USSR 1991

"If Minister Portillo agrees, we will advance the friendship between our Neva Design Bureau and Pacific Shipyard."

After weighing the pros and cons, Portillo replied, "If it is a joint development, I would like to discuss it after the French delegation understands and investigates the feasibility, but now, I agree to Minister Yazov's request and will send Experts came to investigate."

"No problem, Minister Portillo."

Yazov took the other two glasses of wine from the attendant's tray, handed one of them to the French Minister of Defense, and lightly knocked the wine glass by the way.

Yazov said with a smile, "Let's toast the cooperation between France and the Soviet Union."

Chapter 479 Julang-class Amphibious Assault Ship

"The hull configuration of the ship we designed is similar to that of the American LHA, combining the functions of a helicopter carrier, dock landing ship, and dock transport ship, but the size is obviously smaller than that of the American amphibious ship, and the full-load displacement is about 2.15 tons. In order to enhance The ability to resist battle damage, Mistral adopts a double-hull structure. It has a simple overall shape, the island and the mast are both closed designs, and the chimney is integrated behind the rear mast structure to save space.”

"Some parts deliberately use composite materials that can absorb radar waves, which can reduce the overall radar cross-sectional area and infrared signals. This class of ships has a rectangular full-pass flight deck with an area of ​​6400 square meters. The ship island structure is located on the starboard side. 1800 square meters of lower deck helicopters, vehicle storage, 1000 square meters of dedicated vehicle decks and docking bays. Time-saving modular design."

A majestic and majestic seven-story cuboid building in Leningrad, this is the Neva Design Bureau of the Soviet Union, the birthplace of Varyag, and now the chief designer Vlasov will welcome the delegation from France, Minister of Defense Portillo , and Laurent Castan, the designer of the French Pacific Shipyard, they want to know what wonderful designs the Soviet Union has that are worthy of French investment.

At the beginning, Kastan didn't listen to the opinions of the Soviet Union seriously, thinking that the Neva Shipyard was just a random transformation like the previous amphibious ship, but the more he listened, the more he was shocked by the opinion of the Neva Design Bureau, because This coincides with the idea of ​​the new French navy equipment he intends to design.

Kastan corrected his attitude, continued to listen to Vlasov's introduction, and took out a pen to record something on paper from time to time.

"The vehicle deck inside the ship can accommodate 60 vehicles, and there are entrances and exits for vehicles to enter and exit, because this drive-in/drive-out design has become a must-have feature for many planned new-generation amphibious assault ships, even the Italian The new generation of aircraft carrier also has this capability. The ship has three loading modes, the general mixed mode can carry 450 soldiers, 8 helicopters and 60 vehicles; in the helicopter carrier mode, it can carry 16 helicopters; In the vehicle transportation mode, the hangar and garage of this class of ships are completely used to load vehicles, which can accommodate at most more than 30 T72 tanks, or more than 230 light wheeled armored vehicles. The standard situation can carry 450 soldiers for a period of 6 months For sea missions, up to 900 soldiers can be transported in a high-density mode for short-distance transportation; if combined with helicopter assault missions, the ship can accommodate 150 commandos. This greatly increases a country’s long-range projection power and provides a great way to intervene in regional disputes Steal the opportunity."

"There are two helicopter elevators on the ship. The main elevator is located near the centerline of the stern, with an area of ​​220 square meters, which is enough for the helicopter with the rotor to be lifted; the auxiliary elevator is located behind the island, with an area of ​​120 square meters. The capacity is 13 tons. The flight deck has a total of six helicopter takeoff and landing points, and is equipped with an optical takeoff and landing assistance system."

Hearing this, Castan had some doubts. He raised his hand and asked, "Wait a minute, why do I sound like this amphibious assault ship is specially designed for France?"

"Because there are two versions of this design ship, one is the foreign trade version, and the other is the self-use version of the Soviet Union. The foreign trade version has been improved according to the actual situation in France." Vlasov said in an eloquent manner. This design plan was passed on from the top of the Ministry of Defense, and it is said that some members of the Politburo were even involved, but Vlasov did not know the specific situation.

