American Strategic Deception Bureau

　"Captain Panam's attack on the radio station has been thwarted. He says there are too many Red Bandits and police over there! Requesting support!"

　"Captain Anwar's attack on Halim Air Base also failed. He said there are armored vehicles and tanks there! Request support!"

　"Our troops stormed Madam Devi's Bazennan Palace, but we couldn't find the President or Madam Devi."

　"We've found the president. He's in the Soviet superpower base! Should we attack the Soviet army?"

　"The Soviets are moving! The Soviets are firing at us! Request support! Request support!"

　……

　"Oh, damn it! Request for support! Request for support! Request for support everywhere! But where can I get the reinforcements for them?"

　In the chaotic chaos of the rebel frontline headquarters in downtown Jakarta, Major General Suharto, commander of the Army's Strategic Reserve Force, angrily shouted at Lieutenant Colonel Bill Lyell, a CIA spy who had rushed from Thailand to liaise and oversee the battle: "Why hasn't the Siliwangi Division in Bandung taken action yet? What on earth are the seven generals on the 'Generals' Council' doing? Are they expecting me to capture the capital with a single regiment and then let them come and reap the rewards?"

　Seeing the CIA spy in front of him speechless, Suharto was stunned for a moment, then quickly understood something. He couldn't help but sigh, "I know, they don't want to be upstaged by me, they want to see me and the leftists both suffer losses, right?

　Damn it, this is fucked up! How can we save the country from the red thugs by standing with this bunch of rubbish?

　He kicked the wall hard and cursed angrily.

　-

　Speaking of which, although in that period of history that has not been changed, the Indonesian Communist Party performed very poorly in the "September 30th" coup and was ultimately defeated. Three million party members were slaughtered cleanly by the pro-American right-wing military government led by Suharto, as if cutting melons and vegetables.

　But it is not true to say that they have weakened their own military power and are completely ignorant of the principle that "political power comes from the barrel of a gun."

　Over the past few decades, repeated coups by right-wing military officers around the world have taught revolutionaries a profound lesson: without the support of armed forces, victory in any parliamentary struggle is a castle in the air. Even if you win the election, reactionary forces will directly use force to overthrow you.

　Therefore, in the early 1960s, the Indonesian Republic and the left-wing forces that supported the Indonesian Communist Party,

　In fact, its military strength is not weak.

　As the largest country in Southeast Asia with the most islands, the importance of the navy and air force to Indonesia's national defense is far greater than that of other continental countries. Without the navy and air force to quickly transport troops and suppress rebellions everywhere, this country of thousands of islands with a complex ethnic composition will really fall apart.

　In terms of long-term development, the navy, air force, marines and airborne troops are the correct focus of Indonesia's national defense construction.

　The Indonesian Air Force is an active supporter of the Indonesian Communist Party, the Indonesian Navy also clearly leans towards the left, and the police remain neutral.

　The historical "September 30" coup was an initiative by the Indonesian Air Force and the Presidential Guard to purge right-wing generals.

　Therefore, the Indonesian Communist Party is not without military support. There are quite a few left-wing soldiers in Indonesia, but the right-wing officers control the upper echelons of the army.

　As for the Indonesian Army, which serves as the base camp of the right wing, although it has always had a pro-American tradition, it had already paid the price of allegiance - during the Indonesian Civil War from 1957 to 1958, the United States used the CIA to provide money and troops to support separatists on various islands and fought against the Indonesian Army.

　All the Indonesian generals who refused to go against the United States had already rebelled at that time, and the rest had all fought against American forces.

　According to the initial views of the Indonesian Communist Party and President Sukarno, these right-wing generals of the army had fought against American proxies, seen blood, and directly defeated CIA mercenaries. So no matter how right-leaning their political ideas were, they should at least have no way to defect to the United States, right?

　But the problem is that in the Cold War era when both the United States and the Soviet Union were flexible and lacked moral integrity, this kind of token of allegiance was useless.

　Who says that those Indonesian army generals who suppressed the early pro-American factions and CIA mercenaries cannot reconnect with the Americans?

　In the eyes of Americans, the melee between Indonesian warlords was like the "cocks" fighting each other in a cockfighting arena.

　The fighting cock I bought before was pecked to death by a stronger fighting cock. The next step is definitely to buy the winning fighting cock and continue to participate in the competition!

　Is it possible that the owner would hold a grudge and seek revenge for a chicken? How absurd!

