American Strategic Deception Bureau

　——In today's Western Hemisphere, everyone knows what this flag means.

　It represents the authority of a hegemon! It represents hopeless destruction! It represents irresistible dominance!

　After confirming that everyone in the city government had given up resistance and the few remaining guards had surrendered their pistols, the mercenaries, who had been a little nervous, couldn't help but relax a little. Some of them rummaged through the food cabinets to find cheese, crackers, rum, and wine and began to eat and drink.

　Other mercenary soldiers searched the captives with familiarity, ordering them to hand over their watches, earrings, necklaces and rings, or prying open drawers to search for any valuable loot.

　On the other side of the city, as the Puerto Plata docks were taken over by mercenaries, cargo ships such as the "Cabil" and the "Atlantico" carrying arms and ammunition also docked at the docks one after another and began to use the cranes and other equipment at the Puerto Plata docks to quickly unload the cargo.

　-

　Uh, we won just like that? Wasn't that a little too easy?

　After I landed, it seemed like I hadn't fired a single shot!

　Oh, I hope that the counterattack on Cuba in the future can be as easy as it is now, that would be perfect...

　Ricardo was thinking about this while pointing his Garand rifle at a trembling, pale-faced, beautiful secretary with big wavy blonde hair and ordering her to put her hands behind her head, stick her butt up and kneel against the wall.

　At that moment, he suddenly heard the faint roar of airplane engines in the sky. The mercenary soldiers wandering around the city hall, searching for spoils, also became nervous. The American-trained army feared nothing more than an enemy air raid.

　Because both the U.S. Army and the U.S. Marine Corps are not very good at fighting under bombing without air superiority.

　"Don't be afraid! It's our plane!" A captain stood up and announced loudly, and everyone calmed down.

　Sure enough, a moment later, they saw a C-46 transport plane flying overhead, and then, leaflets began to fall like snowflakes.

　Ricardo reached out and picked up a leaflet. After a quick look, he found that it was Joaquín Balaguer's "Letter to the Dominican People."

　My dear compatriots, as you all know, our country is in a deadly crisis due to the series of atrocities committed by Rafael Trujillo! The lives of the people have reached the brink of collapse!

　To save our country, as President, I declare the Trujillo family and its cronies, who have long engaged in rampant corruption and bribery, provoked friendly nations without cause, and deprived citizens of their freedoms and human rights, a criminal gang. I also invite the U.S. government to send troops to the Dominican Republic to assist our country in apprehending these criminals..."

　Marshal Hillio was a man who talked more than he did, which is why he didn't cause any major trouble in the past few years.

　Otherwise, if he truly wanted to unify the Caribbean and establish an American version of Indonesia, he would have been crushed by the United States long ago. To accommodate this massive air force, considered one of the largest in Latin America, Trujillo built more than a dozen modern air bases in the country. The largest of these bases was the Presidente Trujillo Air Base, completed in 1953 and equipped with a runway suitable for jet aircraft.

　Unfortunately, as Trujillo grew older, he was less able to accept new things, resulting in the Dominican Republic having more than 200 combat aircraft but not purchasing even a single air defense radar, and having no air early warning capability at all.

　In addition, since 1960, that is, last year, because the Dominican Republic was sanctioned by the United States, all the European and American air force personnel who originally provided technical support to the Dominican Air Force were forced to leave the country, and the supply of aviation gasoline and various spare parts and consumables was soon cut off.

　You know, modern jet fighters are very delicate things. If they are not maintained properly, they will have problems and break down.

　As a small country with a territory of only tens of thousands of square kilometers, it is impossible for the Dominican Republic to develop a self-sufficient aviation industry.

　In terms of the Dominican Republic's ground handling capabilities, it is far inferior to that of India's Hindustan Aeronautics - Indians would use the "thinking" technique to repair aircraft based on their feelings; when the Dominican Republic encounters a malfunction, they would just tow the aircraft back to the hangar and leave it there, never to be cared about again.

