An idea I had a while back and am now just getting around to writing. It deals with civil unrest in West Germany following the end of the war in Vietnam.
Chapter 1
In the halls of the Kremlin in May 1975, the leaders of the Soviet Union and German Democratic Republic met to discuss further operations in the Federal Republic of Germany. East German General-Secretary Erich Honecker pressed for further involvement and incitement in his turbulent western neighbor. For the past eight years, economic decline and political unrest left the Federal Republic open to revolution from within. Soviet General-Secretary Leonid Brezhnev gave approval to the undermining of the West German government in 1971, following the general strike and riots in the Ruhr.
Honecker proposed on May 3 to accelerate activities in the west. He proposed a plan of operation that would see the government in Bonn fall within five years. As with any activity to undermine a Western government, the Soviet position was one of caution. In 1973, the CIA backed a coup in Chile to topple a legitimate and democratically elected socialist in Chile. On in Moscow could only imagine how the United States would react to an actually attempt to seize power by force in a member of NATO.
Honecker believed the threat was minimal. On April 30, 1975, Saigon and all of South Vietnam fell to the North without minimal American intervention on behalf of the Saigon regime. Most of the American effort was spent in evacuating its embassy staff and ‘lap dogs of the capitalists’ as Honecker put it. More than a decade involvement in Vietnam had worn down the American public’s enthusiasm for war. American attempts to intervene in a revolution in the Federal Republic would lack any public support.
At this point, Brezhnev reminded the East German leader that the North Atlantic Treaty had far stronger language than any treaty between the United States and the Republic of Vietnam. If Berlin attempted the same move as Hanoi, Honecker would find the American response overwhelming. Honecker was no fool and had no plans to send East German soldiers across the border. His plan called bringing down the American puppets in Bonn.
The plan to replace the regime in Bonn with a neutral socialist state appealed to the Soviet Union. With the Federal Republic rendered neutral, it along with Sweden, Austria and Yugoslavia would add another layer of buffering between the West and the Soviet Union. Along with increasing Soviet security it would crack the NATO alliance and lower American prestige in the world’s eyes further. The proposal earned Soviet endorsement under the stipulation that whatever happens in the Federal Republic could not be traced to the East. The American public might drag its feet at internal problems in West Germany but any indication of the red tide flowing across Europe might illicit a different reaction.
Unknown to Brezhnev or the KGB at the time was the true goal of Honecker. Toppling the regime in Bonn was the first step. His ultimate goal was the reunification of Germany under the governance of the Democratic Republic. With World War II over only thirty years, the memories of a unified Germany were still fresh in the mind of Soviet citizens. Even under a socialist regime, a unified Germany would not be welcomed by Moscow. Even a separate German socialist state in the west as a member of the Warsaw Pact was undesirable as it would give the impression to the West of encroachment.
Even if Moscow gave Honecker’s secret plan its blessing, the reaction in the West of a reunified Germany under a totalitarian regime would not be met with friendship. In the West, Berlin viewed France as the biggest obstacle towards Germany reunification. The last war was equally fresh in the minds of the politicians in Paris and the people of Alsace and Lorraine. The Low Countries were not considered a threat (especially considering the unionized army in the Netherlands) and Honecker believed he could handle London. As for Washington; Honecker clearly overestimated the war-weariness of the America public.
Ch1 isn't over and will be added to at a later date.
Chapter 1
In the halls of the Kremlin in May 1975, the leaders of the Soviet Union and German Democratic Republic met to discuss further operations in the Federal Republic of Germany. East German General-Secretary Erich Honecker pressed for further involvement and incitement in his turbulent western neighbor. For the past eight years, economic decline and political unrest left the Federal Republic open to revolution from within. Soviet General-Secretary Leonid Brezhnev gave approval to the undermining of the West German government in 1971, following the general strike and riots in the Ruhr.
Honecker proposed on May 3 to accelerate activities in the west. He proposed a plan of operation that would see the government in Bonn fall within five years. As with any activity to undermine a Western government, the Soviet position was one of caution. In 1973, the CIA backed a coup in Chile to topple a legitimate and democratically elected socialist in Chile. On in Moscow could only imagine how the United States would react to an actually attempt to seize power by force in a member of NATO.
Honecker believed the threat was minimal. On April 30, 1975, Saigon and all of South Vietnam fell to the North without minimal American intervention on behalf of the Saigon regime. Most of the American effort was spent in evacuating its embassy staff and ‘lap dogs of the capitalists’ as Honecker put it. More than a decade involvement in Vietnam had worn down the American public’s enthusiasm for war. American attempts to intervene in a revolution in the Federal Republic would lack any public support.
At this point, Brezhnev reminded the East German leader that the North Atlantic Treaty had far stronger language than any treaty between the United States and the Republic of Vietnam. If Berlin attempted the same move as Hanoi, Honecker would find the American response overwhelming. Honecker was no fool and had no plans to send East German soldiers across the border. His plan called bringing down the American puppets in Bonn.
The plan to replace the regime in Bonn with a neutral socialist state appealed to the Soviet Union. With the Federal Republic rendered neutral, it along with Sweden, Austria and Yugoslavia would add another layer of buffering between the West and the Soviet Union. Along with increasing Soviet security it would crack the NATO alliance and lower American prestige in the world’s eyes further. The proposal earned Soviet endorsement under the stipulation that whatever happens in the Federal Republic could not be traced to the East. The American public might drag its feet at internal problems in West Germany but any indication of the red tide flowing across Europe might illicit a different reaction.
Unknown to Brezhnev or the KGB at the time was the true goal of Honecker. Toppling the regime in Bonn was the first step. His ultimate goal was the reunification of Germany under the governance of the Democratic Republic. With World War II over only thirty years, the memories of a unified Germany were still fresh in the mind of Soviet citizens. Even under a socialist regime, a unified Germany would not be welcomed by Moscow. Even a separate German socialist state in the west as a member of the Warsaw Pact was undesirable as it would give the impression to the West of encroachment.
Even if Moscow gave Honecker’s secret plan its blessing, the reaction in the West of a reunified Germany under a totalitarian regime would not be met with friendship. In the West, Berlin viewed France as the biggest obstacle towards Germany reunification. The last war was equally fresh in the minds of the politicians in Paris and the people of Alsace and Lorraine. The Low Countries were not considered a threat (especially considering the unionized army in the Netherlands) and Honecker believed he could handle London. As for Washington; Honecker clearly overestimated the war-weariness of the America public.
Ch1 isn't over and will be added to at a later date.