"In the foreign trade version, if the medium/large transport helicopters of the NH-90 class prevail, this class of ships can carry 6 to 8 such medium-sized helicopters, and a maximum of 16 can be squeezed in if necessary. In addition, it can also operate the SA330 America Leopard helicopters, Tiger gunships, etc. The design stage of the amphibious ship also considered the flexibility of expanding the selection of models, and reserved the ability to operate the US-made CH-53 Super Stallion heavy-duty transport helicopter, so its flight deck needs to have a relatively large Great strength. Of course, this is the foreign trade version of the plan.”

"It sounds like it was specially designed for France." Kastain said, and he was also vaguely curious about the design of the Soviet version that he had been keeping silent about.

In fact, this was the design plan of the later Mistral-class amphibious ship, but Yanayev slightly adapted it to fool the French.However, the Neva Shipyard is indeed an experienced shipyard. They only relied on Yanayev's rough sketches and rough analysis, and processed and added a more detailed plan for the French to refer to.

"As for the power design, the foreign trade version uses an integrated electric propulsion device. In terms of avionics systems, I suggest that you can use the SENIT-9 combat system of the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier and complete guidance and communication equipment, including HF/VHF/UHF/SHF Various communication channels and SYRACUSE satellite communication system can control the operation of amphibious vehicles and helicopter fleets.”

The more Kastan heard, the more he felt that this was a ship tailor-made for the French Navy, so he asked for more details, but the current Neva Shipyard is more like a theoretical school that has empty theories but does not know how to operate. The French were simply blocked on the principle of confidentiality.

"If France is not interested, then we will find other countries to cooperate." Vlasov directly rejected France's monopoly, and he warned the French Pacific Shipyard that the Soviet Union is just cooperating with you, not the detailed design. The pictures are all sold to you.

"No, no, that's not what I mean. I mean that France is very happy to cooperate with the Neva Design Bureau, but we want to understand it before proceeding." "So we need to see the sincerity of France, not just lip service cooperation on the Internet.” Vlasov’s designer’s intentions are obvious, and he will consider further cooperation with the French unless France also comes up with its own technology.Of course, it is willing to give the French time to think, after all, this cannot be decided in a short while.

"One more thing, about the naming of this kind of amphibious ship. The Soviet side named the model they used as the Red Julang-class amphibious ship."

"As for the foreign trade model, it will unilaterally name it the Mistral-class amphibious ship."

4 Chapter Eighty

The closer relationship between the Soviet Union and France has aroused Germany's vigilance, but Britain has no time to pay attention to this matter, because he has more pressing matters to deal with.John Major, as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, can be said to be his happiest period between 1991 and 1992. However, after 1993, he encountered a political winter, because a more terrifying monster appeared in Eastern Europe. The declining empire rose again, breaking everything he had created with painstaking efforts.

The man who eclipsed John Major in European politics is Yanayev.

In 1991, the Latvian daily described Yanayev as a metaphor for Napoleon. "The demons of the Kremlin have taken control of Moscow, the red devils are advancing on Tbilisi, the dictator has captured Kiev, Yanayev is approaching the Baltic Sea, and the great General Secretary will arrive in Riga, loyal to him!"

However, the United Kingdom has been overwhelmed recently. Because of the worsening economic and social conditions, the calls for Scotland's independence have become louder, and now there are not a few voices that want John Major to step down.The British government, which had just experienced a riot in London, focused its attention on the country instead of thinking about the oil fields in Libya. Even though the Shell controlled by the British government was defeated in this crisis, John Major did not make a protest , stabilizing the domestic situation is more important than anything else, international defeats can be regrouped and comebacks.Domestic failure means that the prime minister is about to step down.

Because the excellent achievements of the former Iron Lady Thatcher made John Major look a bit unsightly.Not only did this man fail to solve the most fundamental economic problems, but he also repeatedly lost to France and the Soviet Union in diplomacy. To be precise, he lost to the Soviet Union united with France or France united with the Soviet Union.