　As a result, by 1961, the Dominican Air Force had become a "ground-based air force" and could hardly fly.

　This has brought great psychological pressure to the Dominican Air Force pilots.

　——If the planes can no longer fly, would Marshal Trujillo still use high salaries to support these useless pilots?

　Thinking of retiring and repurposing? The Dominican Republic is currently under a global blockade and sanctions, effectively shutting itself off from the outside world. The economy has collapsed, businesses are in decline, and even civilian airliners are grounded due to a lack of fuel and parts. Where can they find work?

　It can be seen from this that as long as Marshal Trujillo does not step down and the United States does not lift sanctions and blockades, the Dominican Air Force will always be a decoration, the fighter planes in the hangar will slowly become scrap metal, and they will always be at risk of unemployment and poverty.

　In this case, for the sake of everyone's future, the Air Force can only disregard the Marshal's kindness and resolutely choose an unimagined path!

　So, when CIA agents sneaked into the Dominican Republic and persuaded various military leaders and powerful people to abandon the dark side and join the light side.

　The Dominican Army, having long benefited from the "favor" of Marshal Rafael Trujillo, mostly maintained its loyalty to the Trujillo family; the Dominican Navy was also hesitant and generally remained neutral; but the Dominican Air Force, knowing that it would be nothing without the United States, immediately seized this olive branch, united with opposition politicians, and became the vanguard of overthrowing the Trujillo family's dictatorship!

　Therefore, after President Joaquín Balaguer fled the capital under the cover of night with the head of Marshal Trujillo, he immediately rushed to the Presidential Trujillo Air Base to reunite with the Air Force Commander, Major General Pedro Rodríguez Echavarria.

　Well, the country's largest air force base, named after President Trujillo, has now become the base for overthrowing the Trujillo family's rule.

　It feels a bit ironic.

　Of course, even with the support of the Air Force, President Joaquín Balaguer is far from safe. The Dominican Air Force's aircraft have not received maintenance for over six months. They are now generally paralyzed, with only a handful of aircraft still operational, and their combat effectiveness is extremely weak.

　If the Trujillo family sent the Dominican Army, which remained loyal to them, to attack the air base, Air Force Commander Major General Pedro Rodríguez Echavarria would not have the confidence to defend it - they couldn't just let the pilots hold their machine guns and shoot at the army's tanks, could they?

　In view of this, after the public telegram from the Trujillo Air Base proclaiming the "Message to the Dominican People" and issuing a battle cry to the Trujillo family, President Joaquín Balaguer immediately called Washington, tearfully begging the US government to quickly demonstrate the same enthusiasm as the West Berlin Airlift and "send a vast aircraft to support the righteous people on this tropical island!"

　In response to this, Washington gave a positive response, saying that the transport aircraft fleet would arrive soon.

　But the problem is, it is hard to say which one will arrive first, the US military transport plane or the Trujillo family's punitive force.

　Since the Dominican Republic had no radar, even the Air Force Commander could only look up at the sky and rely on his naked eyes to search for planes flying from nowhere.

　In a depressing and solemn atmosphere, President Joaquín Balaguer and Air Force Commander Major General Pedro Rodríguez Echavarria stood side by side on the airport tower of President Trujillo Air Base, squinting at the distant sky, with a thousand thoughts in their minds.

　——In any case, from now on, Marshal Trujillo’s rule over the Dominican Republic has ended forever.

　But what will be the fate of this island nation next?

　"American……"

　Looking at Estelian, the senior CIA official beside him, President Balaguer could not help but murmur

　Muttering to himself.

　He actually has no regrets about introducing US troops into the Dominican Republic, and he doesn't think it is treasonous or anything.

　Because, before Marshal Trujillo ruled this country, Americans had already been the masters of the Dominican Republic.

