Everyone looked at the world map. Little Japan was like a shield in front of the rooster, with the Treasure Island extending below it, followed by the ten East Asian nations and Australia.
It was foreseeable that Great East would not even need to act itself. The aliens would directly kick the USA's influence out of the Asia-Pacific, and the first, second, and third island chains would cease to exist!
When that happened, these small countries would have no one to rely on but their big brother in the East. The moment the USA withdrew, they would immediately kneel before Great East.
"This setback suffered by the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group will cause a severe shock within the United States. The myth of the US Military will be shattered, accelerating social division. But the US government will also seize this opportunity to redirect its contradictions outward, ease domestic pressure, and pin the blame for its failure on us."
Everyone present was quite familiar with smearing tactics. It was not as if this was the first time. But would it actually work?
"NATO consists of thirty countries, yet it lacks sufficient industry. As an overall bloc, Western nations have financialized, shifted toward services, and deindustrialized. Their annual shell production is only 240,000 rounds!"
"Industry within the United States has been hollowed out. Deindustrialization has severely weakened its military-industrial sector. Even if it tries to make up for it now, that cannot be done in a short time. Production lines have been dismantled, industrial workers have failed to pass on their skills, technical personnel are lacking, costs are too high, and most critically, the government is ineffective!"
An effective government was the most important political dividing line between nations. It was not about the form of government, but the effectiveness of that government. State capacity was the ability to mobilize human, material, and financial resources to realize national will and complete national tasks.
These were things Western countries did not possess—or rather, were losing.
"Fukuyama pointed out that the successful establishment of a modern liberal democracy requires a stable balance among three institutions: the state, rule of law, and accountability. In State-Building: Governance and World Order in the 21st Century, he also stated that state capacity was the degree to which state functions could be realized. It included the ability to formulate and implement policies efficiently, honestly, and transparently, as well as the ability to enforce the law.
"I have not seen any of what he described in the United States. After its existing fighter jets and warships are lost one after another, I remain doubtful as to whether it can withstand a possible future assault by alien civilizations." A grave expression appeared on the professor's face. He still had not forgotten Francis Fukuyama, whom he had killed three times in debate.
A war against an alien civilization could not be settled quickly, especially when the technological gap had not yet become an overwhelming, dimension-crushing advantage. It would be a war of attrition, testing population, technology, industry, and economy. Most importantly, it would test willpower—whether one possessed the resolve to fight to the end.
Neither a quick victory nor a quick defeat was desirable. This would be a "Protracted War." Fortunately, humanity was fighting on home ground and held certain advantages.
"The aliens have cut off the Pacific Ocean, which is equivalent to cutting off our maritime trade with the United States. Heh, they've directly forced us and the United States to decouple."
"In 2024, trade between us and the United States amounted to $688.28 billion. Of that, exports to the United States were $524.656 billion, while imports were $163.624 billion. The USA's trade deficit was $361.032 billion."
Under these circumstances, Great East and the United States cursed each other out at the United Nations every day and constantly shouted about trade decoupling, yet the USA still had a trade deficit of more than $360 billion. That showed just how dependent the United States was on Great East's cheap industrial goods.
Well, now it was settled. Before the USA could truly decouple, the arrival of the aliens had imposed a hard decoupling. Whoever suffered would know best.
"Geographically speaking, the USA is an isolated island overseas. Without the lifeblood supplied by Eurasia, its cost of living will rise sharply. The internal capital interest groups will not care whether ordinary people live or die. The increased costs will be passed on to the public, and $500,000 bread will soon reappear. Under external pressure, internal collapse will only be a matter of time."
"As a sea power, having maritime shipping blockaded is fatal. To avoid internal collapse, the USA will definitely gamble its national fate! It desperately needs a victory, especially a military victory abroad. Even clear-headed people will be swept along by politicians and public opinion, and military adventurism will be inevitable.
"It will gather its existing naval and air power—those are its advantages. The possibility of using nuclear weapons cannot be ruled out.
"If the United States succeeds, then it will remain a 'beacon of humanity' for some time—provided it defeats the alien civilization."
What if it failed?
The Fudan professor fell silent for more than ten seconds.
"The United States will collapse from within. Countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East that have been colonized by neocolonialism will seize the chance to free themselves from American control, settle accounts with American capital, and achieve strategic autonomy. But a collapsing United States will also shock the world, making humanity doubt whether it can resist alien civilization. Some countries may develop other ideas."
"Perhaps they do not even need to fail. Some capital groups are already transferring their assets, and the safest place in this world is right here with us. As some have said, the direction in which people flow is the direction of civilization."
At that moment, the doors suddenly opened. A civil servant quickly walked to the person onstage and said something, then turned and hurried away.
It seemed the professor had been right. The ASEAN Ten had already applied to visit China, while Japan hoped that our Eastern Theater Command would go over. The major powers in the Middle East had also drafted visit plans. They were certainly sensitive.
One had to praise these leaders with keen political instincts. They could always detect a crisis, while those with dull instincts—or no instincts at all—often met miserable ends. Like a certain Monkey that hopped around every day. It probably still did not know what would happen once the Pacific Ocean was cut off by the aliens! Or did it still think today's United States was the United States of the 1990s?
After the person onstage finished speaking, his gaze turned to the Ryukyu Islands, where he stared for a long time.
After the professor finished his remarks, an official from the Ministry of Industry took the stage. Like the Ministry of Technology, they were also a central pillar in resisting the alien civilization's invasion.
Could we currently withstand a large-scale invasion by an alien civilization?
"Based on what the professor said earlier, geographical factors mean that we will not directly face the threat of alien civilization. But if alien civilization begins a full-scale invasion of Pacific Rim countries, we must fully activate our industrial and military-industrial capacity, support the countries on the front line, and not let them fall. We have both the confidence and the determination!"
Next, the Ministry of Industry gave a detailed explanation of last year's industrial capacity.
"In 2024, pig iron output was 852 million tons, down 2.3% year on year. Steel output was 1.4 billion tons. After improving the 6-Second Steelmaking Method, steel production will increase substantially."
As they listened to the Ministry of Industry's report, every figure was astonishing. This was the confidence of the world's leading industrial nation. With the northern Russian Bear—the world's largest resource power—supplying it with lifeblood, it would unleash unimaginably powerful production capacity. This was Great East's confidence in facing alien civilization.
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