almoravid said:
I don't want to sound offensive, but I can hardly believe that anybody ever seriously viewed Norway as a threat since 11th century. But OK, it's your mod, and Spitzbergen could at least hypothetically have some potential for a conflict. What I don't really like on your mod is that it necessarily makes Russia a dictatorship. As an optimist, I see some more ways of our development, and would like your mod better if it was emulated.
So I would propose you that Russia should be able to either become a dictatorship, agressively expand and cause a world war three, or become a real liberal democracy allied with the west, and fragment further.
I think the junction should be something like the 'orange revolution' in Ukraine for Russia, which would happen 2006/2007. The player would choose either to allow the development, or surpress it militarily.
If the first choice is taken...
-The new government can decide to liberate Chechenia or get belligerence and dissent.
-Gets the choice to give Kurilean isles to Japan for investitions (improves infra and industry on pacific coast)
-If they agree, they can get the choice to hand over the Pacific coast to Japan for many resources and major improvements in industry and finances.
-If they agree, there will be demand for a free Yakutia.
-Possible war with China which wants to secure a part of siberian resources for itself.
If they take the second choice...
-Everybody hates Russia, the state propaganda gets anti-western, the (left wing or fascist) radicals come to power (either directly, with a new president, or forming Putin's new cabinet)
-Russia decides to fund a coup in Georgia as a compensation for the war in Iran.
-Russia allies China.
-Russia supports Armenia in a war against Azerbaijan with people and material.
-Russia supports the protestors in eastern Ukraine and annexes it up to Dniepr.
-The international community protests, NATO prepares for war. Norwegians close Spitzbergen for Russian exploitation. We invade Norway, or not.
-If the conflict is resolved by any party folding, the war starts on an invasion of the Baltic states or US invasion of Turkmenistan.
That is what I would propose, and what would IMO make a good mod.
Haha, this is what happens when you don't share your details to the community
Ok, the idea goes like this: In late 2005 (or 2006) chechnyan rebels storm the parliament and are able to assassinate Putin and the rest of the parliament by using AK-47s and by blowing themselves up. In the chaos that follows, a handful of politicians (not present at the assassination), policemen and military officials decide to fill the power vacuum before some crazy communist or something does it (they are convinced they are better than communists). So they form an emergency cabinet (with 100% power), moves military units into Moscow (to ensure security of the people in the countrywide chaos, but also to ensure their own power).
A year or two after that, a new assassination attempt takes place (on the emergency cabinet) and they find out that Azerbaijani funding is behind the assassination. They also find out that Azerbaijani funding bribed the guards of the parliament so that they allowed truckloads of chechnyan rebels to enter the building.
This leads to (most likely) a war with Azerbaijan.
In 2008 (Just before the war) the emergency cabinet feel the country has started to settle and will decide if they should continue to stay in power (dictatorship formed) or to restart the election (new president etc).
Depending on what choice they take, the chance of going to war alongside China is changed.
Also, I'm not trying to overestimate Norway here, but we CAN to some damage. Also, one have to personally define what a threat is. If it is a threat to exterminate your country, only the US and possibly China have that kind of threat towards Russia.
But in the modern world, a threat is a threat to your territorial intergrity (which virtually means, a threat that other countries move into your territitory illegally, but not nescessarily an invasion). And if we follow that definition, all nations are able to carry it out.
Now, the only country that is close in doing so is Norway, which use the membership in NATO to add momentum to their plans in the Barents Sea (which is about development of natural resources in territories that the two countries have yet to agree borders on).
This would most likely lead to a small conflict that would perhaps escalate into something bigger.
