Chapter 1674 Military Exercises

Franco's statements during his meetings with Germans and Italians largely confirmed this, but in a different setting, he adopted a completely different persona.

"The Germans and Italians are too complacent. Although they do have the advantage now, it's still not safe for us."

By this time, Franco had seen off the guests from Germany and Italy and was speaking to his confidants.

Sunier, who is also Franco's chief political advisor, said: "Your Excellency, we are now on the ship of Germany and Italy, and it is unrealistic to expect us to back down in the short term."

Franco was aware of this, so he did not deny it: "That's why I didn't directly reject them just now. Before the civil war, we took the bargaining chips they gave us, so naturally we can't turn against both countries now."

"Moreover, we now need the support of both countries for the recovery of the national economy after the war."

Sunier said, "If that's the case, then we'll have to resort to delaying tactics when dealing with Germany and Italy to avoid becoming too deeply involved with them."

Franco did not shy away from this point: "In any case, Spain has indeed been severely damaged by the war and is now paralyzed. We can use the fact that our industry, agriculture and national infrastructure have been severely damaged as an excuse to Germany and Italy."

"At least in the short term, Spain is indeed incapable of getting involved in a new war."

Delaying is currently the only effective way for the Spanish government to deal with Germany and Italy. In other words, Franco only wants to gain benefits from Germany and Italy, but has no intention of taking on the responsibilities of being an "ally".

From this perspective, neither of Germany's two allies in Europe is reliable, and while Italy is ambitious, its capabilities are questionable.

Spain had no desire to contribute anything, except perhaps on the issue of dealing with the Soviet Union, where Franco and Adolf might have some common ground.

If Franco had been the leader of Germany, it would have been difficult for World War II to even begin, but the Soviet-German war would not have been affected and would have been avoided.

...

The Mozambique Channel.

On the coast of Madagascar, east of the Mozambique Channel, East African Admiral Gabriel and others were observing this large-scale joint military exercise.

This naval exercise mainly involved the Indian Ocean Fleet in Mozambique, with as many as three carrier strike groups, along with a large number of cruisers, destroyers, and submarines.

In addition, the East African Army and Air Force also participated in the exercise, meaning that this exercise in the Mozambique Channel was not limited to the East African Navy, but was a large-scale exercise involving all branches of the armed forces.

This exercise has two main focuses: island seizure operations and amphibious landings.

To this end, the East African Army simulated multiple landing sites along the western coast of Madagascar. The East African Navy, Army, and Air Force were divided into two camps according to their needs: the red team was the attacking force, and the blue team was the defending force.

With over 300,000 participants, the East African military's emphasis on this exercise is evident.

Admiral Gabriel remarked with emotion, "This joint naval exercise is unprecedented for the Empire, but only the Mozambique Channel could accommodate and simulate an exercise of this scale!"

The Mozambique Channel is ideal for military exercises, especially naval activities, and is a suitable sea area for large-scale, multi-subject naval drills.

First of all, the Mozambique Channel is very vast, with a length of over 1,600 kilometers, which also earns it the title of the world's longest strait.

Secondly, the Mozambique Channel is also remarkably wide, averaging over 400 kilometers in width.

Finally, its average water depth exceeds three thousand meters, and in most areas the water depth exceeds two thousand kilometers. Therefore, carrier battle groups, submarines, and other vessels can fully operate in the Mozambique Channel.

"In addition to its vast water area, the Mozambique Channel also has a very diverse terrain, including deep-water ports, gentle beaches, mangrove swamps and cliffs, making it very suitable for amphibious landing exercises and other drills," said Gabriel.

"This is also a key area of ​​training for our navy in the near future, in order to cope with the complex international situation in the future."

"Our Indian Ocean Fleet may face this kind of combat situation in the future, so how to successfully cover the Army or Marine Corps to the designated landing site is a necessary training and live-fire exercise that we must pay attention to."

Unlike the Pacific Fleet, the Indian Ocean Fleet and Atlantic Fleet in East Africa are strictly managed and have undergone intense training in recent years.

This large-scale maritime exercise in the Mozambique Channel has significantly improved the East African Navy's training capacity and battlefield response capabilities.

Standing next to Kabril was Vice Admiral Batel, Deputy Commander of the East African Indian Ocean Fleet.