　——Although it is not well-known in modern times, Dominica played an important role when the Age of Discovery just began.

　Its capital, Santo Domingo, was the first landing place when Columbus discovered the New World, and it was also here that Spain established its first colonial city in the Americas. Before conquering the Aztec Empire and the Inca Empire, Santo Domingo was once the center of Spanish rule in Latin America.

　The transformation of ancient American civilizations speaking indigenous languages ​​into Spanish-speaking Latin American civilization began in Santo Domingo.

　To make an analogy, it is somewhat similar to Shengjing's political status in the Qing Dynasty.

　Therefore, when the United States completed its westward movement from the Atlantic to the Pacific, realized its "Manifest Destiny" of "from ocean to ocean", and began to turn its attention to the south, the Dominican Republic, which has important historical significance, became an important target of its invasion.

　For example, President Grant, a famous Union general during the Civil War, once publicly declared: "Due to the geographical location of Santo Domingo, we are very worthy of acquiring it. It controls the population of the Caribbean and the commercial route of the Isthmus of Panama. It has the most fertile soil, the largest seaport, the most pleasant climate, and the most valuable products of forests, mines, and fields in the West Indies... In the event of war with a foreign country, we can use it to control all the islands in the Caribbean and prevent enemy warships from gathering on our mainland coast."

　Therefore, in 1869, shortly after the end of the American Civil War, the US government colluded with the then Dominican President Baez and planned a referendum in the Dominican Republic, intending to use 150 million US dollars to buy the land and make the Dominican Republic a state of the United States.

　Under the gunfire of the US Navy, the Dominican Republic's referendum passed smoothly, but something went wrong on Capitol Hill in Washington, and it was rejected.

　——The main reason is that they do not want Dominicans to obtain American citizenship, and they do not want to see Hispanic senators and representatives in Congress.

　It's basically the same as after American adventurers overthrew the Kingdom of Hawaii, the US officials refused to approve the state of Hawaii to join the United States for several years.

　At this point, the US plan to annex the Dominican Republic failed due to the interference of its own people.

　Unable to join the United States, the Dominican Republic awkwardly became a semi-colony of the United States, its finances and economy controlled by the U.S. However, Washington completely ignored the livelihood of the Dominican people, leading to the gradual economic collapse of the island nation, the rise of rebellion, and the turmoil of violent rebellion.

　As a result, President Wilson, who put on a good face at the Paris Peace Conference and sang the tune of "national self-determination" and "human rights and freedom", brazenly sent troops to the Dominican Republic in 1916 with an imperialist attitude, announced the military occupation of the Dominican Republic, and annexed the island as a colony.

　Unfortunately, the 20th century was no longer the era of maritime colonization, and national awakening and colonial liberation movements were already surging around the world.

　The US's brutal occupation and exploitation of the Dominican Republic not only met with armed resistance from the local population but also drew widespread international criticism. President Wilson, known for his "humanitarianism" and "human rights diplomacy," was particularly embarrassed and ridiculed in various diplomatic settings.

　International public opinion in the early 20th century was not controlled by the United States, but by the two old imperialists, France and Britain.

　Faced with the American cowboys who are trying to replace their dominant position, the British gentlemen will not show any mercy and will just ridicule them in various ways.

　Therefore, under tremendous international pressure, the United States was forced to withdraw its troops from the Dominican Republic, but soon regained control of the island by supporting proxies.

　Marshal Trujillo, who ruled this country for 30 years, was able to maintain his rule in the Dominican Republic by acting as an agent of the United States.

　In short, since the influence of the United States has never left the Dominican Republic, President Joaquín Balaguer does not think that inviting US troops to the island is an act of national humiliation - the Dominican Republic is originally a protectorate of the United States!

　Well, regardless of what other Dominicans think, at least that's what President Joaquín Balaguer himself thinks.

　Just like that, after a wait that seemed like a century, the roar of an airplane engine finally sounded at the end of the sky.

