Rise of the Reds Update: The Stories of Others, Part II news

Canada

Ever since the battle lines of the Global War on Terror had shifted from Central Asia to the Middle East in the mid-2020s, long-brewing conflicts in the region escalated in the light of sustained GLA activity while the US military got caught up in an endless series of costly and frustrating engagements. The absolute chaos that ensued caused the oil price to skyrocket beyond the feared mark of 400 Dollars per barrel and placed an additional burden on the troubled economy of the United States. The dreadful combination of overburdening debts, mass unemployment and an increasingly war-weary population proved to be social dynamite: Thousands of disgruntled citizens flooded the streets of major American cities in protest against strict austerity measures, corporate bailouts and the endless war in the Middle East. In 2028, the US government caved in to popular pressure in the light of violent clashes in Washington and a series of catastrophic GLA attacks on American forces in Europe. Despite the grim warnings of reputable geopolitical think tanks, intelligence analysts and military experts, including the later General Francis Thorn, the administration ordered the immediate withdrawal of all US military forces from Europe, the Middle East and Asia in an attempt to end the war and reduce military spendings.

Overnight, the Americans lost most of the military infrastructure which had guaranteed them unrivalled global force projection capabilities for almost a whole century. An extreme reduction of the military budget led to entire divisions being layed off, the sale of surplus hardware and the permanent cancellation of many sophisticated R&D projects, the latter of which even resulted in a tense standoff between the US Army and a brigade of mutineers led by General Gregory 'Pinpoint' Townes who refused to abandon his base, Fort Union, in Redwood Shores. At the same time, most of the United States' long-lasting international ties had been severed, leaving only their neighbours Canada and Mexico as the closest thing to allies the Americans had left. Meanwhile, the People's Republic of China grew into its new role as the world's greatest superpower and the rise of a visionary politician by the name of Nikolai Suvorov marked a major sea change in the history of the Russian Federation.

The Canadians observed the misery of their neighbours with great concern: After the cataclysm of 2028, the US burned through three ineffectual administrations in less than five years and it would only be a matter of time until the country would degenerate to the point of ungovernability. It was during this critical moment of history when the new American President Kevin O'Connor decided to bite the bullet and enacted a controversial plan that earned him much ire from right-wing political pundits and conspiracy theorists: The creation of a North American Union. The government of Canada supported the plan as it served to consolidate the lively exchange that had already been a reality between the two nations for many decades. Most notably, the cooperation of Canadian and American universities had already produced the world's first commercially operated fusion power plant in 2019, a high-speed vacuum train line between Ottawa and Miami, as well as the Pennsylvania Space Station whose first module had been successfully suspended in orbit as early as 2024, when experts still expressed their warnings of America's imminent economic crash in hushed tones. Meanwhile, the United States southern neighbour Mexico had managed to build up a respectable economy of its own and was more than eager to enter a new partnership with the United States whose Hispanic population had long become a voting bloc to be reckoned with.

The creation of the North American Union in 2033 marked the definitive turning point for the crisis-stricken Americans, whose economy benefitted greatly from the new flow of wealth, goods and knowledge facilitated by the agreement over the following years. The combined efforts of the North American law enforcement agencies, intelligence services and armed forces put a permanent end to the Mexican drug cartels while the US government swiftly enacted a series of reforms to improve the outdated educational system that were heavily inspired by the northern neighbours. At the same time, Canadian diplomats used their unique position as a member of the Commonwealth to secure lucrative deals for North American companies in Africa and layed the groundwork for a future normalisation of the severely damaged relationships between the USA and Europe.

Argentina

Even before the creation of the South American Pact in 2035, many political experts observed the formation of a three-pronged hegemony that formed the main centre of gravity in regards to political, economic and social developments in South America. This 'gang of three' consisted of the Argentine Republic, the Federative Republic of Brazil and the Republic of Chile and was commonly refered to as the ABC Triumvirate in political discussions. As such, it was only a natural development that these three nations would emerge as the most important powers of the continent who would take the transnational integration of Latin America, a process which had already started with the Cusco Declaration of 2004, to the next level.

Over the years, Argentina had developed into a social democracy. Despite sporting a mild, mostly ceremonious coat of nationalism, the country is actually one of the strongest advocates in favour of greater SAP integration. Most notably, the nation's entire energy market, itself the third largest in Latin America, had been nationalised in the wake of the economic turmoils caused by the Global War on Terror. It relies primarily on Argentina's vast deposits of natural gas, followed by advanced hydroelectricity, a sector which only grew bigger as the years went by. The revenues are transferred into a state-owned fund which is used to directly finance a number of social programmes in a way that is similar to the Norwegian system. In addition, Argentina is heavily involved in international trade and known to engage in a friendly rivalry of one-upmanship with its big neighbour Brazil. To the occasional chagrin of the Argentinians, the Federative Republic still holds the number one spot as the most powerful economy of Latin America and unlike its two main partners, Brazil is regarded as the only country on the continent with a major political clout on the global stage. After the turn of the millennium, many political observers hailed the rise of BRICS, a hypothetical tandem that included Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa and even years after Nikolai Suvorov had driven a devisive wedge between the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China, Brazil still benefits from this old relationship by maintaining solid, time-tested ties with both Moscow and Beijing.

Finally, Chile finds itself in a unique position due to the peculiar shape of its border which gives it the most extensive west coast of all Latin American countries along with a perfect access to all major shipping routes across the Pacific Ocean. Despite the failure of the stillborn FTAA, a free trade zone for the entire American continent that was proposed around the turn of the millennium and the creation of the self-centred, US-led North American Union, Chile has still managed to secure itself a pivotal role in the SAP's economic framework not only with its key geographical position but also thanks to its powerful mining industry. The soils of Chile are rich with copper and lithium, the extraction of which has spawned a number of highly innovative mining techniques which may help to exploit additional deposits that are yet to be fully discovered. Beyond that, the Chilean minerals serve as the building blocks of the continent's aspiring microchip industry. However, the riches do come at a bitter price as the mining operations have turned large parts of the Andes into a barren wasteland that resembles the surface of the Moon.

Most recently in 2042, the government of Brazil has allowed the Russian Federation to deploy a standing contingent of 2.000 troops in the Maranhão region as a gesture of gratitude for military support during the struggle against drug cartels and far-left guerillas. Soon after these events, the leaders of Argentina have cited the SAP's current lack of joint military and law enforcement capabilities as a problem that can only be resolved by the creation of a shared security infrastructure, sparking a lively political debate about the possible formation of a multinational Latin American task force. The proposal, while still only existent on paper and hampered by the perpetual distrust between the 'big three' and their smaller partners, was immediately met by concern from foreign analysts who regard the growing self-confidence of the South American Pact as a possible cause for future conflict. To this day, small but noticeable leftovers of the old European colonial empires such as the Dutch island of Curaçao, French Guiana with its ESA-operated space port and, most appalling to the Argentinians, the British Falkland Islands in the southern Atlantic stand as a bitter reminder of the continent's distant, non-sovereign past. As such, it did not come as a surprise to anyone that the armed forces of Argentina made another violent grab for the Malvinas in March 2047 - and this time, it appeared as if the 'Empire' would not be able to strike back.

Introduced in 2010, the AH-1Z Viper is a heavily modernised version of the Cobra attack helicopter, armed with a 20mm gatling cannon, Sidewinder air-to-air missiles and upgradeable Hydra rocket pods.

In order to get some additional use out of the Chinese Supply Trucks in the later stages of a battle, the vehicles can now be used to transport up to six infantrymen.

The Russian Igla Troopers are now armed with PP2000 submachine guns in order to better protect themselves against enemy infantry.