Lieutenant General Batel said, "As it stands, our navy's performance in this exercise has been largely without problems. The Mozambique Channel is almost indistinguishable from our inland waters, with both sides of the channel being our territory and the islands in between."

"Therefore, the Navy was very adept at this exercise, as it was very familiar with the geographical environment."

After all, it is already known as the inland sea of ​​East Africa, and the East African Navy's understanding of the Mozambique Channel is no less than that of the ancient Romans' familiarity with the Mediterranean Sea.

Lieutenant General Batel continued, "For this exercise, it can be said that most of the Indian Ocean Fleet's strength has been mobilized. Just the scale of this exercise alone is something that I think few countries in the world can withstand."

"Of course, if it were not the Mozambique Channel, but other sea areas, the navy's performance might be somewhat worse."

"However, with the development of our navy in recent years, we have also obtained a lot of intelligence and hydrological information from other sea areas around the world, and the technical level of our weapons and ships has also been greatly improved."

"Therefore, I believe that even in waters relatively unfamiliar to the Imperial Navy, the Imperial Navy should not make any major mistakes."

Admiral Cabriel said, "This is a good thing. When I was young, the Imperial Navy was already quite powerful. At that time, our navy was already among the world's top in terms of size."

"More than a decade has passed, and the Imperial Navy has made more significant improvements in terms of weaponry, equipment, and tactical training, except for the Pacific Fleet, of course."

"I think if I went to the Pacific Fleet at this time, I could even reminisce about my naval career when I was young."

The warships and equipment of the Pacific Fleet, more than a decade ago, were exactly what Admiral Cabrill had come into contact with when he was still a naval captain.

Of course, his remarks about Admiral Cabriel of the Pacific Fleet were just a lighthearted jab. As a high-ranking officer in the Imperial Navy, he was well aware of the Pacific Fleet's current predicament, as it was a naval force that had been almost abandoned by East Africa.

Lieutenant General Batel was not in the know about this, and he said: "The Empire does indeed invest less in the Pacific, but that is normal. The focus of the Empire's maritime strategy is the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean."

General Cabrill nodded and said, "Your thinking is not a problem."

"However, the Pacific Ocean may be the key area where the Empire will fight a war in the future. If the Pacific Fleet is not effectively developed, the Indian Ocean Fleet, as the Imperial Navy's general reserve, will also have to bear a heavier responsibility."

General Cabriel's words were almost a veiled reference to Lieutenant General Batel and others, but they did not take them to heart.

Lieutenant General Batel said, "After all, the Indian Ocean and the South Atlantic are practically the empire's backyard, and no other country's navy can pose a challenge to us."

From this perspective, Lieutenant General Batel's thinking is not too wrong, since the countries that can compete with the East African Navy are basically located along the Pacific and North Atlantic coasts.

Compared to these two locations, the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans are essentially the "rear area" for the East African Navy.

Therefore, if a country were to engage in a war with East Africa at sea, it would be highly likely that the war would take place in the North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

Admiral Cabrill did not refute Lieutenant General Batel's idea, saying, "In short, the Imperial Navy, especially your Indian Ocean Fleet, should always benchmark itself against other naval powers in the world."

"In recent years, the Empire has never relaxed its focus on the navy, and related expenditures and supervision have been strengthened."

"At the same time, countries that can clash with the Imperial Navy are generally not weak in naval strength, so you must be prepared to face large-scale naval wars."

"And in conjunction with the army and air force, we will conduct joint exercises, especially large-scale amphibious operations or sabotage operations against enemy rear facilities."

The East African Navy's goal is now very clear: to build a world-class navy.

During the Eighth Five-Year Plan period, the East African Navy added another aspect to this, namely, continuously improving the navy's combat capabilities.

Lieutenant General Batel inquired, "Your Excellency, the various actions of the Imperial Navy in recent years seem to indicate that the Empire is preparing for a large-scale war. Does this mean that the Empire has already chosen its target?"

In response to Batel's question, Cabriel said, "That's not something you need to consider. Of course, if you have such thoughts, then you can certainly consider all the world's major naval powers as imaginary enemies."

"Countries such as Britain, Germany, the United States, and Japan, etc., as for the true strategy of the empire, it was nothing more than these countries."