　One transport plane after another emerged from the clouds and descended on this tropical island nation with the majesty of American imperialism.

　"Five C-46s and one C-54? That doesn't seem like as many as expected!"

　Watching the six transport planes land one after another, Air Force Commander Major General Pedro Rodriguez Echavarria said with some disappointment.

　"I agree. It's far from overwhelming," President Balaguer, who heard him mutter, agreed. "But it's better than nothing."

　A total of thirty Cuban mercenary soldiers who looked lazy emerged from the six transport planes sent by the CIA, along with a batch of aid supplies and ground crew members who assisted the Dominican Air Force in repairing aircraft. Finally, Captain Ferry King, the acting leader of the Cuban Special Task Force, also jumped out.

　Well, as a follower of the Prince of Lies who lacked martial ethics, Firi was originally not very willing to go to the front line in person and experience the rain of bullets.

　But the problem is that as a soldier, if you just sit in the back and don't experience the smoke of war on the battlefield, it will be difficult to get reasonable rewards and promotions.

　Even if the higher-ups wanted to help him gild his combat skills, he at least had to show some performance himself!

　In addition, Deputy Director Bissell also assured Firi that the Dominican Republic's Air Force had collectively defected and joined the light, so he didn't have to worry about being intercepted by enemy aircraft when flying there. He could just go to the front-line airport and act as a battlefield atmosphere group to gain military merit.

　So, Firi finally obeyed the order and flew to the Dominican Republic. Then, beside the runway of the airport, he saw Estelion with a sour face.

　"Reporting to the commander! The Cuban mercenary airborne special unit has been brought here! Congratulations on your successful assassination attempt and your new achievement!"

　Firi saluted Estelion with a grin, looking around at the lush tropical forest outside the airport. "By the way, where are the enemy troops besieging the airport? It seems pretty quiet around here! Before I came here, I thought this place was about to become another Dien Bien Phu!"

　When he first departed from Florida, he'd worried about encountering gunfire and artillery fire upon landing, even planning to turn back if he couldn't land. But now, the entire area around President Trujillo Air Base seemed completely quiet.

　There were no craters or corpses, no smoke or flames, as if everything was still at peace.

　So, when he came to the Dominican Republic this time, he really just served as a battlefield atmosphere group?

　"The remnants of the Trujillo family are no match for Ho Chi Minh of the Vietcong. They're probably still searching the capital!"

　Estelion responded, "Of course, once they realize what's happening and still refuse to surrender, they'll eventually attack this air base, just like the Vietcong's attack on Dien Bien Phu. It could be tomorrow, or even the next hour!"

　So, you only brought these few people with you. What's the matter? Isn't the Pentagon planning to send regular troops? For example, the 82nd Airborne Division?"

　"Please be patient, Mr. Estelline. You know, according to our country's system, it's not easy to convince Congress to send troops."

　Fili pouted and replied, "The president is probably still speaking to Congress right now! If you want our army to deploy, you'll have to wait until tomorrow at the earliest!"

　"Tomorrow? The army controlled by the Trujillo family may not wait until tomorrow!"

　Upon hearing this, President Joaquín Balaguer, who had just walked over, couldn't help but get anxious. "From the beginning, this air base was never designed to withstand a ground attack! The paratroopers aren't even here! We can't even hold out for an hour against the army's tanks!"

　By the way, didn’t they say that the Cuban mercenaries recruited by the CIA have landed in Puerto Plata today?

　Can you send them over quickly to reinforce the defense of this air base?"

　"Mr. President, the mercenaries have indeed completely occupied Puerto Plata and are currently clearing out the remaining enemy forces in the suburbs. They're encountering very little resistance. But it will probably take some time to attack from there—after all, Puerto Plata is located in the northernmost part of the country..."

　Estelion said soothingly, "But no matter what, at least we have a group of transport planes here that can fly. Even if we encounter the worst case scenario, we can still send you and your men safely to the United States!"

