[War] Where We Stand

[Daniel Sanderson]

OOC: Phew got it all done. After all the chaos of the past two days, it's all ok now! Well, in the real world anyway...

IC:

"Where We Stand"
Prime Minister Jack Decker
Commonwealth Of Australia
June 28, 2014

The hours had ticked by, and Decker had been taken across the bay to Kirribilli House, the PM’s Sydney residence, so he could have some secure conversations with various people in Canberra. He read through the diplomatic traffic from the US, Canada and the UK. The US and Canadian traffic rubbed him a little the wrong way. While he knew they’d be watching China’s communications, and that’s where they found this all out from (he hoped they weren’t intercepting Australian communications), he didn’t like their tone.

He wasn’t stupid. He had no intention of invading Iran. His call for a plan from the head of the Defence Forces would have matched calls that the other nations would have made. Hell, the Pentagon had plans for everything, why couldn’t Australia?

He told the Department of Foreign Affairs to send a simple message to the US, Canada and the UK.

AUSTRALIA STANDS BY HER ALLIES.

He also asked Admiral Bains to forward Australia’s final numbers to SACEUR, and the National Command Authority in D.C.

TO: SACEUR, US NATIONAL COMMAND AUTHORITY
FRM: COMMANDER, AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE FORCES
RE: TROOP NUMBERS

AUSTRALIA’S FINAL CONTRIBUTION STANDS AT;
•	1ST BATALLION (INFANTRY) ROYAL AUSTRALIAN REGIMENT ALONG WITH ADDITIONAL TROOP SUPPORT VEHICLES (ASLAV/BUSHMASTER)
•	2 COMPANIES FROM 4TH BATTALION (COMMANDO), ROYAL AUSTRALIAN REGIMENT
•	‘A’ SQUADRON, 1ST ARMOURED REGIMENT (M1A1 TANKS)
•	DETACHMENT FROM 161ST SQUADRON, 1ST AVIATION REGIMENT (6 ARH TIGER ATTACK HELICOPTERS)
•	DETACHMENT FROM THE SPECIAL AIR SERVICE REGIMENT (40 MEN)
•	FRIGATES HMAS PERTH AND HMAS NEWCASTLE ALREADY DEPLOYED TO THE PERSIAN GULF
•	NO. 1 SQUADRON, RAAF (12 F/A-18E SUPER HORNETS)

LOGISTICS WILL INCLUDE SORTIES BY C-17 AND C-130. THE ADF HOPES TO HAVE ALL UNITS IN PLACE WITHIN 7 DAYS, 10 AT THE MOST. ANY OTHER LOGISTICAL SUPPORT WOULD BE APPRECIATED.

ADM T BAINS, COMMANDER, ADF

Decker signed off on the deployment. It was the largest single deployment, to a single country, in years. Even during the Iraq and Afghanistan campaigns the Australians hadn’t deployed that many troops.

He also asked DFAT to send to more message, one to Canada, and the other to the United States.

PRIME MINISTER JACK DECKER LOOKS FORWARD TO VISITING BOTH CANADA, AND THE UNITED STATES. HE PLANS TO BE IN CANADA FROM MONDAY JULY 7 UNTIL THE AFTERNOON OF WEDNESDAY JULY 9, AND IN DC FROM THE EVENING OF JULY 9 UNTIL THE MORNING OF SATURDAY JULY 12.

He walked away from his desk and picked up the cordless phone, dialling his wife’s mobile phone number.

“Jack?”

“Hey you.” He said with a soft smile that she could feel through the phone.

“You’re in Sydney?”

“Yeah.”

“How is it?”

Jack sat down on a couch. “It’s…it’s ok. The dead is steady at eighteen. I’m at Kirribilli House at the moment, had a lot of diplomatic stuff to sort through. The world’s going to hell in a hand basket.”

“What else is new?” Lisa asked with a soft chuckle.

“Yeah. What are you up to?”

“I’m just in the staff room having some lunch.” When Lisa said that, Decker looked at the clock. The day had escaped from him. “Was it Iran?”

“Yeah…I just ordered a big deployment to Georgia. The Chinese are going for the throat though…” he heard shrill tone of the secure phone. “I’ve got to go…”

“Are you staying in Sydney?”

“No, I’ll come home, and come back up here in a few days for a memorial service.”

“Ok, see you soon.”

“I love you Lisa…kiss the kids for me when you see them.”

“Ok honey. Bye.”

Jack put the phone down and picked up the other one. “Decker.”

“It’s Pete. We’re receiving unconfirmed reports of a massive operation in Iran.”

“The Chinese?”

“Yes sir. But I tell you, it’s scary. This operation, it looked like a US one. Co-ordinated, tactical, devastating.”

“So they’re not rolling in with tanks anymore?”

“No sir.” Pete said. “Our embassy in Tehran is reporting that the President, and several members of the Guardian Council, were swooped up in the raid…”

“Ballsy. Any sign of retaliation?”

“We’re waiting on satellite coverage, but it looks like there were secondary attacks outside of Tehran. The Chinese might have gone for any rumoured WMD sites.”

“Couldn’t make this stuff up Pete.” The Prime Minister said with a sigh.

“Unless you were Tom Clancy.”

“Start sharing any information we get with the US, Canadians and the Brits. The Yanks don’t have an embassy in Iran, so anything we can give them I’m sure they’ll appreciate. I’ll hold a press conference in Canberra in two hours.”

“Yes sir.”

“Thanks Pete. I’ll see you in an hour or so.” Decker hung up the phone and rubbed his eyes. Great, he thought to himself, now I’ll just be remembered as the PM who first had a major international terrorist attack on Australian soil. 


--ACTION TAKEN--
1. A clear show of support with our Western allies, specifically the US, UK and Canada
2. A pretty large (for Australia) commitment of forces to driving Iran out of Azerbaijan
3. Confirmation of dates for the trip to the US and Canada. Hope they work :D



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