Chapter 513 Sky-high navigation fees (7K)
Beautiful country, black palace!
Judith pushed the intelligence onto the table and said: "Mr. President, this is the situation. On the day you completed your inauguration, the Jecko Group announced the completion of the Kra Isthmus Canal."
Behind the Fortitude table, the newly inaugurated President of the United States, Jesming, picked up the intelligence and read it word by word.
It contains detailed intelligence and analysis about the Kra Isthmus Canal, including pictures taken by on-site reporters, satellite overhead pictures, and the possible consequences of the completion of the canal.
After reading them all, Jesming put down the information with an expressionless face and said in a deep voice: "Is the Jieco Group doing this to provoke me? I used to think that the Jieco Group was acting arrogantly, but now it seems that I still underestimated it. They did.”
Jesming didn't expect that just after he became the president of the beautiful country, the Jieko Group would give him a blow.
The Kra Isthmus Canal was not completed early or late, but it was chosen to be completed on the same day that he attended the inauguration ceremony and officially became the 48th president of the United States. It is obvious who this is aimed at.
"This is the way Jieke Group behaves, otherwise it would not become a serious problem for us."
Judien shook his head. He knew the Jieco Group best and had been dealing with it for many years.
Under the leadership of Su Jie, the Jieke Group has grown from a small local warlord in the Zen Kingdom. It has never relied on courtesy and humility, but on being strong and domineering, and following a hegemonic line.
If a general force develops like this, there is a high probability that it will cause anger and be destroyed halfway. The same is true for the Jieke Group, which has provoked many enemies.
But different from the normal development trajectory, most of those who opposed the Jieco Group were killed by the Jieco Group.
Because apart from being domineering, the Jieko Group’s force is fundamental.
Even if others don't like the Jieko Group, it will be difficult to do anything about them.
"Now that the Kra Isthmus Canal is completed, has any country expressed its opinion?"
Jasmine did not continue to dwell on this and asked about the Kra Isthmus Canal.
"China, Mao Xiong, Saudi Arabia, Iran."
Judith read out the names of dozens of countries. These countries are basically countries that frequently travel to Eurasia, especially countries with frequent oil trade.
The opening of the Kra Isthmus Canal means that the sea voyage is more than a thousand kilometers shorter than the Malacca Strait, saving nearly a week.
A large ship taking the Kra Isthmus Canal will save a lot of shipping costs.
The shortened time can also improve the operating efficiency of the ship.
Originally he could only make ten trips to and from Eurasia a year, but now that he can save time by going through the Kra Isthmus Canal, he can make one or two more trips a year. The extra operating efficiency is money! Not to mention that many goods have time requirements, and the sooner they arrive, the better.
"So many countries"
Jasmin frowned. The Strait of Malacca is the busiest strait in the world. About 100,000 ships pass through the strait every year. Up to 70% of East Asian energy is transported through the Strait of Malacca, accounting for a quarter of the world's maritime trade. .
Now that the Kra Isthmus Canal is so disrupted, the importance and strategic status of the Malacca Strait has been greatly reduced.
"There are still many countries that are waiting and watching. On the EU side, there are also Sakura countries, Bangzi countries, etc. They are considering whether to join this canal."
As Judien was talking, suddenly the phone in his pocket vibrated several times.
Taking it out, Judien saw a message sent by a subordinate, which happened to be about the Kra Isthmus Canal.
"What?"
Jasmine saw the change in Judith's face, and a hint of joy appeared in the other person's eyes.
"Your Excellency, the Jacko Group has just announced the charges for the Kra Isthmus Canal. They will charge friendly countries based on the tonnage of the cargo. Depending on the size and type of the ship, the charge for each ton of cargo is 4-8 US dollars. The average charge for one ton of cargo is 5 US dollars. Based on a large ship carrying 100,000 tons of cargo, the average navigation price of a ship is about 500,000 US dollars. However, Jieke Group also lists China, Sakura Country, Bangzi Country, the European Union and many other countries as unfriendly. The country would double the cost and it would cost 1 million U.S. dollars.”
Judien showed the information on his phone to Jasmin, and he was greatly relieved when the news appeared.
"Originally, we were thinking about how to force those countries to pass through the Kra Isthmus Canal. Now it seems that we don't need to bother. The Jieko Group has helped us."
Jasmin couldn't help laughing. Those shipping companies from the European Union and Sakura Country saw that the Jieko Group was so targeted, so they didn't have to force him to issue an order.