The confidence of the Scottish referendum came from the oil fields in the North Sea, and the British government has long used oil revenue to subsidize England, which has made many people unhappy. It gradually became independent and became a country like Kuwait and Saudi Arabia that mainly sells oil. But John Major will not tolerate such a situation, so even if there are calls for a referendum, Downing Street must do everything possible to stifle these calls in their infancy.

When the British economy was still in good shape, Britain could still suppress such cries. It was nothing more than improving Scotland's social welfare and blocking the mouths of those independents.However, the recent continuous downturn in the world economy, coupled with the collapse of the pillar of the British oil industry, made John Major feel a very serious crisis.

He needs to divert his attention, especially now that the people are very dissatisfied with the state of the EU's continuous blood transfusion. If this continues, Prime Minister John Major will be kicked out of office by the people sooner or later because of this incident.

At this time, Sir Terence, the permanent secretary of the British Treasury, put forward a bad idea that was not a good idea. He claimed that he could use the British people's antipathy towards the EU to divert the contradiction of Scotland's attempt to referendum, so that the UK could vote for the European Union without spending a penny. Get this thing over with.

"And I believe that the EU will not allow us to secede from it. This is just a means of retreating to force Germany and France to surrender. Especially France, the recent actions in Libya have cost us a large amount of oil foreign exchange income, now it’s time for them to feel what is called pressure.” Terrence said with a sneer, his hatred of France is no less than his dissatisfaction with the European Union, and it can be said that the United Kingdom has suffered heavy losses because of the small actions between France and Germany .

"Recently, the dissatisfaction with the EU has been rising. What should we do if something happens to the referendum? Have you considered this issue? Minister Terence. Now the British economy is struggling at every step. Once we get rid of it , Britain is completely finished." John Major seemed uneasy about Terrance's suggestion, always feeling that it was a joke about the future of the government.

"Is it necessary to launch a war to divert the attention of the people? The current European Union cannot afford such consumption, Prime Minister John Major. We should clearly realize that the current economic crisis has no effective means to stimulate our Economy and demand, what does this mean? It means that our resignation is small, and the whole of Great Britain may be divided." Terrence's answer is plausible, which is like a bad idea conceived in an extremely bad situation.

"Now that Scotland is preparing for an independence referendum, there is no guarantee that the next step will be people planning to leave the European Union. Since things are seeing things going in a direction that cannot be saved, why not stop these situations before they get worse? As long as we can control this A referendum, exaggerating the seriousness of the situation, letting NATO know that we are in a bad situation, not joking with them. Once the goal of blackmailing the EU is achieved, immediately declare a great victory, and let the people cancel the idea of ​​​​a referendum."

Chasing tigers and chasing wolves?This was the only consequence that John Major thought of, and if he was a little careless, Britain would lose everything.In 1989, he also served as the UK's executive secretary of the treasury. He is well aware of the problems that the UK will face after leaving the EU. Firstly, the most likely situation is to lose a certain part of the investment and turn to other EU countries for cooperation, which may also cause a large amount of capital to flow out of the UK. This is the first result that John Major does not want to see.

But Terence's words also made Prime Minister Major fall into deep thought. After joining the EU, the UK has been in a state of loss. Although it is supported by preferential tax policies, it has lost a large amount of profits compared to before.If it weren't for the silent blood transfusion from the United States, the British economy might have collapsed long ago.

"This is just a last resort, Prime Minister Major. If the economic pressure was not unbearable, we would not use such means to force the EU." Terrence tried to let the UK play the role of an innocent, telling the UK Everything the Prime Minister himself does is for the glory of Great Britain.

"I will consider Sir Terence's opinion, but before that, I want to resolve this issue in a more peaceful way."

John Major sighed, his brows furrowed even tighter.He always had a premonition of what was going to happen next, which gave him a very uneasy feeling.

Chapter 481 Yes, This is Great Britain

If there are two main culprits preventing European unification, then it must be the Soviet Union, whose political form is completely different from that of Western Europe, and Great Britain, which has been the crap stick of Europe for more than 500 years.There have been cartoons that have satirized Britain's diplomatic goals, claiming that their purpose of creating a divided Europe has never wavered.

