After the thorny domestic problems were temporarily resolved, Yanayev, who was overwhelmed with work, finally had time to deal with the separatist crisis from the member states, especially the three Baltic states. Since Stalin's death, the harsh policy of combating separatism has loosened. From the Khrushchev to Gorbachev era, the iron chain that tightly bound national separatism has loosened, and the cracks have become larger and larger. Finally, when Gorbachev proposed political pluralism, a complete gap appeared, breaking down the last embankment to protect the integrity of the Soviet territory.
Although the territory of the Soviet Union is huge, no part of it is redundant. The three Baltic countries are an important springboard for threatening Western Europe and suppressing NATO, and they are also a strategic buffer for Russia on the Baltic frontier. If they really want to become independent, the Soviet armed forces will not agree, the Baltic Fleet will not agree, and similarly, the government will not agree.
Although in the end most of the member states found themselves even poorer than before after independence after being deceived by the fools in the West, those countries that produced rich resources such as oil and cotton eventually became regions that produced a large number of Western European dishwashers and **.
But to be fair, even Yanaev himself cannot guarantee that he can suppress the rampant separatist wave before the disintegration of the three Baltic countries reaches an irreparable point.
In March this year, Lithuania had already begun planning to establish its own state, but the top leaders of the Soviet Communist Party certainly did not recognize it. Although Gorbachev's new union treaty gave these member states hope for independence, the coup by the State Emergency Committee cast a shadow over the hearts of these separatists. Estonian President Arnold Rutte, who is currently visiting Finland, heard the news of the successful coup and even prepared to establish a government in exile.
Yanayev thought about using the army to advance into Czechoslovakia like he did to suppress the Prague Spring, but faced with the internal and external troubles of the Soviet Union, he gave up the idea. War is the continuation of political helplessness. Although he did not mind using a torrent of steel to turn the three Baltic countries into ruins, it would take a lot of manpower, material resources and financial resources to defend the hard-won fruits of victory, which was not worth it.
For example, it was indeed easy to kill Saddam's troops in the Iraq War, but how to deal with the endless guerrillas and suicide attacks after the war has always been a headache for the US finances. The Soviet Union suffered from the graveyard of the Afghan empire, so Yanayev did not want to solve the problem by war. Diplomatic pressure? Who can see that the red polar bear is now weak, and pretending to be tough is just a pretense.
To this end, he needed to discuss this issue with Defense Minister Yazov. After all, as the former leader of the Central Army Group, Yazov did have more say on this issue than Yazov, who only talked about it on paper. Yanayev raised his question, but the Defense Minister's answer surprised him.
"War? Why should we start a war? The current economic situation of the Soviet Union is already so bad. If we start a war again, I can't imagine what kind of abyss our country will slide into. Excuse me, General Secretary Yanaev, if we do this, will the Soviet leaders be described as the executioners who started the Third World War, or the Hitler of the evil empire?" Yazov asked calmly.
"I always thought you would agree to use war, Comrade Yazov." Since even the military and political leaders were unwilling to use war, Yanaev was relieved. But he still had a big question in his mind, "Since you don't agree to use war, then the separation of the three Baltic countries will become an established fact. The chain reaction of the member states afterwards will probably be even more unacceptable."
"Moreover, Estonia's oil shale reserves are as high as 15 billion tons, with an annual output of 35 million tons, accounting for 80% of the total oil shale output of the former Soviet Union. No matter how you look at it, it is a strategic location that cannot be given up." When it comes to resources, Yanaev's eyes light up like a capitalist. Resources that can create wealth for the Soviet Union are indispensable to him.
"Instead of struggling to maintain a ruined country after the war, we should squeeze its surplus value while it still has a breath, until the three Baltic countries have no choice but to turn back to us for help." Yazov smiled and gave Yanaev a vicious suggestion, "All the industrial bases we helped build in Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia should be dismantled and either shipped back to the country or destroyed on the spot. Let these bastards return to the era of agricultural civilization."
"That's not enough. The West will give them a lot of economic aid to deal with us. We have to completely cut off their ideas from the root." Yanayev, who always had a lot of ideas, quickly thought of other countermeasures. "The Latvian ethnic group includes Latvians, Russians, Belarusians, Ukrainians, Poles, and Lithuanians. In addition, there are Jews, Estonians and other ethnic groups. The Lithuanian ethnic group includes Lithuanians, Poles, Russians, Belarusians, Ukrainians, Jews, Latvians and other ethnic groups. Complex ethnic relations have always been the fuse of civil war, and the masses just lack a gap to vent."
Thinking of this, Yanayev smiled slightly. "The Soviet Union has enough weapons brought back from hell. We can sell them half and give them half to the people of the three Baltic countries. After all, the democratic world has the right to take up arms to defend their own safety. Then, under the shining spring of democracy, they will find that a safe and stable social environment is much more important than the votes in their hands. Of course, for those who would rather die for votes than live for the food of dictatorship, they just need to be happy. Moreover, once the member states betray the Soviet Union, they will bear the risk of civil war and regime subversion. They will think about it slowly."
"But do we really want to do this? Although it is a temporary compromise, once this precedent is set, I am afraid that the member states will be eager to try it out. This method is fine for these three countries, but if it is used against Ukraine, our heavy industrial base will be destroyed in an instant." Yazov did not expect Yanaev's plan to be more vicious than his. Not only will it seriously damage the vitality of the three Baltic countries, but it will also make them unable to fight back in the next few decades.
"We cannot compromise on the issues of other important member states. We have to send troops. The West knows very well that Ukraine is not Afghanistan and they dare not play any tricks behind the scenes. So we have to act faster than the West and stir up ethnic divisions and conflicts among the three Baltic countries so that NATO has no time to react and a civil war will quietly break out. As long as one of the countries goes to war over ethnic issues, the other unrest will definitely not be spared." Since the three Baltic countries are unwilling to surrender, Yanaev must let the other member states see clearly the consequences of their independence.
What Yanayev did was just a replica of the prelude to the Crimean War.
"What if NATO intervenes to mediate? If successful, we will not only lose three member states, but also our strategic advantage." Yazov always considers the worst-case scenario first. Now the Baltic Sea will become the first chess game between the Soviet Union and Western countries.
"NATO only likes to write blank checks to Eastern European countries. We have enough covert means to overthrow their regimes, and we also have enough means to support a dictator. Although the instability of the member states will directly threaten the security of the Soviet Union, it is much better than being betrayed and surrounded by enemies in the end. Thank you very much for your answer, Comrade Yazov. I have something else to do, so I'll take my leave first."
Yanayev stood up and said goodbye to Yazov. He was going back to the Kremlin to draw up a plan to attack the three Baltic countries, a feasible carrot and stick policy.
Yazov looked at the Soviet General Secretary's receding back and said to himself, "I hope we can now make up for the mistakes of that idiot Gorbachev."