Wanted to take a moment to say thanks to CurtisLemay for helping out with this story. He's been a good friend and provided invaluable help with this. Also thanks to his friend Matt who's provided terrific advice as well. Here's to you, my friends. Also, thank you all very much for the kudos and feedback thus far. Our only currency when writing these stories is feedback, so every bit is appreciated.
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World War III: 1988
Chapter 2: The Bear, the Caracara, and the Eagle
"You know, it's funny in a sad way, when I think about it. We knew shit had gone south real quick with the coup, so everybody, and I mean EVERYBODY was scrambling hand over fist to find out what the Soviets and their usual gang of friends were up to. We definitely got lucky with some of the defectors we got, the ones that made it anyway. That was a real intel jackpot there, especially with Biopreparat. Only problem was, we weren't paying quite enough attention to another problem that was brewing just south of the motherfucking border."
--Colonel Nicholas "Nick" Fury, U.S. Army (Ret.)
In the days following what was soon coined by the Western press as the "October Coup of '86", there were rounds of condemnation from the West. The first to respond was none other than Ronald Reagan, who condemned the actions within the Kremlin in a speech before the U.S. House and Senate on October 15, calling the coup a "vicious and cowardly betrayal of a reformer with good intentions at heart, a hearkening back to the dark days of Stalin, and proof that the USSR is unwilling to reform, and is indeed an evil empire." Reagan's condemnation was immediately followed by Margaret Thatcher of the U.K., calling the actions of the coup "the work of evil men who threaten the free world." Andrei Gromyko responded almost immediately in a televised speech on TASS, referring to Reagan as a "reckless cowboy who thinks nuclear missiles are six shooters, and should not dance so closely with his English partner to the nuclear fire, lest they burn themselves and the world."
Other Western and Western-aligned nations including Canada, France, West Germany, Italy, Japan, and Australia also weighed in, condemning the coup, though in more subtle terms. Other countries such as China, Mexico, Brazil, and India took a more muted tone, though in India it was reported Rajiv Ghandi was "troubled" by the current events as he had developed a personal rapport with Gorbachev, though many of his ministers and generals pushed for continued close relations with the USSR to counter regional ambitions from China and Pakistan.
A rash of defections soon occurred over the next several weeks. Notable among them were Vasili Mitrohkin, a KGB agent who had become disillusioned with his employer and had been keeping notes of the KGB's activities. He became fearful for his life and soon escaped to Switzerland with whatever notes he could carry, accompanied by a few colleagues of the late Valery Legasov. They soon made contact with the US Embassy and were spirited away by CIA personnel to the U.S. A more prominent figure in the KGB, General Oleg Kalugin also defected, in a rather dramatic escape to the U.K. that involved a joint operation between the CIA and MI6, involving another former KGB asset who was only identified by her handle as "Black Widow". Soviet Biopreparat researcher Colonel Kanatzhan "Kanat" Alibekov also defected to the U.K. along with his family in a close escape as they were shadowed by the KGB. And lastly, Olympic Gold Medal winner Katarina Witt of East Germany defected along with her troupe as they were visiting Sweden, where they were spirited away by CIA personnel to the U.S. The KGB defectors brought many details of current KGB operations worldwide to light, while Alibekov blew the lid of secrecy off the Soviet's Biopreparat weapons program, and Katarina Witt soon became involved in regular radio broadcasts with the VOA.
Among the countries that voiced their support for the Soviet coup, the mood was different. In the Warsaw Pact, Erich Honecker was the first to enthusiastically voice his support for a crackdown on all "potential traitors in the East who may be conspiring with the Western capitalist imperialists". Honecker ordered Erich Mielke, department head of the Ministry of State Security, or Stasi to arrest Egon Krenz and his associates and "ensure that examples were made." Mielke, dubbed as the "Master of Fear" by the West German press, did just that. On October 15th, the same day Reagan gave his speech, a motorized rifle battalion of the Stasi Felix Dzerzhinsky Guards Regiment arrested Krenz and his staff and lined them up alongside a street in East Berlin next to the Wall. Under Mielke's orders, the motor riflemen along with their PSZH-IV's opened fire with their machine guns and shot them to pieces. Honecker hailed the massacre as "an example that the great collective of the German Socialist State would not be hampered by, nor give appeasement to, any who would try to undermine the great revolutionary struggle." In Poland, Lech Walesa along with prominent members of Solidarity were quickly seized by KGB agents and placed into solitary confinement. Similar brutal purges and crackdowns were enacted in Hungary and Czechoslovakia. Other leaders who voiced their support for the "new Socialist era" included figures such as Fidel Castro of Cuba, Kim Il-Sung of North Korea, Hafez Al-Asad of Syria, and Muammar Khaddafi of Libya. However, there was soon to be another figure who would join this dubious club as well...
