I Became Stalin?! - Chapter 170

Chapter 170

Roosevelt seemed to be anxious.

[Comrade Stalin, when did you… succeed in creating that amazing weapon? Is your previous promise to join the war against Japan still valid? How much has the Soviet Union’s diplomatic position changed from before?]

“Hahaha… President Roosevelt, I only want to maintain a good relationship with my best friend, America.”

[Unfortunately, America may find it hard to think of the Soviet Union as a friend anymore. Friendship… sadly, friendship is only possible when the powers are similar, don’t you think? If the Soviet Union can destroy America at any time…]

But I had no intention of turning against America.

America was still the world’s strongest power, and only America didn’t know that.

Even Roosevelt, who had some idea of America’s tremendous national strength, couldn’t compare the economic scale of America and other countries accurately.

The countries that started the world war.

That is, Germany, Britain, France, Italy, plus China and Japan, couldn’t match America’s economic scale.

In the actual history of 1945, America alone accounted for nearly half of the world’s GDP.

Now, if the Soviet Union, which had received a lot of aid from America and inflated its weight enormously, were to be added to the rest of the great powers, it might barely catch up with America.

America still boasted a formidable economic power without any loss of territory, and the Soviet Union didn’t need to antagonize America and pursue hegemony.

“Do you think so, President Roosevelt? The Soviet Union will never destroy our good friends, the Americans. No matter what weapon we have, that will not change. If I order an attack on America, my subordinate General Zhukov might stage a coup! Hahaha!”

[Hahaha… Why is that?]

“That’s because he has become a body that can’t live without Coca-Cola. Many of the Soviet people will be like that. We have focused on the military industry, so we need the wonderful things that America makes. A war with America would be tantamount to starving our people to death!”

[Hahahahaha! That was very funny this time. Anyway, I understand what you said, Comrade Stalin. It would be nice if the Soviet army could help us as an ‘ally’ to finish off Japan. It seems that the blood of our American youth would flow less.]

It wasn’t a joke.

Roosevelt didn’t have to ask, Japan had to be hit anyway.

To expand our influence in the Far East and tear apart the puppet states in the future.

“Of course. The Soviet army is always ready… well, but it’s inevitable that we need a month of maintenance after a huge war. I promise you. The Soviet army will definitely join the war against Japan!”

[I’m glad to hear that, Comrade Stalin.]

“If you want, the Soviet Union is willing to transfer technology to America related to weapon development.”

[Is that… really?!]

Roosevelt seemed to jump out of the phone.

In the actual history, the Manhattan Project hadn’t even succeeded in the nuclear bomb experiment yet.

In that situation, he would offer to teach the secret of the nuclear weapon that couldn’t be bought with any money.

He would want to get it even if he had to sell his soul.

But I knew.

When the Manhattan Project would succeed, and how much it would cost.

“Of course! But it may take ‘a little’ time for our researchers to organize the relevant data. We need a lot of things to rebuild the ruined country and revive the nation…”

[…gulp.]

I heard Roosevelt swallow his saliva. He seemed to want to change the subject, but it didn’t matter.

“I want to offset the payment for the lend-lease materials and get some economic aid, is that possible?”

[Well… ahem… I’ll consult with them.]

“I hope to hear the results of your consultation soon. There was an opinion in our Politburo to transfer the actual weapon, but I don’t know what will happen…”

[I’ll let you know very soon! Very soon! Well then…]

He must have rushed to convene a cabinet meeting.

Molotov, who was standing in front of me, looked at me with a look of doubt.

Of course, he didn’t know the situation between them and us.

“The Manhattan Project… ah, this is America’s nuclear weapon development project. Anyway, they’ve roughly made more than half of the progress.”

The first nuclear test, <Trinity>, was in July of 1945.

It was January of 1944 now, so the project that started in June of 1942 had literally come halfway.

The money spent on this Manhattan Project was ‘only’ 2 billion dollars.

It was a huge amount of money, equivalent to 30 trillion won in current value, but the amount that the Soviet Union had received from lend-lease was much more than that.

In the actual history, it was 11 billion dollars, and here, although it wasn’t exactly counted, it was much more since we received it much earlier.

It was something we could pay off and get away with for only a fifth of the price!

Of course, the actual Soviet Union postponed the payment and ran away. That also contributed to the deterioration of the smiley diplomatic relations.

Roughly speaking, this would be the case. We would not pay the lend-lease payment, receive a lot of aid, rebuild our economy, make a splash, and influence the international relations reorganization, in exchange for giving America ‘a little’ early nuclear weapon.

It was a pity to lose the status of the only nuclear weapon possessor, but anyway, America could develop nuclear weapons on its own.

I wanted to hand it over quickly before the rice cake in my hand broke.

“Anyway, we’ll just have to stall them while we give it to them. Right?”

“That… that’s true, but…”

Molotov seemed to be hesitant, but he seemed to accept it.

Honestly, it was better for the Soviet Union, which had fought a huge war, to find a diplomatic solution rather than a direct confrontation with America.

Even if we boasted loudly with nuclear weapons, if we loaded them on bombers and went to the American continent, the Soviet Union would be beaten up like Germany!

“Let’s ask for a big amount of aid. 40 billion dollars for 5 years! Something like that.”

