Chernov delivered the awaited update. “All essential elements have been arranged, Mr. President. The preliminary ground units are en route to Kaliningrad Oblast, an agreement has been forged with President Lukashenko in Belarus, and arrangements have been made in Ukraine. We are confident we’ll achieve the primary objectives.”
“And the insurance?” Kalinin asked.
Chernov answered, “Iran has agreed to their part, which is the one essential agreement we required. India hasn’t replied, although we expect a response by Victory Day. China also has not yet committed, and we don’t have a timeline on their decision. We feel good about India, but less certain about China.”
Kalinin replied, “I will not proceed based on good feelings.”
“India and China aren’t required,” Chernov reminded Kalinin. “If either one commits, however, our position will be ironclad. America will be paralyzed.”
“And if neither commits”—Kalinin’s eyes swept the military officers at the conference table—“can we keep the United States from interfering?”
General Andropov answered, “Without India and China, we cannot prevent the United States from intervening. However, if they do, we will defeat them.”
Kalinin shifted his gaze to Admiral Lipovsky, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, who would shoulder the burden of their insurance plan. “Admiral?”
Lipovsky replied, “The Northern and Pacific Fleets are underway and will reach their objectives at the prescribed time. However…” Lipovsky glanced at Defense Minister Chernov. “An issue has arisen.”
Kalinin turned to Chernov, who provided the details. “A few hours ago, there was an explosion aboard Marshal Ustinov. Her forward compartments are flooded, sonar is out of commission, and there is significant damage to her tactical systems.”
“What was the cause of the explosion?”
“We don’t know yet. The explosion didn’t originate from ordnance aboard the cruiser, so we are unsure what detonated. It’s possible a mine was attached to the ship’s hull, but there are very few entities with that ability, and even fewer with the inclination.”
“What’s the impact?” Kalinin directed his question at Admiral Lipovsky.
“It’s a significant blow,” Lipovsky answered, “but not fatal. Marshal Ustinov is the third most potent combatant in the Northern Fleet, and will be out of action for several months. However, her loss can be compensated for with additional land-based missile batteries.”
Kalinin turned to Colonel General Viktor Glukov, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Ground Forces.
“We have the assets,” he said.
There was a knock on the conference room door, and the conversation paused as Kalinin responded, “Enter.”
The door opened, revealing Kalinin’s executive assistant. “I apologize for interrupting, Mr. President, but I thought you’d want to take this call.”
“Who is it?”
“The American president.”
Kalinin raised an eyebrow as he said, “Put him on speaker.”
The assistant tapped the necessary buttons on the conference room phone, then said, “Mr. President, can you hear me?”
“Loud and clear,” was the response.
The assistant left the conference room, and as the door shut, Kalinin said, “This is President Kalinin.”
After the requisite pleasantries were exchanged, the American president broached the reason for the call. “I have bad news to share with you, Yuri. It turns out we’ve had a mishap similar to your submarine that accidentally attacked Roosevelt. We were executing a training mission with one of our SEAL teams in the Mediterranean, and they accidentally attached real ordnance, instead of a dummy mine, to the hull of Marshal Ustinov. You have my sincerest apology for this mishap, and we’re launching an investigation immediately. Once we determine the root cause, we’ll put additional safeguards in place to ensure this doesn’t happen again.”
There was silence in the conference room as all eyes turned to Kalinin, waiting for his response. Chernov noted the heat rising in Kalinin’s face as he processed what the United States had done. Finally, Kalinin spoke, his words failing to match the anger on his face.
“Thank you for the call. It is unfortunate, but these things happen. I hope both countries get to the root cause of each incident to ensure future mishaps do not occur.”
“I agree wholeheartedly, Yuri. We’ll keep you apprised of what we learn.”
After the call ended, Kalinin turned toward Chernov. “It turns out the Americans aren’t as spineless as you predicted.”
Chernov shifted uncomfortably in his seat before replying, “I admit their response is unexpected, but my overall assessment is unchanged. Attaching a mine to a ship is one thing. Committing their entire military to a conflict is another. Once everything has been arranged, they will not engage.”
There was silence again as Kalinin evaluated whether to proceed with the plan. Chernov sensed Kalinin wasn’t convinced their plan was ultimately in their country’s best interest, and the Russian president’s next words confirmed his assessment.
“Initiate the SVR operation in Ukraine and mobilize all required military units. However, do not proceed further until I approve.”
28
USS MICHIGAN
Lieutenant Jayne Stucker turned slowly on the periscope as the guided missile submarine cruised just beneath the surface of the Mediterranean Sea. It was late afternoon and her watch as Officer of the Deck was drawing to a close. Stucker couldn’t have been more thankful, after going round and round on the periscope for almost six hours straight, aside from an occasional break by a fire control technician.
After departing the vicinity of Latakia the previous night, Michigan had taken station in the Eastern Mediterranean in the gap between Syria and Cyprus, awaiting further orders. Those orders arrived this morning, and Michigan had crept closer to Latakia, where they would await the departure of the Russian warships, then shadow them as they rejoined the Russian combatants at sea.
When Stucker shifted to a high-power scan of the quadrant in Latakia’s direction, a new object appeared on the horizon — the distinctive superstructure of a modern warship: gray steel bedecked with a plethora of navigation and tactical radar antennas. The entire ship wasn’t yet visible, as it was still hull-down, the hull of the ship blocked from view due to the curvature of the earth, but there was no doubt as to the contact type.
Stucker called out to the microphone in the overhead as she circled on the periscope. “Sonar, Conn. Hold a new contact, designated Victor five-seven, classified warship, outbound from Latakia on a bearing of zero-four-five. Report any contact on that bearing.”
“Conn, Sonar. Aye, wait,” was the response from the Sonar Supervisor. Not long thereafter, he reported, “Conn, Sonar. Hold a new contact, designated Sierra three-two, bearing zero-four-five, classified warship with twin four-bladed screws.”
“Conn, Sonar. Aye,” Stucker replied. “All stations, Conn. Correlate Victor five-seven and Sierra three-two as Master one. Track Master one.”