69novels Chapter 360 Trade Sanctions
Chapter 360 Trade Sanctions
An emergency meeting is underway in the Pentagon in Hwaseong Special District.
The air was filled with tension and anxiety. The senior military officers and intelligence officials attending the meeting had serious expressions and spoke in low voices.
Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara stood in the center of the room, his eyes swept over everyone present, his voice low and serious: "Gentlemen, we are facing an unprecedented crisis. Our most advanced aircraft carrier battle group was scared away by an invisible enemy. This is not only a military defeat, but also a huge blow to our global strategy."
As soon as McNamara finished speaking, a buzz broke out in the conference room.
Some people frowned in thought, some shook their heads and sighed, and some cursed under their breath.
"We have to find out what's going on," McNamara continued, with a hint of urgency in his voice. "We need to know what kind of technology the Yan people have mastered."
CIA Director John McCown cleared his throat and all eyes turned to him.
"According to our intelligence," McCown said, his voice a little hoarse, "Yan Country seems to have secretly developed some advanced stealth technology in the past few years. However," he paused, frowning, "we can't be sure of the specific details. They have done a great job of keeping it secret."
McNamara's face turned even darker. He turned to Chief of Naval Operations George Anderson and asked, "George, what do you think?"
General Anderson took a deep breath and said slowly, "Mr. Minister, our preliminary analysis shows that the Yan people may have mastered some advanced radar absorbing material technology, coupled with advanced electronic countermeasure systems. This allows their ships to be 'invisible' under our radar, while accurately locking onto our fleet."
"But how is that possible?" an Air Force general interjected, his voice thick with disbelief. "Even our most advanced stealth technology can't do that."
Anderson shook his head: "I know it sounds unbelievable, but the facts are in front of us. We must admit that in some areas, Yan Country may have surpassed us."
This statement caused a commotion in the conference room. Some people were talking in low voices, some looked worried, and some clenched their fists.
At this moment, the door of the conference room was suddenly pushed open. The special assistant of the president came in, his face was extremely serious: "Gentlemen, the president wants to see you."
……
Five minutes later, McNamara and several other senior officials stood in the Oval Office. The President sat behind his oak desk, his face grim.
"Tell me," the commander-in-chief's voice was low and dangerous, "how did our most powerful aircraft carrier battle group get scared away?"
McNamara took a deep breath and began to report the situation in detail. As he spoke, the president's face became more and more ugly.
"Damn it!" The commander-in-chief finally couldn't help but explode. He stood up suddenly and slammed his fist on the table. "We spent billions of dollars to build an aircraft carrier, but it was scared away by an invisible enemy? This is a shame!"
The President's roar chilled everyone in the room. McNamara tried to comfort him, "Mr. President, we are investigating this matter with all our strength. I assure you that we will find out the truth and take necessary measures."
The commander-in-chief took a few deep breaths and tried to calm himself. He slowly sat back in his chair and glanced at everyone in the room: "So, gentlemen, what suggestions do you have?"
Secretary of State Dean Rusk stepped forward: "Mr. President, I think we should impose trade sanctions on Yan. Cut off their funding so that they can't continue to develop these advanced technologies."
"Not enough," the commander-in-chief shook his head, "we need stronger measures."
At this time, National Security Advisor McGeorge Bundy spoke up: "We can consider a total embargo. Not only us, but also convince our allies to join in. Completely cut off Yan Country's contact with the outside world."
The commander-in-chief nodded thoughtfully: "That's a good idea. Anything else?"
"We can start with raw materials," said Treasury Secretary Douglas Dillon. "We can cut off their access to raw materials. Without raw materials, they can't continue to produce these advanced weapons."
The president's eyes lit up. "Very good, these suggestions are all good. McNamara, you will be responsible for coordinating these actions. I want to see a detailed plan, the sooner the better."
McNamara nodded. "Yes, Mr. President. We will start preparing immediately."
The commander-in-chief stood up and his eyes swept over everyone in the room: "Gentlemen, we are facing the most serious challenge since World War II. The rise of Yan Country threatens our global leadership. We must act, and quickly. I don't want to hear any more reports of failure like this, understand?"
Everyone nodded solemnly. The last words of the commander-in-chief were like a heavy hammer, hitting everyone's heart.
Immediately after leaving the Oval Office, McNamara convened a task force.
They worked day and night to develop a detailed sanctions plan. After intense discussions and weighing, they finally decided to implement partial sanctions, which would put enough pressure on Yan Country without completely cutting off the connection between the two sides.
A few days later, a new trade regulation was announced internationally, which severely restricted the export of high-tech products to Yan and also restricted the import of certain key raw materials from Yan.