“Really? Can we ask for that much?”

“Well, let’s bluff at first. Say that this one can blow up a city worth billions. Hahaha! Even if we eat half of it, it’s a profit for us, right?”

“Half… that’s still 20 billion dollars, Comrade Stalin.”

“America can afford that much. Now, isn’t it time?”

The time was pointing to four o’clock. Molotov still seemed to be wavering, but I knew the rough numbers.

‘The Marshall Plan was 13 billion for 4 years…’

It was the amount of money that America spent to put Western Europe in its palm.

China ate 6 billion dollars of that.

Even if the 40 billion was just a bluff, we could still suck up all of America’s foreign aid with half of that!

If we could get this money from America, rebuilding our devastated land and rising to the top would not be a dream.

We had taken over Germany and France, and half of Italy and the Low Countries, as well as the Balkans and Turkey, were under the Soviet sphere of influence.

If we sprinkled half of the aid money under the Soviet name in this sphere of influence… we could literally create an iron curtain.

“From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic…”

“Huh? Stettin?”

“Oh, never mind.”

Winston Churchill had used that phrase in his famous <Iron Curtain> speech in the actual history. He said that the Soviet influence had spread from Poland to the Balkans!

But now, that iron curtain would be… the English Channel and the Pyrenees, and the Tiber River***!

Ha, I felt like I was flying.

Especially when I thought of where I was heading.

Molotov arrived at the destination and bowed briefly to me before entering the room. I headed to a small door a little away from that door.

Inside, there were people I had specially invited.

“Ah, Zhukov, Beria. Basilievsky, you’re here too? Sit down, General Chuikov.”

“Yes, Comrade Stalin.”

“This sight… you won’t see it again even if you pay money. Look at it a lot now. Ehehehehehe…”

The room was small and cozy. There was a big and soft-looking chair in the middle, and four chairs were lined up. Facing one side of the room with a glass window.

“What… is this?”

“Ah! Don’t worry. They can’t see us from over there.”

Through the glass window, I could see Molotov sitting down. Their voices were played back to this side through the microphone.

“Who is that…?”

“He’s the Japanese ambassador, Naotake Sato. Hahaha… he begged for an interview with Minister Molotov…”

A white-bearded Japanese with a friendly face and half-bald head sat down, sweating profusely. Molotov refused to shake hands and started talking bluntly.

“What is your purpose, Ambassador?”

“Well… it’s nothing but… the reconfirmation of the Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact. The term of the treaty is five years…”

“The Soviet Union has no intention of renewing the current Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact.”

He seemed to have expected it, but he was shocked by hearing it directly. Sato gasped and coughed. Molotov didn’t bother to wait politely, but he was still blunt.

“The Soviet Union has been seriously threatened by Japan’s imperialist expansion in the Far East. The Japanese Empire joined Germany, which invaded the Soviet Union, and formed the Axis alliance, and committed acts of aggression that violated international law.”

“Gulp, gah… wait… just a moment…!”

“Japan’s crimes against humanity in China, Korea, Manchuria and elsewhere are well known. The Soviet Union can no longer tolerate these war crimes, and Japan wants to propose the following treaty.

The Japanese Empire can agree to extend the mutual non-aggression pact with the Soviet Union. The deadline we propose is… four weeks from today.”

Molotov threw a heavy pile of paper on Sato’s desk.

Sato had no time to argue about the diplomatic rudeness. He hurriedly looked at the treaty, wondering what the Soviet Union was demanding. He sighed and put down the treaty.

“All the colonies and islands occupied by war on the continent, Taiwan, Ryukyu… no, Okinawa, Sakhalin, the Kuril Islands, Hokkaido… this is practically leaving only the Japanese mainland, isn’t it?”

“Read more.”

“…and for the other islands and territories, they will follow the decision of the trusteeship authority. In other words, any part can be decided by this trusteeship authority, right?”

“In other words, yes.”

“The trusteeship authority consists of… ah, the Soviet Union, the United States, China, Britain…”

“Yes.”

Sato pushed the treaty slightly toward Molotov with a trembling wrist.

But Molotov pushed the treaty back to Sato.

“Read more.”

“…”

When he snapped his fingers, the guard who had been standing still like a lead doll put a glass of water in front of Sato.

Sato still shakily picked up the glass and gulped it down. His hand trembled and water droplets splashed on his cheek and chest, but he seemed to have no room to care about that.

“Next chapter.”

“…!”

Now his hands, eyes, and teeth began to tremble. Molotov seemed to be interested in the sight of his teeth clattering and his pupils shaking.

“The abolition of the emperor and the international trial of the war criminal Hirohito! What is this…! This is an outrageous demand! This is not interference in internal affairs?”

“Ambassador Sato, you have two choices.”

“…Let me hear them.”

Molotov rummaged through his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper and began to read. Sato, who looked like he was about to jump out of his seat with a flushed face, and Molotov, who only said what he wanted without caring, made a comical contrast.

“Your protest is meaningless. The Soviet Union has no intention of changing the treaty it recommended, regardless of any measures taken by the Japanese Empire. And personally, to you…”

“…”

“All you have left is your personal dignity. I advise you to keep it.”