"Combine the Netherlands to sanction Spain, unite France and Italy to sanction Germany, unite France to sanction Germany and Italy. Unite Germany to counterbalance France, stir up Europe into a pot of porridge from the inside, provoke Germany against France, provoke France against Italy, and provoke Italy against the Netherlands. Well, our glory days are back. But we are all loyal to the idea of ​​a Greater Europe, Prime Minister."

John Major wanted to use the people to create momentum for his plan. First, he started to attack the refugee issue. He believed that the admission of refugees proposed by the European Union was a wrong resolution. Britain no longer accepts refugees and hopes that all these refugees will go away. Go back to your own home.If the European Union does not accept the British proposal, then the United Kingdom will first get out of the European Union and let France and Germany play the game of European unification.

Prime Minister Major clarified his political stance, which was endorsed by many viewers. They also fell into the misunderstanding of thinking, thinking that the current situation in Europe is caused by the introduction of refugees. As long as they are driven out, the British economy can fully recover stand up.More radicals believe that as long as they leave the European Union, the UK can achieve independent development.In fact, most people may not even know what the EU is.

Apparently Prime Minister Major’s speech did not get the attention of leaders of other European countries. German Chancellor Kohl believes that the British move is naive. It is stupid to try to blackmail the EU in this way, because all countries in the EU are equal. The relevant laws and regulations will not be modified because of the United Kingdom.

"We urge the British government to move to the right path as soon as possible and adopt a reliable negotiation method instead of trying to achieve its ulterior motives through coercion." Cole exchanged views with Chirac in private, and the other party also believed that Prime Minister Major is just bluffing, not really wanting independence from the EU.

"I think the UK is just jealous of our annual income, coupled with the recent economic problems, so it uses blackmail to achieve its goals."

It was a miracle that Cole and Juppé sat at the same round table to discuss issues, not to mention the recent uproar due to the unpleasant Libyan incident. Now the two can talk about the British issue calmly, largely thanks to Yu Jupe's restraint and calmness.

Cole took a sip of coffee, then put it on the table, he said to Jupe who was sitting opposite, "But the current situation is a bit embarrassing. As the two major sponsors of the European Union, I don't know Should we agree to Britain's request, tsk tsk tsk, Prime Minister John Major has posed a difficult problem for us."

Before Jupe could answer, Cole continued, "If we agree to John's request, it means that in the future, EU countries may use this to threaten us to modify the relevant regulations. The trade talks are not very peaceful."

Juppé leaned on the sofa and listened quietly to Prime Minister Cole's relevant opinions. He maintained a peaceful expression from the beginning to the end, as if the problem in front of him was nothing more than an irrelevant topic to the French Prime Minister.

"If we say that we do not agree to the request of the UK, once we withdraw from the EU, it will inevitably cause dissatisfaction in the Netherlands, which will lead to a wave of secession, just like the Soviet Union in 1991, not to mention that the Soviet Union still had control over the member countries at that time. Right, we have nothing but a policy of economic union."

Cole rubbed his temples. The multiple-choice questions in front of him were even more tangled than Hamlet. Once the UK withdraws from the European Union, it means that the integration actions that began in the 50s and 60s have officially failed. Although many people are optimistic It is estimated that the UK will not leave the European Union, but Cole is not optimistic about the current situation.

"What should we do?" Cole raised his head and threw the problem of the century to Jupe.Every move they make will affect the future of a regional organization, so France and Germany will sit together to discuss issues regardless of the past.

"We reject the UK's request. No one can break the rules set by the EU, even the French themselves." There are reasons for Juppe's insistence. Once this kind of precedent starts, it will inevitably cause bad effects. Secondly, he bet that the UK was just relying on its momentum, and did not want to truly become independent from the EU, because the risk of loss was too great, and Major would not take this risk.The most important reason is that the discord between France and Britain in Libya made Juppé make this bold decision.

"But what if the UK really withdraws?" Cole is still a little worried. He always thinks that there are too many variables in the UK, and everything they think is far behind the changes in the situation.