Moreover, his executive orders are, at best, just to control the beautiful country, and shipping companies in other countries may not comply.
Earning profits and saving costs is the instinct of an enterprise, or every capitalist. It is difficult for those shipping companies to resist the temptation to leave the Kra Isthmus Canal to save shipping costs and shipping time.
But things are different now. Once the differentiated charges of the Jieco Group come out, those European and American shipping companies that want to navigate the Kra Isthmus Canal will probably not accept such a naked robbery by the Jieco Group and will use the Strait of Malacca again.
"Jeco Group made a bad move. They thought that with the Kra Isthmus Canal, they can control everything. Such high charges will definitely prevent too much ship traffic from the Strait of Malacca."
Judith smiled. Originally, he was worried about the plan to reduce shipping volume in the Malacca Strait by 70% to 80%. After all, the Kra Isthmus Canal is too convenient.
But the saucy operation of the Jieko Group made Judien see a turn for the better.
Such extortion will only arouse the resentment of European and American shipping companies, which will cause a loss of good fortune and be collectively boycotted by all European and American shipping companies.
"Go ahead and expand. As the Chinese saying goes, if you want to destroy it, make it crazy first."
Jasmine turned the blue star device on the table, stared at the Indochina Peninsula area where the Jieko Group's sphere of influence was located, and said mockingly.
If a force does not have enough foundation and suddenly becomes strong, its mentality will rapidly expand and become arrogant and arrogant. This is true for countries and individuals.
In Jesming's view, Jieko Group is now in the category of being unable to see clearly about itself and is overconfident and arrogant.
"I just took over, Lawrence, how did he ask your CIA to do regarding the Thousand Islands Strategic Alliance?"
After Jasmine laughed a few times, her conversation suddenly changed.
When Judith heard Lawrence's name, her eyes flashed slightly, and the atmosphere became a little awkward.
Because Judith was a staunch supporter of Lawrence when he was still in office. He did not hesitate to personally lead a team to California to arrest the governor of California and the mayor of Los Angeles who were opposed to Lawrence. This offended the Democratic Party behind them. .
If he hadn't defected at the last moment and chose to defect to the Democratic Party, he would never have been able to sit in this position.
And the batch of dirty information that Lawrence exposed at the end of the campaign was Judith's handiwork.
For a person who is an agent and becomes the director of the CIA, loyalty is also relative.
If Lawrence's ship had not capsized, he would have remained loyal to the ship.
But once the ship takes in water and sinks irretrievably, smart people will find another way out.
Judith was a smart man, so he kept his official title.
"Don't worry, I'm not settling the scores, nor am I interested. The only people who hate you are those high-ranking officials in California."
Jasmine knocked on the table. The reason why she continued to appoint Judith was that, in addition to the other party's quick defection, the other party had been engaged in work related to the Jieco Group when he was the director of the CIA. It can be said that he knew the Jieco Group best. characters.
After removing Judith, they couldn't find anyone who knew the Jieco Group better.
Not just anyone can be the director of a secret service organization like the CIA.
"During Lawrence's tenure, we gradually increased our support for the Thousand Islands Strategic Alliance and actively attracted those member states to move closer to us. For example, through bribery and other methods, we lobbied a group of senior officials from the ruling parties in the three countries to let them Looking for trouble on the Isthmian Canal issue, in Temasek we are ready for a coup to install a pro-our beautiful country regime in Johor.”
With a calm expression, Judith slowly described the CIA's operations on the Thousand Islands Strategic Alliance.
The Thousand Islands Strategic Alliance is the noose that blocks the Jieko Group's outbound operations at sea, and the CIA has worked hard on it.
The purpose of investing a large amount of money and personnel is to activate it at the critical moment, so that these countries can stand on the side of the beautiful country and block the expansion of the Jieko Group.
"Very good, Jieke Group's actions are getting bigger and bigger now, and we have to prepare in advance."
Jasmine was satisfied with Judith's work and took out a document from the drawer.
The first time he saw this document, Judith's pupils shrank.
In addition to the four characters "Top Secret" on the cover of the document, there is also a line below, which is a white paper on the strategies and tactics of the Jieke Group.
Raising his head, Judien and Jasmin looked at each other.
Under Jasmine's smiling eyes, Judith picked up the war planning white paper and opened it.
However, there was no detailed combat plan written on it. Instead, in the name of dealing with the threat of the Jieco Group, the production line expansion and arms procurement of the major military industry giants in the beautiful country were made. Judith was a little frightened when he saw that number.
