@Sumeragi: You should probably not expect any kind of Korean drive into Beijing, even after Japan's invasion of China begins. Want to know how many troops the ROK is able to spare to fight the Chinese? Six brigades. Six brigades of special forces. Everything else they have is bogged down trying to take out the remnants of the DPRK in the northeast. The ROKA is not going anywhere near Beijing, and my advance on China will make sure of that.
@everyone else: Regarding Korea. It looks like a pretty even split on whether to annex or ally the ROK. However, I have decided that the price of allying the Korean's seems to be way to high. Japan will not have territorial and political status be dictated to it just to gain an ally. Therefore, Japan will invade and dismantle the ROK and turn the peninsula into a new province of the Empire of Japan. Its a bit sad really, the Korean's could have been such good allies. Instead, they will pay the price for standing in the way of Japans rightful place in Asia!
Thanks for the comments!
In Europe, bad news turns into even worse news. The Federal Republic of Germany is on its knees. Russian forces have taken Munich, Kassel, Hannover, Lubeck, and many other major German cities. Russian troops have penetrated so far into Germany that their advance units have reached the Dutch border. Russian artillery and medium range ballistic missiles are also starting to fall on the major industrial cities of the Saar and the Rhineland. The German government has meanwhile been forced to flee to Hamburg, which is still located right on the front lines against the Russians. Whats worse, intelligence reports are suggesting that the NATO alliance is starting to fracture. Prominent figures in many European military's and governments are openly calling for peace talks with the Russians. These calls are not coming without public support, as war weary Europeans, shocked at how easily Russian forces seem to be devastating their armed forces, are taking to the streets in demonstrations calling for negotiations with the Russians. Anger at a lack of meaningful US assistance on the continent is also driving many to conclude that Europe should make its own path, starting with peace with the Russians.
The news is not only bad on the German front either. In Scandinavia, Russian forces are driving very hard down the Kjolen Range into Norway and Sweden. Umea and Narvik are already under Russian control, while Scandinavian military forces are being pounded by the Russian assaults. The way things are looking now, Scandinavia will most likely fall into Russian hands.
In Africa, on the East African front, it is hard to tell who is winning or who is losing. Kenya is under a lot of pressure, having lost its capital, Nairobi, to a combined assault by Tanzanian and Ugandan troops. Ethiopia meanwhile is struggling to not only hold the lines against Eritrea but to also clear Yemeni forces out of the Ogaden region and push Sudanese forces back across the border.
In North Africa meanwhile, the Dutch military stages a very daring offensive. With the central Mediterranean sea relatively clear of enemy naval forces, 45,000 Dutch troops launch a large scale amphibious invasion of Tunisia. The Tunisian army, with the bulk of its troops fighting elsewhere in places like Israel and Iraq, is unable to hold its ground and retreats. Dutch forces seize control of Tunis and its outlying areas, before starting to push onwards into the rest of the country. (Dutch Afrika Korps anyone?
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In Southeast Asia, Japanese forces continue their relentless assault on Ho Chi Minh City. Japanese troops assault the major port city of Nha Trang, hoping to clear the way towards HCMC. However, the Peoples Army of Vietnam is not willing to give up the fight just yet. When Japanese forces were on the brink of victory, massive PAVN reinforcements arrived to Nha Trang, reinforcements which were able to force Japanese troops to call off their attack. The advance has been delayed, but Japanese commanders view it as just a minor setback.
In Central America, US and Mexican Army forces finally begin their assault to clear the region of all ALBA presence, starting by forcing the surrender of Guatemala. Their attack comes not a moment too soon, as the Panama Canal zone is barely holding out thanks to the efforts of a single division of British troops, which are under heavy artillery and ground attacks by ALBA forces which are determined to seize the important waterway.
Back in Japan, Japanese industries begin work on fullfilling a massive request by the Army for very large numbers of airmobile infantry brigades, infantry that fly into combat using massive numbers of attack and transport helicopters. These new brigades will give the army a very powerful quick assault and exploitation capability, something that will be very useful in combat in regions with little infrastructure and massive distances between targets.
In North Africa, the Dutch Afrika Korps continues its onslaught. Tunisia is forced to surrender after Dutch troops gain control of the last of its strongholds. Extremist president of Tunisia, Fayiz Tufayl, is killed by Dutch forces in a massive gunbattle in a town near the Libyan border. With Tunisia's surrender, the Dutch army continues its advance, moving into Algeria and advancing on the Libyan border. (Also note that the Libyan army appears to have taken control of Sardinia!)
Back in Asia, Japanese air forces continue to battle it out with the airforces of the Chinese PLAAF. This time, the Chinese bring in some of their more capable aircraft, Chengdu J-10 multirole fighters. These aircraft, along with their pilots, prove to be far better opponents than Japanese fighters have faced before, and succeed in shooting down some Japanese F-15J's, but only with heavy casualties of their own. The Japanese air force wins this battle, but it is starting to show the strain of constant combat.
On the Vietnamese front, Japanese forces resume their advance on HCMC. The PAVN is throwing everything it has left into battle to hold back the Japanese advance, and even outnumbers Japanese combat forces in this engagement. However, massive losses of heavy weapons and soldiers at the hands of the earlier battles with the Japanese army have taken their toll on the PAVN's ability to keep fighting. Japanese tanks and mechanized units are able to break the enemy's lines and drive the Vietnamese back into HCMC, their last stronghold.
In South America, Britain finally gets its final victory over Argentina. In conjunction with Chilean Army forces the British are able to clear out the last Argentine holdouts and force the country to surrender. Argentina is now placed under joint British/Chilean occupation while the British get to work in creating a new, friendly post-war government to run the country, one that may even join the British Commonwealth. Argentina's surrender now brings the entire Southern Cone of South America under Coalition/NATO control, removing one of ALBA's strongest members and putting southern Brazil into the cross hairs of the British Army.