"Of course, the Empire certainly has no intention of initiating a war, but rather makes relevant judgments based on the current international situation."

"Especially Japan and the North Pacific Ocean, this should be the focus of the Indian Ocean Fleet's research."

With things said to this extent, even the slow-witted Lieutenant General Batel had his guess.

He asked cautiously in a low voice, "Does Your Excellency mean Japan?"

Seeing that he had guessed some of the truth, General Cabral relaxed a bit at this point.

"If you understand it that way, there's not much of a problem. For the Indian Ocean Fleet, it's not just about Indian Ocean affairs, but also about the South China Sea and other waters in the Far East."

"Otherwise, wouldn't the Empire be aware of the current situation of the Pacific Fleet?"

"To be more precise, some of the heavy responsibilities of the Pacific Fleet have basically been handed over to the Indian Ocean Fleet, since you don't have many issues to worry about in the Indian Ocean."

"To put it bluntly, even without the Indian Ocean Fleet, the Empire is confident that it can keep its European enemies out of the Indian Ocean."

The Indian Ocean Fleet has no enemies in the Indian Ocean. As for the British naval power in India, it is completely insignificant compared to a large country like East Africa. Britain is already the second largest naval power in the Indian Ocean after East Africa.

Beyond the Indian Ocean, if an enemy wants to enter the Indian Ocean, there are only two directions: one is the Red Sea Strait, and the other is the Strait of Malacca and the Sunda Strait in the South China Sea.

As for the Cape of Good Hope, if the enemy wanted to enter the Indian Ocean from this direction, they would have to bypass the Atlantic Fleet in East Africa, and it would have little to do with the Indian Ocean Fleet. This situation is almost impossible.

After all, only the naval powers of Europe and America could destroy the East African Atlantic Navy, and they would have to go all out to do so.

Clearly, Western countries would not risk antagonizing the Atlantic Fleet in East Africa, given that the powers of the various nations in the North Atlantic, where the West is located, are already intertwined.

Therefore, the Indian Ocean Fleet is primarily wary of the Red Sea Strait as a passage for enemies from Europe and America.

But does the Red Sea Strait need the Indian Ocean Fleet to defend it? To put it bluntly, the air force of East Africa alone in the Gulf of Aden is enough to keep the European navy out of the Red Sea.

The East African Army could also blockade the Red Sea straits by seizing the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

Alternatively, an attack by the East African Air Force on the Suez Canal could temporarily paralyze this vital maritime artery between Eurasia.

In short, East Africa has plenty of ways to deal with enemies coming from the Red Sea. Therefore, the Indian Ocean Fleet's main focus for external defense is actually only the South China Sea.

Admiral Cabral said, "It would be a complete waste of the Indian Ocean Fleet's strength to focus only on the Indian Ocean itself."

"Therefore, your actual mission area, in addition to the entire Indian Ocean, also includes most of the Pacific Ocean."

"And in the Pacific, which country do you think is most likely our enemy?"

After his reminder, Batel suddenly realized that if it were a country in the Pacific Ocean that could pose a threat to East Africa, the scope would be very small, because only the United States and Japan could pose a threat to the Pacific naval forces of East Africa.

Currently, the most powerful naval force in the Pacific Ocean is Japan's Combined Fleet. As for the United States' Pacific Fleet, although it is not weaker, it is still much weaker than the Combined Fleet.

Of course, an even more important point is that East Africa's sphere of influence in the Pacific largely overlaps with Japan's.

After all, the core of East Africa's sphere of influence in the Pacific is Southeast Asia, and Japan itself, as an East Asian country, is even more destined to be the greatest potential threat to East Africa's interests in the Pacific.

As for the United States, it would be very difficult for it to gain an advantage, at least in the South Pacific region, if it wanted to cross the entire Pacific Ocean and confront East Africa.

Lieutenant General Batel said, "Thank you for your suggestion, sir. If that's the case, I think the Indian Ocean Fleet should make some adjustments to its future military training and intelligence work."

General Cabriel nodded in satisfaction, but he still said, "Remember, this matter must be kept secret. After all, as a peace-loving nation, the Empire has no plans to initiate a war!"

(End of this chapter)