Judien understood that whether to go to war against the Jieco Group was not the point. The point was that the military-industrial complex could use this name to reasonably and legally request the beautiful country to increase arms purchases, just in case a war really happened.
Jesming represents the interests of the military-industrial complex, so it is quite normal for the other party to do this.
"Mr. President, are we going to go to war against the Jeco Group?"
Judith couldn't help but ask, his heart beating loudly, if the beautiful country is willing to go to the end in person
"It's not time yet. This white paper still needs to be studied and discussed by the military. It is just a framework now. War requires many things to be considered and more plans must be made. It cannot be decided at once."< br>
Jess Ming waved his hand to signal Judith not to get excited.
Although going to war with the Jieko Group is in the interests of the military-industrial complex, which means they can sell more arms, Jiesmin does not blindly follow the interests of the military-industrial complex.
The Jieko Group is not a simple person, it is an opponent that the beautiful country should also take seriously.
If war breaks out and the outcome is unfavorable, he will be the one whose support rate drops. He still wants to be re-elected as the next president of the beautiful country.
Even if a war is to begin, there must be a suitable time and excuse.
"I understand."
Judith understood what Jasmin meant. The CIA is the president's sharp sword. Jasmin showed him this white paper, hoping that at some point, the CIA could act as a fuse to ignite the powder keg of war, or as a blocker. Keep the situation in Jasmin's hands as much as possible.
As for Jasmin, although his campaign team seems to be serving him, in fact, many people represent the interests of the behind-the-scenes capital consortium, and sometimes they must disagree with him.
On the contrary, Judith, the director of the CIA, betrayed the Republican Party and had a gap with the Democratic Party. He was helpless and could only rely on himself as the president. His existence could be used by Jasmine for his own use.
"I trust you, Judith, and I believe you will not let me down."
"Mr. President, I will always be loyal to you."
Judith nodded solemnly. Although he betrayed Lawrence not long ago, he had no choice but to do so.
Now that the tougher Jasmine has taken over, he can only maintain his status and glory by surrendering to the other party.
Kra Isthmus Canal.
The sun was shining brightly, and a large oil tanker flying the flag of the Sakura Country slowly arrived at the entrance of the Kra Isthmus Canal.
Captain Junpei Ishioka stood in the main wheelhouse and saw many ships from China and Mao Xiong in the distance sailing on the newly completed canal.
As the first captain in Sakura Country to try out the Kra Isthmus Canal, Junpei Ishioka came here on the freighter Koshin Maru. This cargo ship comes from Sakura Country Mitsui Lines Co., Ltd., which is one of the largest shipping companies in Sakura Country and a Fortune 500 company in the world.
At the entrance, a guide boat has already sailed out.
Because he had registered in advance, Ishioka Junpei was not surprised and quickly guided the ship to get closer.
As the escalator was lowered, a Jieke Group pilot climbed up onto the Hongshin Maru, a large cargo ship with a total length of 366 meters, a width of 48.2 meters, a maximum draft of 16 meters, a maximum load capacity of 147,000 tons, and a capacity of 13,000 standard containers.
"Hello, I am Ishioka Junpei, the captain of the Koshin Maru, a company owned by Mitsui O.S.O.K. of Sakura."
Ishioka Junpei greeted him in fluent English, smiled actively, and held a wad of bills in his hand, ready to look familiar.
"Sakura Country's ships are on the unfriendly list. You know the rules."
The pilot wearing the uniform of the Jieco Group glanced at the other person and pushed the other person's hand away with a somewhat meaningful tone.
"What rules?"
Junpei Ishioka just arrived today and has not yet learned about the latest announcement on the Kra Isthmus Canal.
"Your ship, the Koshin Maru, needs to pay a vessel toll of US$1,630,000 to pass through our Kra Isthmus Canal."
As soon as the pilot finished speaking, Junpei Ishioka's mouth opened wide, as if he was petrified.
Because the price is too expensive. Their ship traveling through the Panama Canal will cost at most several hundred thousand dollars. The price of the Kra Isthmus Canal is no different from robbery.
"What are you talking about? You want to steal the $1,630,000 navigation fee! How did you calculate this price?"
After Ishioka Junpei reacted, his face looked as ugly as if he had eaten shit.
"Ha, if we wanted to steal money, we would have detained you a long time ago. The fee is just like this. You can leave as much as you like."
The pilot snorted coldly, threw a quotation to the other party, and said: "In addition to navigation fees, you also have to pay port fees of US$13,000, port authority fees of US$2,700, management fees of US$8,575, berthing fees of US$5,890, and garbage fees. US$1,000, US$26,150 for the escort tug, and US$30,360 for the lighting fee.”
