SRA Military Developments and Projects

[Markus Wilding]

Congress has approved the activation of the National Guard into a fully-fledged force to aid in future reunification efforts, and also as a paramilitary force to assist in keeping the peace in certain areas of the Socialist Republics. The National Guard shall be made up of soldiers from all parts of the Republic and centralized into 30,000 man divisions, trained to pacify hostile elements and spread American Communist thought to newly united States.

The Socialist Republics Army has also reactivated the 19th Infantry Division and 24th Infantry Division, which shall be prepared for service in 1960. In order to secure the Socialist Republics from hostile incursions, the SRAAF has developed the MIM-4 Hector which shall be deployed to protect sites of vital importance in the Socialist Republics of Georgia and South Carolina, with plans to extend this protection to Washington D.C. and New York City. It is expected that these sites shall be prepared for service by 1960.

Finally, the SRN has ordered six new guided missile destroyers in order to experiment with more heavily armed ships. These destroyers are expected to enter service in 1961.

[Markus Wilding]

By order of the President, the Marine Corps has been ordered to participate in Operation Fallout. In order to support the Marines in this venture, the Socialist Republic Navy has sent the 2nd Fleet to assist.

Meanwhile, after a long period of trials, the M55 Howitzer has been accepted into service to replace the previous M12 Gun Motor Carriage. Additionally, the M57 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage has also been approved for service to replace the M19 MGMC. These vehicles will see widespread use through the military, and thus the entirety of older guns and systems shall be mothballed in facilities in Georgia, Florida and New York. It is expected all vehicles will be replaced and ready for service in 1962.

[Markus Wilding]

Due to changing priorities and a funding increase, the Socialist Republic Army has begun stockpiling sarin for offensive deployment in hostile zones that necessitate immediate pacification, primarily to combat cases of the German Flu.

[Markus Wilding]

Recruitment quotas have been reestablished following recent campaigns in Romania leading to an unacceptably low state of combat readiness among the Socialist Republic Marine Corps.

[Markus Wilding]

The SRN has commissioned three new ships:

The SRN Macon, Boston-class
The SRN Cambridge, Boston-class
The SRN New York, Iowa-class

[Markus Wilding]

Following the conclusions of Operation Eclipse and Operation Fallout, the Socialist Republic Armed Forces has begun slotting new recruits and former draftees to replace losses sustained in recent campaigns. It is expected that training and rebuilding will take some time. In order to compensate for losses, Congress has approved deploying new equipment such as the F4 Phantom fighter jet, M60A1 Patton, and M48A2 Patton.

[Markus Wilding]

D.O.D INTELLIGENCE REPORT
DATE: DECEMBER 20TH, 1960
TOP SECRET
DO NOT REDISTRIBUTE, DO NOT COPY
FOR THE PRESIDENT'S EYES ONLY

SECTION I

The American intelligence community continues to grow. We have collected all primary signals intelligence from nations considered relevant for upcoming OPERATION CYCLOPS, OPERATION RED SCORPION, OPERATION OPEN HOUSE, OPERATION BRASS FLAKE, and planned OPERATION WHISTLEBLOWER and OPERATION BLACKPOOL. With no indication that senior military leadership in the relevant nations is intending to change their operational codes and procedures, we expect that a future conflict with these nations will be handily won primarily though our monitoring of their systems with the full knowledge of their movements and strategies. Efforts elsewhere in the world have brought the SRA in contact with several groups that may be interested in seeking funding and assistance, as well as other special interests. This will be discussed in Section II.

As outlined in the 1957 intelligence report, we are on our way to cataloging the signals output of major state actors. We have compiled known transmission methods and operators from Victoria, The Gulf, China, and Romania. We anticipate cataloging further operators from Argentina, Morocco, Asha, Korea and Iran will take several more years, assuming that operational codes and methods do not change.

SECTION II

As mentioned in Section I, there have been several interesting developments with regards to our knowledge and contacts in foreign entities.

EUROPE

With the victory of Democratic Romania in the Romanian Civil War, we remain in a peculiar position with the eastern half of Moldova occupied by elements of the SRMC and Socialist Republic Army. We have also captured Horia Sima, who has not provided fruitful information so far regarding the current government's situation but has proved a useful bargaining chip. