an extraordinary session, the national assembly will agree.”

For the time being, Kashgar and Ngari would need funds from the Kazakh government.

At least for Kashgar, it would be able to support itself after some time with its developed culture and commerce, but Ngari Prefecture in Tibet had no solution.

Since the Kazakh government had been funding both regions slicing its limited budget, the ministers had a lot of complaints.

That was why Youngho offered royal funds. It was also because there were some extra independence funds supported by the U.S. CIA.

“Please handle the government budget as normal and replace it with royal funds first. The priority is to put out the urgent fire right away. Now, even if we openly support the regions directly, China won’t oppose it.”

“Your Highness, how should we handle the munitions from the United States? The militias won’t be able to manage them even if we handed them over.”

The defense minister wanted to keep the weapons from the U.S. in Kazakhstan.

Although they were not the latest product, they were enough to deal with China.

Kazakhstan was yet to hand over various artillery, tanks, and missiles from the U.S., as the militias with their ability could not handle them yet.

“The Royal Bodyguards will operate them. Right now, they are on the move from the royal territory to both regions, so they will be deployed to Uyghur and Tibet within 15 days.”

In order to protect the borders of the autonomous republics from the Chinese military, Youngho decided to send the Royal Bodyguards.

The defense minister shut his mouth when Youngho said so.

Although the Kazakh regular military was an overwhelming force, it could not follow the Royal Bodyguards when comparing individual soldiers.

“As for our regular military, I think the troops need a break from guarding. Lower the alert level and allow vacation and outing.”

“Your Highness, shouldn’t we wait and see the situation?”

“It’s time to get back to normal. How long should we care only about China’s movements? It’s time to focus on the economy. And our front line will be the Uighur and Tibet Autonomous Republic border, so all we have to do is pay attention to the central and northern borders that face China directly.”

“I understand.”

The defense minister was apparently disappointed as he answered.

“Don’t be too disappointed, we’re planning to send regular troops to Afghanistan soon.”

This was decided with the intention to win U.S. favor by increasing the number of troops to Afghanistan. Only then could Kazakhstan’s private military company easily win the jobs there.

So far, the Royal Guard had been in charge of sending troops overseas, and when Youngho said that the regular forces could also go to Afghanistan, the defense minister was so excited that he even jumped out of his seat.

“Minister, you seem to be excited.”

“Thank you. Your Highness, overseas troop dispatch was essential for our soldiers’ morale. They’ve been expecting to go back to Uyghur and Tibet again, so they were all prepared, but when it didn’t work out, they were very discouraged.”

He seems to have suffered greatly from generals.

“Even if they go to Afghanistan, don’t expect them to be engaged in direct battles. That will be carried out by the private military company.”

“It doesn’t matter. I’m just happy to be able to send regular troops abroad.”

The defense minister wanted to show off that the regular forces were strong enough to work overseas. However, the regular military was not great enough to do so.

Although it was unreliable yet, it was necessary to send it for later purposes to gain experience.

Direct combat would be carried out by the Royal Bodyguards disguised into mercenaries of private military companies, so it was not a very dangerous mission for the regular forces.

“Minister, I hope our military forces can grow through this experience.”

“Your Highness. We are well aware that our level is not up to the forces of developed countries. We won’t be satisfied with the present and will move forward. I promise that we will build a stronger army.”

“I admit our army has the best morale, but don’t be conceited. This must be noted to each military commander.”

“I will deliver it as your special instruction.”

It sounded like a lecture, but Youngho had to say it because he was worried about the soldiers who were being deployed overseas for the first time. It would be a great loss if any one of them was lost during the operation due to their commanders’ misjudgment.

“Also, the Queen will personally give an award to the troops who have made contributions in the Pamir Plateau and Kyrgyzstan, so please send the troops to her in the royal territory.”

“Thank you. Your Grace, we’ll arrange a special train for the troops.”

Today, the defense minister had so much to thank.

The mere fact that the royal family cared so much about the military made him feel better.

“Now we’ve just taken a small step. Keep in mind that Kashgar and Ngari are places where there will be an unbearable storm. All of the ministries should cooperate with each other to stabilize them early. Only then can we prevent China’s advancement. And I’d also like you to come up with a solution for immigrants from all over China to those regions.”

When Youngho started to talk, various measures poured out.

“We will first supply construction materials to build temporary housing before the winter.”

“Why don’t we build daily necessities factories locally?”

“If we hurry up and develop the oil field, we can build a foundation for self-sufficiency early and reduce our burden.”

Several opinions were then presented, but they all could be resolved only when huge amounts of money were invested.

It cost too much to get a buffer zone.

Youngho wondered if he should ask help from the U.S. again.

As the two regions became special autonomous republics, the U.S. was slowly stepping out as if it had done its job.

Kazakhstan also spent a huge amount of money, although the U.S. funded the independence struggle.

In a way, the U.S. had a ride free of charge thanks to Kazakhstan’s work.

It seemed Youngho had enough reason to ask for a favor in return.