Subtopia

On The Start of The War

October 1985.

On the start of the war against the People's Republic of Moskochev (PRM).

     My name is Miriam Jordana, a former sailor aboard the HMS Exeter in the Kingdom of Adrionis. In early 1984, while serving a standard enlistment for my country's navy, we were plunged into a bitter and bloody conflict against our neighbors to the east - the Moskochevians.

     Unlike previous global conflicts (particularly before the second world war), where the geopolitical factors leading up to a final breaking point could and were easily understood by the majority of the populace, the conflict with Moskochev seemed to come suddenly; millions of citizens of the Sutopian region were suddenly awoken by news articles and radio bulletins telling of the first salvos launched between two nations now embittered in conflict.

     It was breakfast time for me, in the mess-hall of the Exeter, when Adrionian royal and television host Vincent Loftenburg announced the first exchange of artillery shells near the Adrionis-Moskochev border in the east. I remember feeling an empty, yet almost ecstatic feeling in the pit of my stomach. There's an innately prehistoric and instinctive reaction to the first news of conflict... more than anything, perhaps, because I knew I would be seeing it firsthand.

     To a native of the region, the war was not a matter of how, but when. While few expected it to happen in 1984, the bitterness between our two countries has been worsening for hundreds of years, and for a variety of reasons; the most prominent is the utter pride and xenophobia shared by both powers. Both the Adrionians and the Moskochevians are fiercely patriotic toward the "little things" that make their nations unique... and the allegations of one culture attempting to usurp the other is very common.

     It would be wrong to say both parties are equally guilty, however. Whereas the Adrionian patriotism in its relation to the conflict is rooted primarily in a reverence for its history and economic prosperity, the Moskochevian counterpart is based solely on a belief in the superior culture of the Russo-Slavs, and a generational repetition of the notion that "all Moskovites are comrades, and all foreigners are enemies."

     According to the press, the current conflict was initiated by Moskochev and began for several reasons:

Firstly, and most prominently, Adrionis' twenty year embargo on Moskochevian grain exports, which began following Moskochev's annexation of Besovsk in 1964. The annexation was punishment against Besovsk for their violent boycott of Moskochev only five years prior, due to heavy Moskochevian taxation on much-needed grain exports.

Secondly, several pro-Adrionian militant organizations were responsible for violent attacks in the Moskochevian cities of Shiroka and Vilnov, no doubt a conspiracy from their government to justify this war.

Thirdly, the classic justification - Adrionis is a threat to the Russo-Slavic cultural identity, and free enterprise is systematically destroying the lives of young people living along the border, where Adrionian radio and television programming and reading material is easily accessible.

Finally, Moskochev simply needs more land. It is a highly agricultural nation with a significant lack of an industrial infrastructure, relative to its competitors in Subtopia. This is primarily due to the rough terrain of the nation - what land isn't already occupied by farms is almost totally unusable for significant industrial expansion, due to the Caucasus mountain range.

     These four justifications are what many international conflict analysts believe to be the explanation behind the sudden amphibious invasion of Adrionis' southern Alardia region, launched by Moskochev on March 9th, 1984.

     Many journalists have speculated that it was the original intention of Moskochev to capture the Alardia region, which is a desert panhandle on Adrionis' southeastern shore. The district consists primarily of ethnic Zamanabadi who hold only disdain for the northerners of mostly Greek and Germanic origin, and who could've been easily swayed into supporting Moskochevian ideals.

     By utilizing already extant Zamanabadi militia cells (most of whom have been outlawed by the crown) and spreading anti-Adrionian propaganda throughout the region, Moskochev would have doubled their military power in the invasion with soldiers who are already familiar with the geography of the area.

     This plan of invasion has mostly been stifled, as much of the force was pushed back toward the shore throughout much of 1984 and 1985. Adrionian victory of this magnitude was unprecedented at the start of the war, and is most probably thanks to a disregard of international standards of modern conflict.

     Civilian reprisal killings by Adrionis, launched primarily against mostly-Zamanabadi villages (and using white phosphorous bombs) were common in Alardia toward the start of the conflict. Carpet bombing and the deployment of fatal chemical weapons was also widespread and heavily publicized, to stir the interior's hatred of the invading enemy.