Every time he mentioned a number, Ishioka Junpei's face became uglier, and the hand holding the quotation trembled slightly.
He has been a captain and has been sailing in the wind and rain on the ocean for so many years. This is the first time he has seen canal management fees being ripped off so hard.
This fee is almost a clear sign telling you that this is a black shop, and you either have to pay honestly or don't even think about it.
After taking a few deep breaths, Junpei Ishioka pointed at other ships passing by on the canal and asked through gritted teeth: "What about those ships? Did those ships also pay that much money?"
"They, they are friendly countries, and the cost is only half of yours."
The pilot's words directly allowed Junpei Ishioka to completely break his defense.
"Okay, okay, I think your Jieke Group is ruthless, so I won't leave here."
Ishioka Junpei's teeth were almost broken. This kind of differential treatment made him feel particularly humiliated.
"Get out of here, we don't welcome you Sakura Country here. If you don't leave, some countries will use our canal."
The pilot raised his chin proudly without even looking at the other person.
"Just leave."
Ishioka Junpei took two steps and suddenly realized what he was doing. He said with a black line on his face: "Wait a minute, this is my ship, and you are the one who wants to leave."
"I still think it's dirty."
The pilot curled his lips and turned around to disembark.
"Sooner or later, you will regret it. You are treated differently and have double standards. Not to mention that our Sakura Country will not recognize it, and other countries will never recognize it."
Junpei Ishioka shouted at the pilot to express his anger.
"Differential treatment? When we put up a sign saying that Sakura Country and dogs are not allowed to cross the river, then it is called different treatment."
The pilot sneered at Junpei Ishioka, turned around and climbed off the ship neatly.
"Asshole, Baga!"
Hearing these words, Ishioka Junpei became red-blooded, jumped up in anger, and raised his middle finger at the pilot's back.
"I swear, this Kra Isthmus Canal, even if I drown in the vast ocean, I will never come again in this life, you can just play with yourselves."
Ishioka Junpei secretly made up his mind that he would never feel the shame here again, and he would continue to walk through the Strait of Malacca.
Because compared with the sky-high navigation fees charged by Jieke Group, although the voyage through the Strait of Malacca is 1,200 kilometers longer and the shipping time will be longer, the overall cost is still much cheaper than the Kra Isthmus Canal.
After such a comparison, of course he wants to go through the Strait of Malacca and is not willing to be angry with the Jieke Group.
The global shipping community has been shaken as Jieco Group announced the tolls for the Kra Isthmus Canal.
In Blue Star, no canal has ever implemented such double-standard tolls. This behavior of the Jieke Group is completely discriminating against those hostile countries that are against it and engaging in double-standard prices.
Many world-renowned shipping giants and small and medium-sized shipping companies have criticized Jieke Group verbally and continuously.
‘This is a shame for the shipping industry. People in the global shipping industry join hands to resist the unfair treatment of Jieke Group. We want fairness and equality. ’
‘Jeco Group doesn’t care about human affairs. They are a cancer. They cause harm wherever they go. Now they have come to harm our shipping industry. They have introduced such double-standard charges. It would be better not to build the Kra Isthmus Canal. ’
‘If the Jieco Group does not restore equal tolls, we will not use the Kra Isthmus Canal. Let’s see when you can recoup the cost of building the canal and who can survive. ’
Many senior figures in the shipping industry have come forward to criticize Jieco Group, accusing Jieco Group of messing up the Kra Isthmus Canal and undermining the fairness of international shipping.
But what is worth noting is that all of these accusations are from EU countries, or from beautiful countries such as Bangzi and Sakura Country.
As for the shipping companies of friendly countries such as China and Mao Xiong, no one has accused Jieke Group.
Because of the opening of the Kra Isthmus Canal, their ships have indeed enjoyed convenience.
The price is only half that of European and American countries. They save shipping costs and shipping time, and at the same time gain greater competitiveness in market competition compared to European and American countries.
Because they are also traveling between the Eurasian continent, others taking the Kra Isthmus Canal can travel a week faster than ships taking the Strait of Malacca. Many seaborne goods require time.
In the past, cargo owners could only find more expensive express ships or use other modes of transportation.
However, the time saved by taking the Kra Isthmus Canal now makes those cargo owners with high time requirements prefer shipping companies from China, Mao Xiong, Saudi Arabia and other countries.