　Joaquin Balaguer breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that he still had an air route to escape.

　But Firi's eyes rolled and he had a new idea. "Mr. President, may I ask, we currently have absolute air superiority, right?"

　"The entire Dominican Air Force is on our side! The Trujillo family's rebels only have a few anti-aircraft guns at most."

　President Balaguer looked at the Air Force Commander beside him and answered confidently.

　"Then perhaps we don't need to rush to move. Instead, we can continue to try to shake the enemy's morale and make them afraid to send troops..."

　Three hours later, a C-46 transport plane took off again, flew directly over the capital, and dropped a large number of hastily printed leaflets...

　President Raguel's "Letter to the People of the Nation" was also broadcast on the radio, issuing a deafening declaration to overthrow the leaderless shogunate of Marshal Trujillo!

　Next, Air Force Commander Major General Pedro Rodriguez Echavarria also sent a telegram to the whole country, joining the ranks of overthrowing the Qing Dynasty!

　The capital's Military Intelligence Bureau was also deserted, and hundreds of spies, both big and small, disappeared without a trace overnight. It seemed like they had become traitors!

　What’s even more terrifying is that an army flying the Stars and Stripes landed in Puerto Plata in the north this morning, openly demonstrating the United States’ hostility!

　In just a few hours, Generalissimo Trujillo's dictatorship over the Dominican Republic was on the verge of collapse.

　Obviously, as a spoiled nobleman, Langfus Trujillo did not have the calm composure to remain calm even when the sky was falling. Faced with so much bad news coming at once, his mind, which was not very bright to begin with, suddenly went into a state of shutdown.

　For the entire morning, hungover, he spent his days in the deserted National Palace, utterly dejected, smashing furniture with his saber to vent his anger while cursing, "Damn Balaguer! Damn Americans! And damn the Air Force!"

　There is no doubt that this incompetent and furious attitude does not help to solve the serious situation currently facing the Trujillo shogunate.

　Fortunately, the young marshal has two uncles, Hector Trujillo and Jose Trujillo, who can support him in times of crisis.

　The two uncles quickly divided the work after the incident. Jose Trujillo stayed in the capital, commanded the police and gendarmes, declared martial law in the city, blocked the streets, and dispatched the Presidential Guard to search for officials and celebrities suspected of participating in the rebellion, trying his best to maintain order in the capital, Trujillo City.

　For a time, the capital city was filled with a solemn atmosphere. Military and police were guarding every intersection, strictly checking and extorting passers-by.

　In some places, there were random gunshots, and many unlucky people were dragged onto the road by the ferocious soldiers and shot on the spot.

　General Hector Trujillo, who had served as a tool president for his brother for eight years, assembled the Dominican Army scattered across the country as quickly as possible and ordered the troops that were still loyal to the Trujillo shogunate to march to the capital immediately to prepare for the impending war!

　Although Marshal Rafael Trujillo, the "benefactor of the country," had been exploiting the country's very bones and marrow during his three decades in power, exhausting all means of livelihood and making life miserable for the people, he was extremely generous to the military, the foundation of his power.

　Even when faced with an economic crisis, Marshal Trujillo never cut the soldiers' pay (whether the soldiers could get it was another matter). He was even more generous in allocating military funds, buying as much advanced equipment as he could get.

　Currently, the Dominican Army has three brigades with a total strength of 12,000 people, divided into two military regions, north and south. It is equipped with 20 Swedish L60 light tanks and 15 French AMX13s, as well as 22 105mm howitzers. It is considered to have powerful firepower in the entire Caribbean region.

　The problem was that with Generalissimo Trujillo dead, the legitimate president openly declaring his "overthrow of the shogunate," and the air force already defecting, it was unclear how much of the army would remain loyal to the shogunate, especially after the United States had made clear its intention to overthrow the Trujillo regime.