“Mr. Prime Minister, I cannot confirm such a thing.”
“I understand, Mr. President,” Nagai said. “I only hope that if this was true, that it does not mean that the United States is traveling down the slippery slope to a nuclear confrontation with the People’s Republic of China. The movement of the Independence carrier battle group into the Formosa Strait will certainly elevate hostilities to a dangerous level already — if it became known that America was also considering reactivating its nuclear deterrent forces, the level of tensions worldwide would increase tremendously. Even worse, if it became known that the Independence or any of its escorts carried tactical nuclear attack weapons—”
“Mr. Nagai, I don’t like what you’re insinuating,” Martindale interjected angrily. “I will not discuss the disposition of any of our strategic systems, and I will not tolerate veiled threats from you to pass along incorrect or misleading information designed to enbarrass the United States or further your own political agenda. I advise you to reconsider your actions very carefully. Thank you, and good night.” The President slammed the phone back on its cradle. “No more calls from that rat bastard Nagai, got it, Jerrod? How dare he deliver ultimatums to me!” The President sat fuming for several long moments; then: “I want to talk with President Lee and President Jiang as soon as possible, President Lee first.”
“The ambassador from the PRC, Hou Qingze, is standing by for you, sir, calling from New York,” Jerrod Hale said. “Line two. He’s been on hold since you took the call from Nagai.”
The President nodded, impressed — and even less impressed now by Taiwan’s silence. He took several deep breaths to wash the anger out of his head, then hit the button and picked up the phone: “Ambassador Hou, this is Kevin Martindale. Sorry to have kept you waiting.”
“Not at all, Mr. President,” Ambassador Hou Qingze responded in very good English, with a hint of a British accent. “I am honored to speak with you tonight. I first wish to convey the deep sadness and regret of President Jiang and the government and people of the People’s Republic of China over the recent conflict between the Nationalists and our country.”
“Does your country have an explanation, Ambassador?”
“I am sorry to say, Mr. President, that the People’s Liberation Army Navy forces overreacted to certain actions by the rebel Nationalist terrorist forces,” Hou said. “My government deeply regrets our actions and is very embarrassed. ”
“Overreacted? You fired nuclear missiles at Quemoy, sir.”
“My government strenuously denies that we launched any nuclear weapons at anyone, Mr. President,” Hou said sincerely.
“We’ve heard your denials several times a day for the past two weeks, sir,” the President said. “It doesn’t change the facts — we know the missiles were fired by your ships.”
“We must respectfully disagree, sir,” Ambassador Hou said. “But the purpose of my call, Mr. President, if I may, was not about the past conflict, but to explain our actions in this recent string of attacks.
“The torpedo attacks by the Taiwanese submarine shadowing the Mao Zedong carrier group could have been an accidental firing, or an in- solated rogue attack. The sudden appearance of a Taiwanese submarine so close to our ships, after our nations had agreed not to sail any submarines in the Strait during the carrier group’s transit, caused our naval forces to sound an attack alarm,” Hou said rather contritely. “We were totally caught unawares, and our forces reacted.
“Further, it now appears that the so-called bombing attack by the Taiwanese transport plane was merely a navigational error. The pilot apparently had instrument problems caused by a nearby electrical storm that caused him to cross into our airspace, which alerted our air defenses, who then perceived the incursion as a prelude to an attack, to which we responded by launching a counterattack,” Hou continued. “Again, our forces were caught unaware and surprised, which, combined with the announced attack on the carrier group just minutes earlier, caused confusion and fear, and so we overreacted. On behalf of my country, I am deeply sorry for this unwarranted action against the people of Matsu, and beg forgiveness.”
The President was silent for several long moments. It appeared as if the Chinese had come clean — they were admitting that they screwed up! Their explanation seemed totally plausible: two isolated incidents, both sparked by Taiwan, occurring only moments apart, caused the Chinese military to surge forward. “I see,” the President said on the phone, believing Hou but not yet willing to admit it. “What are your country’s intentions now?”
“My government informs me that all further troop movements have been halted against Matsu, and no further attacks will be initiated,” Ambassador Hou replied. “We regret the loss of life and the destruction of property, but under the circumstances I believe our reaction, dishonorable and unfortunate as it was, was fully justified. We shall transmit our apology to the Nationalist government immediately. And, in the interest of peace, we assure you and the rest of the world that the crew of the Taiwanese sub will be treated fairly. We are not in a state of war, but the sailors of the submarine that attacked our carrier will be treated as if they are prisoners of war — with respect and fairness. My government will also agree to submit the matter to an international tribunal.”
The President was impressed and heartened at these proposals; it definitely appeared as if China was ready and willing to compromise and not isolate themselves. Were they being perhaps too willing? the President thought. “May we get a copy of your withdrawal orders and a written account of China’s actions in this conflict?” he asked.
“I shall have it delivered to Secretary of State Hartman’s office and to the White House within the hour, Mr. President,” Hou replied.
The President was taken aback by the openness and cooperation Hou showed — of course, it all remained to be seen, but he was still surprised by China’s apparent forthrightness. “Very well, Mr. Ambassador,” the President said. “We look forward to your continuing cooperation in this very serious matter. ”
“I pledge my country’s sincere cooperation,” Hou said. He paused for a moment, as if embarrassed to bring up the point; then: “I have been instructed to ask you, Mr. President, for some sort of explanation for the horrible and tragic event that occurred near Quemoy a short while ago.” He heard Martindale pause at the question, then hastily added, “If you wish not to speak of it now, sir, I understand. There are delicate and critical factors to be analyzed.”
“There is still a lot of confusion over exactly what happened, Mr. Ambassador, in the incidents near Hong Kong and Matsu as well as the one near Quemoy,” the President replied. “But since you’ve been honest with us, Mr. Ambassador, we’ll be honest with you, as long as this information is held in the strictest confidence.”
“Of course, Mr. President,” Hou responded.
“The attack on the passenger ferry was prompted by a missile attack on two U.S. Navy frigates,” the President said. “An armed patrol plane flying in the same area detected the attack on our ships and, mistakingly believing the missiles came from the ferry, returned fire. Our sensors reported that the ferry was a warship, and it was on a convergent course with our patrol ships, so when the missile attacks occurred, our patrol plane commenced an immediate counterattack.”
“The EB-52 Megafortress bomber, it has the capability of distinguishing between different vessels from such long distances?” Hou asked.
The President’s head jerked up at the mention of the Megafortress— they knew! The Chinese government knew about the Megafortress! This was the second conflict against the Chinese in which the bomber had been used, so it was not totally unexplainable — but to hear the aircraft’s nickname used so casually was a great shock to the President, who had been involved with the weapon system since its inception and had managed to keep it a closely guarded secret, even from most of the rest of the U.S. government. “I cannot discuss types of aircraft or the capabilities they may or may not have,” President Martindale responded, trying to keep his voice level and moderated. “All I can say is that the attack was accidental, and these patrol planes are being removed from the area to avoid any further accidents, in the interest of peace. We were hoping that you might have some explanation for the attack on the American frigates.”