Western countries such as the United States have not thought of fighting back. They have also set high double-standard tolls on the Suez Canal and Panama Canal, targeting the Jieco Group and the Indochina countries.
But the beautiful country seems to have forgotten that their sanctions against the Jieko Group have never ended.
Jieko Group has no goods that can be sold to European and American countries in large quantities, and no ships go to sea, not to mention passing through the Suez Canal and Panama Canal.
The real specialty products of Jieke Group are all smuggled.
A small bottle contains the concentrated liquid of Tianyuan series products, which is hidden in a ship and transported to Mexico or EU countries, where it is then diluted and assembled locally to turn into bottles of Tianyuan hair growth liquid, myopia pills, slimming pills, and whitening liquid.
You can't investigate such a small target in a cargo ship with a displacement of tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of tons.
If it is really found out, Jieke Group can afford the loss.
The profits of these products are so high that even if only one-tenth of them are smuggled, Jieke Group will still make a profit.
What's more, the success rate of Jieke Group's smuggling is infinitely close to 100%.
As for the blood-trafficking ships, they collect blood from all over the world for the Jieko Group. Most of the Jieko Group pays after the goods are delivered.
You transport the blood to the Jieke Group's sphere of influence, and then pay and deliver the goods.
If something happens to the blood-trafficking ship midway, the ship owner is responsible for the loss.
Most of these ship owners have good backgrounds, master both black and white, and have vast magical powers. Many risks have been avoided by their own operations.
Some simply let the country end up doing this business. In the face of huge interests, the benefits far outweigh the risks. These blood-trafficking ships are not afraid of investigation and punishment at all, and they go to Jieke Group one after another to transport blood.
As for countries such as Indochina, because they serve as the younger brother of the Jieco Group, the EU has long cut off most of the imports from these countries. Now their exports have long been transformed into developing domestic demand and turning to China, Mao Xiong, and Central Asia for business. .
It can be said that the action instigated by the beautiful country to charge high canal tolls against the Jieco Group is purely flattering and the impact on the Jieco Group will be infinitely close to zero.
Without the reciprocal game, shipping vessels from European and American countries can only bypass the Strait of Malacca and continue to take this traditional route.
In this canal game, the happiest countries are Temasek, Johor and Java, the three countries along the Strait of Malacca.
I originally thought that my shipping business would plummet with the opening of the Kra Isthmus Canal. However, due to the two-way charges imposed by the Jieco Group, ships from EU countries still used the Strait of Malacca. Although their profits were partially lost, it was far from unacceptable. The situation was far different from their original bad expectations.
They originally thought that when the Kra Isthmus Canal was opened, only about 20 to 30% of the ships operating in the Malacca Strait would be left.
Especially Temasek, their entire country can be said to be dependent on the Strait of Malacca. Without the Strait of Malacca, their country would almost lose the meaning of existence.
"This is a new life for Temasek, and the Kra Isthmus Canal will not threaten our position.
This also shows that the Strait of Malacca is still the most important golden waterway in the world and the maritime lifeline of East Asia.
We at Temasek are at the heart of the Strait of Malacca and are destined to be glorious and prosperous for a century.
On the contrary, the foolish arrogance of the Jieko Group is making them more and more alienated from the mainstream international society. They are destined to be unable to maintain their power rule for a long time. They are destined to disintegrate and collapse in the future. Victory will definitely belong to the great Temasek. 》
On January 21, 2029, Temasek's largest official mouthpiece, Temasek National, published a news article announcing Temasek's victory in this canal game in advance.
The citizens of Temasek rushed to buy this issue of the newspaper, and at the same time they ridiculed the JC Group's saucy operations.
When the Kra Isthmus Canal was being built in the past, the Jeco Group bullied Temasek. Even their president went to the Jeco Group in person to work under Su Kit, with a smile on his face, and he had to pay a large amount of compensation to get through that incident. Troubles.
However, many of these Temasek people have subconsciously ignored that it was Temasek who sank the ship at the Kra Isthmus Canal pier in the first place, which led to the retaliation from the Jacko Group.
They only remember that the Jieco Group bullied them and extorted US$1.743 billion in so-called canal terminal repair fees and lost work costs.
People mostly help relatives but not others, and the same is true at the national level. People in Temasek are jubilant and unilaterally believe that they have won.
It's just that Temasek didn't know that they were happy too early.
Because just three days after this news was issued, a ship arrived at the narrowest point of the Strait of Malacca without flying any flag to indicate the identity of its country.
(End of chapter)