　Therefore, after suppressing the early pro-American generals' rebellion in 1958 and annihilating the mercenaries organized by the CIA, the "loyalist" generals of the Indonesian Army who were ordered to suppress the rebellion soon hooked up with the CIA again and continued to "use foreign powers" to compete with the Indonesian Communist Party and other left-wing forces.

　As for the previous battles? Let's just consider it as a case of no friendship without fighting!

　As a bureaucratic organization, the CIA cannot insist on holding on to old grudges and forcing the Indonesian right to join the Communist Party...that would be completely ruined.

　— I suspect that despite their pro-China stance, the Indonesian Communist Party's leaders haven't carefully read "Romance of the Three Kingdoms." In particular, they haven't read the storyline about the "Three Rebellions of Huainan." They're unaware of the magical maneuvering involved in a general defeating a rebellious army and then instantly becoming the rebel leader...

　So, despite having fought a fierce battle with pro-American Indonesian rebels and CIA mercenaries, and probably even killed some CIA spies, after the civil war ended, Indonesian army generals, having washed their hands of the smoke and blood, continued to be pro-American and collude with the CIA.

　Furthermore, although Indonesia's founding president, Sukarno, had gradually moved leftward since the late 1950s and was ready to hand over power to the Indonesian Communist Party, for a long time he had not yet made up his mind to join the Communist Party, but instead tried to strike a balance between the Indonesian Communist Party and right-wing army generals.

　This resulted in the Indonesian Communist Party being unable to purge the right wing of the army even though it had to respect and rely on President Sukarno and legally accept power.

　However, with the rapid development and growth of the Indonesian Communist Party and the overall leftward shift in Indonesian politics, the contradictions between the two sides became increasingly irreconcilable.

　In 1965, the two sides finally had a showdown - the Indonesian Communist Party proposed the establishment of a party armed force, claiming that in order to take over the regime, it required the establishment of a "fifth military force" independent of the navy, army, air force and police: a bit like the German Nazi Party's Storm Troopers and SS.

　Anyone with a discerning eye can see that this "fifth military force" is designed to compete with the Indonesian Army.

　The Indonesian Air Force enthusiastically supported this proposal, while the Navy, persuaded by President Sukarno, expressed limited support. The Indonesian Police remained neutral, while the Army remained adamantly opposed, even threatening a mutiny. However, President Sukarno refused to accept this and attempted to coerce the Army into making concessions.

　As the founding president, Sukarno's prestige in Indonesia was unmatched. Once he made up his mind, there was no chance of a reversal in the army.

　So, Defense Minister Nasution and seven other generals, with the help of the CIA, formed a "Generals' Committee" to prepare a "military remonstration" against the president. However, the seven generals each had their own ideas about the specific plan for the "military remonstration," and they could not reach a consensus for a while.

　Unsurprisingly, given the amateurish nature of the group, the Generals' Committee's rebellious plot quickly leaked, and even their list of names landed on President Sukarno's desk. Unwilling to personally take the brunt of the situation, Sukarno tasked Lieutenant Colonel Untung, commander of the Presidential Guard, with contacting left-wing military officers and forming an "Anti-Coup Group" to counter the right-wing military's attempt to seize power.

　It has to be said that the Indonesian government was deeply influenced by the Japanese occupation period. The anti-coup plan devised by Lieutenant Colonel Ongdong was exactly the same as the "February 26 Incident" of the Japanese Army or the "Tenjutsu and Renzhan" of the late Edo period in Japan.

　The team went out overnight and rushed to the homes of the seven members of the "Generals' Committee", arrested the seven leaders and executed them on the spot... Then it was over and we could call it a day and rest.

　The Indonesian Army's "Generals' Council," which led the rebellion, was even more rudimentary than the president's counter-coup group, allowing Lieutenant Colonel Untung to succeed. With the exception of Defense Minister Nasution, who escaped with serious injuries, the remaining six generals were killed overnight.

　——Such an easy victory also made President Sukarno, the leaders of the Indonesian Communist Party and Lieutenant Colonel Untung relax their vigilance, thinking that they had accomplished a great success. They had no idea that Major General Suharto, who had been low-key, would suddenly launch an attack the next day, and with only one regiment of troops, he defeated the presidential guard and the navy and air force within a day, completely reversing the situation and throwing both the Indonesian Communist Party and Sukarno into the abyss.

