Chapter 2684
The instructions given by the Executive Committee to the mission were very clear, requiring the mission to make full use of the current situation in Busan and promote the implementation of local autonomy for the Haihan people.
In other words, although Busan is not a colony of Haehan, and considering the relationship between the two countries, it is inconvenient for Haehan to take strong measures to take the area as his own, but since Haehan now has a lot of practical interests that need to be protected locally, then Some special methods should be considered where appropriate to further consolidate Haihan's privileges in Busan.
As for how to achieve such a goal, the Executive Committee did not provide more detailed remote control. It only reminded the mission that they should not only focus on results, but also take into account the relationship between the two countries and grasp the diplomatic level.
But to do this well, it is not enough to rely solely on the efforts of the Haihan Mission. It must be coordinated by the North Korean official. Therefore, before meeting with the local government, the mission specially invited Andao Shi, who was accompanying him, to communicate with him first.
"General An, I believe you have heard about the actions taken by the Busan government in recent days. We are very happy to see the local government respond quickly to our requests, but we think the actual effectiveness of these actions remains to be seen. And We are worried that the current approach can only treat the symptoms, but not the root cause. Perhaps once the mission is gone, Busan will return to the previous situation.”
Shi Chengwu stated his attitude straight to the point, that is, he lacked enough trust in the local government's handling of the matter. However, Andao Shi has been dealing with the Haihan people for many years, and after hearing the song, he immediately realized that Shi Chengwu's intention was not as simple as verbal complaints.
An Dao Shi calmly responded: "Master Shi, if you have any ideas, you might as well say so. If it is within the scope of An's ability, we will definitely cooperate."
Shi Chengwu nodded slightly and said: "In the past few days, we have also learned about the actual difficulties of the local government. The funds and personnel allocated to public security management work are relatively tight. Asking them to do it without leakage is really embarrassing them. So. We believe that there should be a more appropriate way to resolve this contradiction, such as the establishment of a security team funded by my country's Chamber of Commerce to be responsible for the protection of Haihan personnel and assets. This can not only share the worries of local officials, but also serve as a deterrent. Isn’t it the best of both worlds to reduce the number of security incidents? ”
Ando Shi's expression did not change, but his tone became deeper: "Master Shi, what you mean is to form an independent armed organization in Busan that will take orders from your country? I'm afraid this is not appropriate? According to the two agreements signed that year, According to the Agreement on Friendship and Trade between the two countries, your country should not deploy or station armed personnel in the Port of Busan for a long time. This is an agreement signed and recognized by your country’s Executive Committee.”
Haehan and North Korea signed a trade agreement more than ten years ago, which specifically stated that Haehan was not allowed to station troops in southern ports such as Busan, Ulsan, Pohang, Mokpo, and Yeosu, thereby restricting Haehan's presence in North Korea. The size of the garrison ensured the stability of the Lee royal family's rule over North Korea.
In fact, Haihan does not intend to maintain a large number of troops stationed in North Korea for a long time. After all, the Central Plains is Haihan's real target. The limited troops must be prioritized on the vast continent to ensure the smooth succession of the Ming Dynasty.
Therefore, in the past ten years or so, the scale of Haihan's military garrison in North Korea has not increased, but has been decreasing year by year. Today, only the Datongjiang base in the north still has combat troops stationed there, maintaining a certain garrison size and serving as the headquarters of the Haihan Army garrisoned in North Korea.
In other places such as Seoul and Jeju Island, although there are nominally stationed troops, they either only retain the garrison facilities symbolically to facilitate the communication of information between the two militaries, or station a small number of logistics troops to maintain the supply function of the ports. , there are no organized combat troops anymore. As a North Korean general, Andosi was naturally sensitive to this. Although from a certain perspective, he can be regarded as one of the earliest beneficiaries of Haihan's garrison in North Korea, his ideas are consistent with that of King Li Zhi, and he is not happy to see Haihan influence North Korea's internal affairs by garrisoning troops. , so the attitude towards this is also very resistant.
Shi Chengwu smiled and said: "General An misunderstood. I did not mean to station troops in Busan. The establishment of this security team is not affiliated with the Haihan Army and will not violate the agreement between our two countries."
Wang Anguo, who was next to him, took over the conversation and said: "General An, this security team will be funded by the Haihan Chamber of Commerce and will only be responsible to the members of the Chamber of Commerce. You can understand it as a militia, but we will also monitor the size of the organization, the size of the armed forces The level and operational authority are restricted to ensure that this security team will not interfere with the normal operation of Busan Port.”
"Vigilante group?" Andao Shi tasted the word carefully. As far as he knew, the Haihan Militia was actually a reserve army. It received formal military training, maintained local security in peacetime, and was also recruited as a logistics supply unit in wartime. But even if the command of this thing is handed over to the Haihan Chamber of Commerce, wouldn't it still be able to take it back at any time with just a word from the military?
Andao Shi had doubts about this, but he could not offend the Haihan military by speaking too bluntly, so he had to find another reason: "If the militia takes violent action locally, it may violate our country's laws, and then the local government will not be in a good position." Process.”
Wang Anguo immediately responded: "We have already thought of what General An is worried about. So in order to avoid this situation, we propose to demarcate an area in Busan, and the Haihan Militia will be responsible for all public security affairs in this area. Security incidents that occur in this area will be handled by the chamber of commerce without the need for local government intervention, so both parties can have less trouble. ”
The more Andao Shi listened, the more he felt something was wrong. If he followed what the other party said, wouldn't this designated area become Haihan's exclusive territory, akin to a concession?
When Andao Shi was studying and training in Sanya in his early years, he also heard some rumors about the concession. For example, Haihan developed the Black Earth Port in Annan by leasing the land from the Annan court in the early years and then developing it. Although the area is still nominally the territory of Annan, Haihan has administrative autonomy and extraterritoriality in the area. Annan cannot interfere in local affairs at will, so Haihan is the actual ruler of the area.
Of course, although the agreement stated that it was a lease transaction, it was only to explain the domestic public opinion in Annan. In fact, it used the military assistance provided by Haihan to Annan as collateral, and did not actually deliver land to Annan. rent. And as long as Haihan is willing, this lease transaction can be renewed indefinitely. Although the place is called a concession, it is actually ceded to Haihan in disguise.
(End of chapter)