Go back in time and be a chaebol

Chapter 2738 The Most Cowardly of All (First Update, Please Subscribe)
The “Iranian hostage crisis” naturally caused an uproar and great embarrassment in the United States.

At this critical moment, all Western countries naturally strongly condemned the atrocities and expressed their support for the United States.

Like all Western countries, the SEA has provided firm diplomatic support to the United States!
Then?

And that was the end of it, after all, the SEA was still at war!
Therefore, faced with all support from the Western world except for official assistance, the United States had no choice but to deal with the crisis on its own.

When faced with such a crisis, a country has four options: open diplomacy, which involves contacting the Iranian government; a military raid; secret diplomacy; and covert operations.

From the outset, Carter faced numerous challenges. With the Grand Master and the Commission fully supporting the occupation, the United States effectively had no negotiating partners left.

Carter attempted to send two special envoys to Iran, but the cleric even refused them entry. With open diplomacy ruled out, Carter turned to the military for advice, but they offered an equally bleak assessment—the Iranians might execute the hostages if a retaliatory strike was launched. Moreover, the chances of a successful rescue were extremely slim.

Geographically, Tehran is remote, while the US embassy is located in the heart of the capital. Rescuing these people safely under the noses of the Iranians would be virtually impossible.

Carter thus adopted a "two-track" strategy: on the one hand, he increased diplomatic pressure, and on the other hand, he gave the military the green light to develop an emergency rescue plan.

Meanwhile, the White House also made a strong statement—the United States will not hand over Shah under any circumstances.

And so, the Iranian hostage crisis escalated once again!
In early winter, the banks of the Porto Tom River have lost their summer lushness, and fallen leaves are swept across the lawn by the cool breeze, landing on the trails and lawns.

Despite the biting cold wind, there were still quite a few people playing chess in the park's chess area. In a corner, two middle-aged men wearing woolen coats were also playing chess.

Tom's gaze lingered briefly on the chessboard before he slowly placed a piece. Jed, opposite him, captured his king. After determining the winner, Tom, while setting up the pieces, asked:

"Tom, are you deliberately letting me win? Or are your thoughts entirely focused on Tehran?"

Tom chuckled softly, and as he rearranged the pieces, he said in a tone tinged with helplessness and self-deprecation:
"We have no time to give away points. The situation in Tehran is driving us crazy. The entire White House is dealing with this right now."

Tom, who was the deputy chief of staff at the White House, only took advantage of the lunch break to invite Tom to play a game of chess.
"We're all busy, but what has Carter actually done?"

Tom said in a sarcastic tone:

"The president only announced on the 9th that he would suspend the shipment of military supplies and spare parts to Iran."

Tom's tone turned somber, revealing undisguised displeasure:
"This decision was made so long after the hostages were taken."

He paused, his fingers pinching the "King":
"What's even more ironic is that, until the 12th, the president announced a halt to oil imports from Iran, amounting to approximately 70 barrels per day. Did you know that at the very moment the hostages were kidnapped, Iranian oil was still being shipped to the United States?"

This is what we do.

Jade gently raised his head:

"It was indeed a bit slow. At times like this, any hesitation could be seen as weakness."

"It's more than just weakness."

After setting up the chessboard, Tom picked up a chess piece and slowly put it down:
"It was utterly weak. On the 14th, someone from Iran withdrew nearly $120 billion of Shah's deposits from a US bank. The bank reported this to the Treasury Department, and President Carter immediately signed an executive order to freeze the funds."

He shrugged, his voice filled with helplessness:

"But as you can imagine, these measures have had almost no effect. We are completely being led by the nose by Iran. The Iranians are pressing us step by step, and we are responding step by step. And then what? It's just a war of words. We have no room to fight back at all."

"This is precisely why we adopted a policy of no dialogue, no negotiation, and direct full-scale attack on Tehran! We must take a tough stance against a country like this; you are too hesitant."

Although as a diplomatic officer at the SEA's Washington office, Jade shouldn't have made such criticisms, he did anyway, and then continued by asking:
"What specific demands did Iran make?"

"Their demands are outrageously demanding."

Tom's voice turned colder, and his tone was filled with anger:

"Not only do they demand the repatriation of the 'criminal' Shah, but they also demand the surrender of all his assets. What's worse, they openly warned us that if we dared to attempt any rescue, they would not only completely destroy our embassy, ​​but also execute all the hostages on the spot!"

He paused, mimicking the minister's tone, which carried a hint of sarcasm and disdain:
"That cleric, in a speech to his indignant supporters, openly provoked them, saying, 'Why should we be afraid?... Carter doesn't have the guts to take military action.' He even shamelessly declared, 'If the United States takes military action, then all Iranians are ready to be martyred.'"