　However, in this dimension, due to the unprecedented deterioration of the Vietnam War situation, in order to prevent Indonesia from being completely communistized, the US CIA invested more manpower in Indonesia and became more deeply involved in the rebellion of the right-wing generals of the "Generals' Committee".

　Thus, Lieutenant Colonel Undong's "Heavenly Punishment of Traitors Plan" was intercepted by CIA agents before it even began in this dimension. Upon receiving the news, the seven army generals of the "Generals' Committee" immediately fled the capital, Jakarta, leaving the presidential guard under Lieutenant Colonel Undong empty-handed.

　The seven generals then split up. Defense Minister Nasution flew to Palembang, Sumatra, to establish a military government on the island of Sumatra and receive US military aid shipped by the CIA. Army Chief of Staff Yani fled to Sulawesi and incited a rebellion in the island's army.

　The remaining five generals rushed to Bandung, 200 kilometers south of Jakarta, and mobilized the army's "Siliwang Division" stationed there to raise the flag of rebellion.

　Upon learning that his counter-coup plan, Tianchu, had failed and that he could not quietly eliminate the threat posed by the army, a disappointed Sukarno had no choice but to prepare for a fight.

　The leader of the Indonesian Communist Party, Aidit, also lamented that "another Spanish Civil War is about to break out, and I wonder if there will be an International Brigade this time."

　On the morning of October 5, 1965, Indonesian President Sukarno informed the entire nation on the radio about the treasonous rebellion of some pro-American army generals, declared that Indonesia had entered a state of war, and issued an order to attack the rebels led by Defense Minister Nasution.

　The Indonesian Air Force immediately took off and bombed the Siliwangi Division headquarters in Bandung.

　The Indonesian Communist Party also launched an armed mobilization, began distributing guns and ammunition to all party members, formed armed pickets, and prepared to defend the current regime by force.

　The Diponegoro Division stationed in Central Java officially stated its position through radio broadcasts, announcing its support for President Sukarno and opposition to the Generals' Council.

　On the contrary, the Siliwangi Division in Bandung, as well as part of the army in Sumatra and Sulawesi, sided with the rebels after internal fighting.

　As for the military and governments in other places, they are watching and remaining silent.

　Until this point, the Indonesian coup had little to do with Major General Suharto, commander of the Army's Strategic Reserve Forces. This was because Suharto's political status at the time was that of a "neutral officer." He had not participated in the conspiracy with Defense Minister Nasution, nor had he been recruited by the "Generals' Council."

　Well, just like before the Northern Expedition began, Chiang Kai-shek’s political label was actually “left-wing military leader”.

　But what no one knew was that Major General Suharto had also been in contact with the CIA for a long time, but he was a low-key person and remained dormant. He had no horizontal connections with other army generals and did not form cliques. Therefore, he was not taken seriously by President Sukarno and the Indonesian Communist Party.

　However, when the civil war broke out, Major General Suharto could no longer keep a low profile. Lieutenant Colonel Bill Lyle, the legendary CIA spy who had supported General Vang Pao and the Hmong mercenaries in Laos, walked out of the U.S. Embassy in Indonesia and came to the door in person, forcing Major General Suharto to immediately launch "decisive action" to stab President Sukarno and the Indonesian Communist Party in the capital.

　Suharto, who was always grateful for favors and always had a soft tongue, had no choice but to decide to fight to the death. He led a regiment of his trusted troops and launched a rebellion against President Sukarno in the heart of the country's capital!

　Major General Suharto then found himself in a tough battle in Jakarta.

　Chapter 339: The CIA, as always, is making things worse

　In the original story, Major General Suharto, employing only a single regiment, easily defeated Indonesia's left-wing military, seized the capital, Jakarta, captured President Sukarno, and intimidated the Indonesian Communist Party, deterring its three million members from any rash action. Consequently, the optimal window to thwart the coup was missed. This was partly due to President Sukarno's grave mistake in deciding to purge right-wing generals without personally taking the lead. Instead, he tasked a few officers with forming an "anti-coup group" to carry out the assassination attempt. Even the left-wing commanders in the navy and air force remained in the background, watching the lower-ranking officers "rise" and act independently.

　——I have to say that this is indeed a perfect imitation of the style of the old Japanese Empire. The middle and low-level officers are also "rebelling against their superiors", and the superiors are also shifting the blame without giving clear instructions, and only recognize or cut off responsibilities afterwards based on success or failure.