In Mexico, Miguel De La Madrid was not having a good year. Mexican economic growth had been contracting, a leftist faction calling itself Democratic Current had split off from his party, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). The San Juanico Disaster of 1984 had already begun to turn people against him, followed by another disaster in 1985 when an earthquake struck Mexico City, turning into an even greater debacle when his administration was too slow and incompetent to effectively respond. When Madrid gave an opening speech at the 1986 FIFA World Cup (enormous capital had been lavished on the games even as Mexico City had not yet fully recovered and the country continued to suffer from economic problems) he was loudly drowned out by boos from the crowd of over 100,000. Soon, daily protests began to fill the streets of every major Mexican city. Soon, some of the protests began to turn to riots when the Mexican Federales police responded with heavy-handed tactics that were heavily criticized by the Western press. Madrid, sensing he was in trouble, called for early elections, hoping that by currying enough favors through various officials he could hope to retain his presidency. Democratic Current, sensing an opening, looked for a candidate it hoped could effectively run against Madrid and bring about a new era in Mexican politics that had been run single-handed by the PRI since 1929. They found that candidate in one Juan Phillipe Merono.
Merono was a graduate of Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) and was an up-and-coming politico within the PRI, before joining the splinter faction Democratic Current. Merono was a relatively young candidate with movie-star looks, great energy and enthusiasm, high intelligence and magnetic charisma. He was married to Isabelle Diaz, a tall, stunning actress often nicknamed "The Madonna of Mexico" who was well-known in the Mexican film and TV industry. Both had become immensely popular among both the middle and lower class of Mexico, the two having often visited Mexico's poorer neighborhoods with Isabelle drawing attention to them, while Merono showed himself to be an intelligent and skilled statesman. The two quickly became a power couple, and Democratic Current had found their perfect candidate. However, there was one small wrinkle...
Isabelle Diaz had originally come from Cuba, and was the daughter of Karen Jennings, an early 60's American radical from Berkely University who had become religiously devoted to the cause of Socialism and emigrated to Cuba, and Miguel Diaz, a prominent figure in the Cuban government. Isabelle had always retained ties to the Cuban government, and when she married Juan Phillipe Merono, she helped establish ties between Juan and none other than Fidel Castro. Castro saw a fellow revolutionary in Juan, and promised to do everything in his power to support him. However, through Castro one other "fellow revolutionary" also developed an interest in Juan...none other than Mumammar Khaddafi. Khaddafi apparently also saw Juan as a fellow revolutionary, and also promised his discreet support, in return for later favors. And from there, plans were set in motion...
On November 18, roughly a month after the October coup, nationwide elections were held in Mexico. There were charges of vote-rigging and violence at the polls by both sides. International observers voiced their concerns, but soon the votes were counted. The winning candidate was Juan Phillipe Merono.
Amid foul cries from the PRI that had suffered a huge upset, Merono and his wife and staff triumphantly entered the National Palace in Mexico and later stood on the center balcony, waving to the adulating crowd. Merono thanked everyone, declaring the election a "victory by the proletariat, for the proletariat, meaning all of you, the people!" Merono promised a new era that would finally focus on the more poor and downtrodden of the country, and said tonight he would unveil a symbol of how he would do just that. Television newscrews from around the world watched...and gasped as a huge red banner was unfurled from the top of the Palace, upon it a familiar symbol...the crossed hammer and sickle. Merono then cried out "VIVA LA REVOLUCION!!" and then began proclaiming his plans for a system of "industrial collectivization" that would take place within the economy, as well as a restructuring of the Mexican military, with a new focus on "loyalty to the people's revolution". Indeed, even as Merono spoke, planes and boats filled with Cuban "construction troops and advisers" along with "Pan-African advisers and volunteers" from Libya were already en-route to Mexico.