As soon as the news came out, it immediately caused an uproar around the world.
Media from all over the world reported the news, and experts and scholars began to discuss the possible impact of this policy. Some people believe that this is a necessary measure for the United States to curb the rise of the United States, while others worry that this may trigger a new round of trade war.
What is even more surprising is that even the Russians have made certain trade adjustments.
Although it did not completely follow the sanctions policy of the United States, Russia also reduced some of its technology exports to China, a move that surprised many observers, who began to speculate whether Russia also felt threatened by China.
……
In the capital of Yan State, an emergency meeting was underway. The senior officials present all looked solemn, and the air was filled with tension and anger.
"These beautiful Chinese are going too far!" an elderly official slammed his hand on the table and said angrily, "They are blatant economic bullying!"
Another official echoed: "That's right, they can't afford to lose, so they use this despicable method to attack us. We must not give in!"
The conference room was filled with angry voices, everyone was condemning the actions of the United States and discussing how to deal with this crisis. At this moment, a calm voice interrupted the noise.
"Comrades," Li Yang stood up. His voice was not loud, but it made everyone quiet down. "What we need most now is not anger, but calmness. The actions of the American people actually gave us an opportunity."
Everyone looked at Li Yang in surprise, not understanding why he said that.
Li Yang continued: "We can consider raising prices across the board for our export products."
This suggestion immediately caused an uproar. An economic expert immediately objected: "Comrade Li, our products are already restricted now. If we raise the price again, won't it be even harder to sell them?"
Li Yang smiled and began to explain his idea in detail: "You may not know that the prices of our current steel, carbon fiber and other products in the international market are actually very low. Relying on advanced production technology, we can produce these products at very low costs, and then sell them at a price slightly higher than the cost, thereby obtaining a large number of orders and a certain profit."
He paused and looked around to make sure everyone was listening to him.
"But," Li Yang continued, "it is precisely because our prices are too low that they seriously threaten the interests of those foreign capital companies. This is why they are so actively promoting this sanction."
People in the conference room began to discuss in low voices. Some nodded to show their understanding, while others still looked confused.
Li Yang raised his hand and signaled everyone to be quiet.
"So," he said, his voice becoming more resolute, "what we should do now is to significantly increase the prices of these products. Don't worry, even if our prices increase, they are still lower than the cost of foreign companies producing them themselves. They will continue to buy our products."
"But what good will this do?" one official asked.
Li Yang's eyes sparkled with wisdom: "There are two benefits. First, we can make more profits, and this extra income can be used to support our scientific research and military development. Second, and more importantly, once we raise the price, they will be the ones who suffer in the end."
Seeing that everyone was still confused, Li Yang further explained: "Think about it, when the price of our products goes up, the costs of foreign companies that rely on our products will also go up. This will cause their product prices to go up, and eventually affect ordinary consumers. At that time, the people of these countries will be dissatisfied with their own governments and question why sanctions are imposed on us."
As soon as Li Yang finished speaking, there was a burst of praise in the conference room. People's eyes were shining with surprise and admiration.
"Comrade Li, this is a brilliant idea!" a senior official said excitedly, "Not only can we defuse the crisis, we can also strike back at them."
Another economic expert also nodded in agreement: "Yes, in this way, we can not only maintain exports, but also gain more profits. Moreover, we can also use this opportunity to eliminate some obsolete production capacity and promote industrial upgrading."
The atmosphere in the conference room suddenly became heated, and people began to discuss how to implement the plan. Li Yang sat quietly at the side, with a faint smile on his face.
After listening to the report, he also agreed with the plan. He patted Li Yang on the shoulder and said approvingly: "Okay, let's do as you say. Let those who want to contain us have a taste of their own actions."
In this way, a seemingly crisis situation, under Li Yang's wisdom, became an opportunity for Yan Guo to accelerate its development. As the new pricing strategy began to be implemented, changes soon appeared in the international market. Foreign companies that relied on Yan Guo's products began to feel the cost pressure and had to raise their product prices.
At the same time, some domestic enterprises in Yan country also began to increase their R&D investment and seek higher value-added products. The industrial structure of the whole country began to develop in a more high-end and advanced direction.
In Huacheng, the decision-makers who were full of confidence at the beginning began to feel uneasy. They originally thought that sanctions would make Yanguo surrender, but unexpectedly, it gave the other party an opportunity to transform and upgrade. What made them more troublesome was that as prices rose, the domestic people began to question the government's decision.
"Why should we fight against Yan Nation?"
"Can't we just coexist peacefully?"
Such voices are beginning to appear in American society, and their number is increasing.