　However, this ambiguous approach confused Indonesian soldiers and citizens for a while, and they couldn't figure out who was rebelling.

　Then, before they could figure out what was going on, Suharto had already launched a rebellion, placed the president under house arrest, and seized control of the central government.

　On the other hand, the Presidential Guard Commander Lieutenant Colonel Weng Dong's Tianzhu Operation was too successful, killing almost all the members of the army coup group overnight.

　There is a leader, and the only remaining one is Defense Minister Nasution, who also fled in panic after being seriously injured. It seems that he can no longer make any waves.

　Therefore, Lieutenant Colonel Untung and his "anti-coup group", as well as President Sukarno and the Indonesian Communist Party leaders hiding behind the scenes, all thought that the matter was probably over, and all their energy was focused on how to reward meritorious officials and deal with the aftermath. They never expected that they would have to fight another battle the next day.

　The Indonesian Communist Party had no intention of mobilizing armed forces to fight against right-wing forces. Instead, it held a large parade to celebrate the successful suppression of the rebellion.

　——It’s not that the Indonesian Communist Party does not have the ability to mobilize armed forces, but that they simply do not feel the need to do so.

　Because in their view, the counter-revolutionary coup has been suppressed and all the rebel leaders have been eliminated, so why is there a need for military struggle next?

　As a result, the complacent Presidential Guard was defeated by Major General Suharto's troops in a surprise attack the next day. Subsequently, key areas of Jakarta fell one after another, and President Sukarno was captured before he could escape the capital, turning the national situation irreversible.

　In the end, the original right-wing coup group, the "Generals' Committee," was successfully decapitated by left-wing officers, destroying the entire command structure. As a result, the various right-wing armies that had previously planned to rebel, left leaderless and in panic, saw Suharto taking the lead in the rebellion and spontaneously followed suit.

　As a result, Suharto, who was previously just a junior figure in the Indonesian Army, successfully took advantage of this power vacuum and became the leader of the right-wing rebels.

　Even if the coup mastermind, Defense Minister Nasution, recovered from his injuries and wanted to come out to compete with him for power again, the situation was already hopeless and he would not be able to compete with Suharto.

　But in this time and space, Major General Suharto's rebellion, although still somewhat sudden, lost the above-mentioned favorable conditions.

　First, members of the "Generals' Council" successfully escaped and raised the flag of rebellion, completely frustrating Lieutenant Colonel Untung's counter-coup plan. As a result, the PKI, the navy, the air force, the presidential guard, and the few pro-government left-wing army officers were all on edge.

　In addition, President Sukarno had already defined the rebellious army generals in a public speech, so the Indonesian military and civilians no longer had any ideological confusion or disorder. Instead, they knew from the beginning who were the rebels colluding with imperialism and who were the true patriotic armed forces.

　Although no one had anticipated Major General Suharto's rebellion, the entire government from top to bottom was prepared for war. Militias were mobilized everywhere and guns and ammunition were distributed. Suharto's rebels could no longer sweep through the capital as if it were no man's land, but had to fight their way forward in a bloody battle.

　As the commander of the Army's Strategic Reserve Force, Major General Suharto could mobilize only an understrength regiment of his own, with no more than a thousand men, which was even fewer than the Japanese Army's "Rising Force" that launched the February 26 Incident - at that time, the young Japanese officers had mobilized 1500 men.

　There is no way. Not everyone can "secretly raise three thousand death warriors" in a country's capital like Sima Yi did on the eve of the Gaopingling Incident.

　Being able to support a thousand soldiers is already very good!

　However, according to the battle plan made by the CIA for Suharto, his rebel regiment had to attack seven or eight targets at the same time, including the presidential palace, radio station, police station, Halim Air Force Base, Indonesian Communist Party headquarters, etc. Some attack targets could only be assigned to one company or even one platoon.

　As a result, except for the Presidential Palace, which was attacked by concentrated forces, the rest of the targets were naturally frustrated because of too few troops.

　The problem was that President Sukarno was not in the presidential palace, so it would be useless even if the presidential palace was captured.

　Then, as time went on, Suharto's rebels guarding the capital were inevitably caught in the ocean of people's war.

　Those Indonesian Communist Party youth activists who had been urgently armed. Although they had only received guns and ammunition half a day ago, their enthusiasm was high, which was at least better than fighting with bare hands. Given the level of fighting among the weak in Indonesia, the combat effectiveness of the regular army soldiers was not much stronger.