Frowning, Jade stopped playing chess and said in a serious tone:
"That religious leader is not a typical politician, but an extremist driven by fanatical beliefs."

You're right.

Tom took a deep breath and said:
“Normal diplomatic means, whether international pressure or sanctions, are no longer effective against Iran. That cleric is a medieval prophet who is single-mindedly focused on building a medieval state and treats it as a divine decree.”

Tom raised his hand to rub his temples and continued:

"In order to achieve this goal, he believed that any sacrifice was worthwhile, and he did not care about things like international reputation or the lives of the hostages."

Faced with such a person, everyone is helpless. It's like dealing with someone from another planet; you don't share a common language, you don't share common ground, and no matter what you say or do, it's futile. "Yes, essentially, this Iranian hostage crisis is a premeditated attempt by those Iranian charlatans to embarrass the United States. No matter what you do, they won't back down."

Tom nodded as he listened to Jade's analysis:

"The whole situation is now at a standstill, with absolutely no chance of a turnaround."

After a moment's thought, Jed asked:
"As time goes by, the deadlock remains unbroken, and the American public will certainly become increasingly dissatisfied with the White House."

You're right.

Tom's lips curled into a sneer as he said sarcastically:
"Because of the president's weakness, the public has begun to doubt his ability, and his approval rating is declining. As for him, he has always maintained restraint and has not taken military action easily."

However, protests and violence against Iranians have erupted across the United States. Public anger has been thoroughly ignited.

Upon hearing this, Jade nodded and said:
"Yes, when I drove past the Iranian embassy just now, I saw a protest group outside. Many people were trying to rush in, but the American police were doing their best to stop them."

"This is America,"

Tom chuckled softly, his laughter laced with sarcasm.
"Perhaps there could be nothing more ironic. Here, the United States goes to great lengths to protect Iranian diplomats and ensure their safety."

Meanwhile, in Tehran, our diplomats are being illegally detained and subjected to wanton mistreatment.

After his biting sarcasm, Tom forced a bitter smile and shook his head slightly: "This is the burden of civilized countries."

His tone was full of helplessness:
"We should always treat others in a civilized manner, even if they are barbarians or do not understand the importance of respecting civilization."

Then, he looked at Jade and said:

"However, the White House has new plans and will meet with your representatives in hopes of gaining more support from you."

"Our support..."

Jade then nodded:

“I will take this message back as soon as possible. However, Tom, you should know that the SEA can only provide limited support, after all, we are still at war.”

"Do not worry."

Tom nodded, his tone somewhat heavy:

"The White House will absolutely not choose military action now because of your hardline stance. Therefore, the president wants to take joint action with you to force Iran to make concessions by increasing sanctions."

This was precisely Tom's purpose for this trip: to find out SEA's thoughts in advance. Although Chang'an had always been tough on Tehran, it was common knowledge that the conflict between Chang'an's official residence and the White House had been going on for a long time.

What support does SEA currently provide?
It's all support except for support itself!
Therefore, the White House cannot guarantee that Chang'an will support them.

The following morning, in the Oval Office of the White House, after President Carter met with SEA representative Geng Changqing, Geng Changqing naturally first expressed his condolences and sympathy, as well as his support.

"President, please believe that we are on your side and are willing to provide all the support we can."

Then he emphasized:

"Furthermore, Your Excellency indicated that you are ready to communicate with the President at any time regarding the Tehran issue."

Upon hearing this, Carter immediately expressed his gratitude. He certainly knew the significance of this promise, but what he didn't know was that such communication was essentially to put American actions in the hands of the SEA.

Before leaving the White House, Geng Changqing met with reporters from various countries as usual, stating that "SEA will stand by the side of the United States as always and is willing to do everything in its power to help the hostages be rescued and return home in this hostage crisis!"

He also stated that President Carter would speak with Your Excellency later today to discuss the Iranian hostage crisis.

As soon as Geng Changqing finished speaking, reporters applauded and cheered. In an instant, everyone saw hope for a solution to the problem.

Why are people so excited?
As is widely known, unlike the White House's weakness, the official residence has always been extremely tough.

Carter was a coward, but Li Yi'an was a tough guy who had experienced war, a tough guy who had come out of the hell of Bastogne, how could Carter compare to him!

Sometimes, a person's name is like the shadow of a tree.

As the hostage crisis reached a stalemate, people once again turned their hopeful gaze to the SEA, to "the right hand of the Western world."

(End of this chapter)