The shockwaves around the world were immediate. Cuba and Libya immediately congratulated Merono on his victory. The OAS (Organization of American States) as a whole was for the most part a bit more subdued and guarded in tone, nervous at the realization that a country bordering the United States had just declared itself a socialist republic, and what it may inevitably mean. Socialist members like Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua however were far more forthcoming with their congratulations, with Ortega offering "support" as well. Canada however voiced it's "grave concern" and asked Merono to "reconsider" certain choices he may have already made. North Korea hailed the election, calling it a "great leap forward to victory for the Mexican people over the bloodthirsty imperialist American warmongers". Western aligned countries like those among the NATO alliance voiced their grave concerns as well, pleading with Merono not to pursue the path he was now indicating. The most interesting responses however, were from of course the United States and the Soviet Union.
Ronald Reagan immediately denounced Merono's actions by what he called "a disastrous decision to align himself and the people and country of Mexico with a wicked ideology that threatens the freedom of all people across the world, including Mexico," and stated pointedly that "America will not now nor ever tolerate a presence as evil and soul-crushing as communism on our very borders." He then asked Merono to reconsider his plan to "remake Mexico into a socialist state, for which there can only be the gravest of consequences for everyone." Merono retorted immediately in another speech from the National Palace:
"I ask you, fellow countrymen, what good has the American gringos every brought us?! NONE! They have always looked down upon us, laughed at us, mocked us, treating us as lowly peasants, no better than slaves! They have stolen land from us in wars, and now demand so-called 'cooperation' for their drug wars, where they are the clear parasites, sucking on other countries dry to fuel their own wretched abuses. NO MORE, WE SAY! No longer shall we look to these worthless capitalist imperialists who enslave us! No longer shall we kowtow to their demands! Our way forward, is with our fraternal socialist brothers and sisters across the world! Long live the Revolution!"
The message from the Soviet Union however, was rather short and surprisingly subdued. Andrei Gromyko made a short terse congratulations to Moreno, congratulating him on a "spirited win for the people of Mexico and for world socialism". But then sent a communique to the Soviet embassy in Mexico City that was to be hand-delivered directly to the new President. An NSA listening post intercepted the communique which read thusly:
"The United Soviet Socialist Republic congratulates you on a hard-earned victory, and wish you good fortune as you champion the cause of the people. However, we feel it is our duty to warn you to exercise some caution as you share a significant border with the United States of America. Please be aware, the U.S.S.R. will NOT be able to provide you any military or financial assistance under current conditions, not now nor in the near future. We wish you well, and good luck."
What became in retrospect an almost tragic farce, was when the communique was delivered to the President's aides. Nervous about his reaction to the communique, the note in essence was only summarized that "The Soviet Union would be supportive of the new Mexican government", and conveniently leaving out Gromyko's warning about no Soviet aid. The aides felt this would only be a minor issue as Castro, Khaddafi and even Ortega had all promised various forms of support. One former aide, later in his unpublished memoirs commented:
"It was our own damned fault, that we didn't tell Merono the full context of the communique from Gromyko. But you must understand, the aides to El Presidente had over time become very much like, I hate to say, Yes Men. In retrospect, I truly felt Merono believed he was doing the right thing. He wanted to help the people of Mexico who had been laboring under all these corrupt officials who had dominated the country with one-party rule for so long, especially the poor who had often gone ignored, especially after the earthquake of 1985. The problem was, he was yes, sadly naive in some very important ways as it turned out. And then that wife of his Isabelle, who kept whispering certain thoughts in his ear. That and those two damned idiots, Castro and Khaddafi. Again because of that damned women they became involved with Merono, when they had no business to whatsoever. Merono had good intentions, but you know what they say about what the road to Hell is often paved with."
What Merono didn't know, or could not know, was that back in the U.S., the White House was holding an emergency meeting with the Joint Chiefs, and the Pentagon had already begun issuing "warning orders" to various military units. Nor did Moreno know just how much he would come to regret his own words.
"Me and the rest of the gang were actually down in Mexico when the shit really hit the fan, doing this...ah, well, not important now. We all were a little drunk on tequila that day and resting up, when we watched the news on one of those old 60's era tvs they had rigged up over the bar, and when we saw that big red banner with that hammer and sickle unfold over the palace? It got quiet as a tomb in there. I just remember looking at Hannibal, and what he said right there summed up all of our feelings. 'Boys, it's time to get the hell out of Dodge, fast." And we did just that...uh, barely. Fate's got a funny way of doing things, y'know? Good 'ol Juan had no idea what sort of shitstorm he'd unleashed."
--Templeton "Faceman" Peck, formerly of the underground organization-turned-mercenary "A-Team".
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