　What was even more terrible was that Major General Suharto had no external support, and the rest of the rebels remained on hold, watching him fight alone in the capital.

　Why is this happening?

　Because the CIA's agents were so diligent, none of the right-wing Indonesian Army generals who were part of the "Generals' Council" plotting to overthrow President Sukarno were killed. They all escaped unscathed and subsequently established their own rebellion headquarters in Bandung, Palembang, and Sulawesi.

　The right-wing officers under their command also have their own superiors to follow. Who would obey the orders of Suharto, a junior?

　As for the seven generals on the "Generals' Council," the CIA certainly informed them, urging them to quickly launch an attack on Jakarta and join forces with Suharto's "Freedom Fighters." But the problem was, to these right-wing army generals plotting rebellion, who was Suharto?

　Suharto had never participated in their coup plot, nor was he on the "Generals' Committee" and was not at all a member of the coup group.

　This guy is just an outsider who "jumped in line" and just bypassed the big guys to have some connections with the Americans. He doesn't seem credible at all.

　Although it is said that Suharto, following the CIA's instructions, led his regiment to rebel in the capital Jakarta and even captured the presidential palace...

　But I didn’t see it with my own eyes, so who knows whether it’s true or not?

　What if this was actually a conspiracy by the "Reds" to use a "fake coup" to lure the coup troops out of their strong defensive positions and advance towards the capital, thereby

　Would this result in large rebel forces being exposed in open fields and on roads, making them vulnerable to the Indonesian Air Force's indiscriminate bombing?

　——The above is the high-sounding public statement, but the private thought is... Why should Suharto, an outsider, take the credit?

　If these bigwigs in the army could only escape Jakarta in a panic, and Suharto, a "marginal man" and a small-time figure, was able to capture President Sukarno in one fell swoop, take over the capital Jakarta, and win the greatest credit for this coup... then, how should rewards and punishments be assessed in the future?

　Does it mean that Defense Minister Nasution, the leader of the "Generals' Council", should step down and let Major General Suharto take over as the leader?

　No matter how you think about it, this is impossible!

　Even if they want to take over the capital Jakarta, it must be led by people from the "Generals' Committee"!

　In this case, let Suharto and the communists kill each other. No matter which side dies, these bigwigs will applaud!

　So, even though Suharto was slaughtering people everywhere in Jakarta, causing chaos throughout the city and sending out urgent telegrams boasting of his achievements and requesting assistance like snowflakes, the right-wing generals on the "Generals' Committee" remained unhurried and unmoved, insisting on confirming the situation before taking action.

　Ultimately, it was all because the CIA worked too hard and saved a bunch of stupid teammates, which prevented Suharto from creating a miracle.

　Yet, even in such an all-around unfavorable situation, Major General Suharto came close to winning.

　When Major General Suharto suddenly launched a rebellion in the capital, President Sukarno, the rebels' primary target, was not at the presidential palace in Jakarta, but at the Bazengan Palace in the suburbs, staying with his fourth wife, Mrs. Dewi, a Japanese man whom he had married a few years earlier.

　(Indonesia is an Islamic country, and President Sukarno was allowed to marry four wives according to religious rules.)

　Speaking of this Mrs. Devi, she is also a remarkable person. Born in 1940, her original name was Nemoto Nanako. She was outstanding in appearance since childhood, with deep and majestic features. However, her family was poor, so after graduating from junior high school at the age of 15, she went to work as a salesperson for an insurance company, and later worked as a public relations lady in Akasaka, Tokyo.

　In 1959, Nanako met her life's "greatest benefactor"—Indonesian President Sukarno. In June 1959, during a visit to Japan, Sukarno, through the help of Japanese businessman Masao Kubo, met Nanako at a Tokyo bar. He fell in love with her at first sight, captivated by her beauty.

　After returning to his country, Sukarno, who was a playboy and lustful person by nature, was still obsessed with her, and soon he impatiently summoned Nanako to Jakarta.

　Upon learning of this, Kodama Yoshio, a Japanese right-wing leader who was trying to curry favor with Sukarno, was overjoyed. He immediately took matters into his own hands, using the excuse that Tohnichi Trading, the company responsible for Japan's government development aid projects in Indonesia, urgently needed a secretary, and sent Nanako to Indonesia.

　Under the arrangement of Kodama Yoshio, Nanako soon set foot on Indonesian soil and moved directly into the Presidential Palace, living together with President Sukarno.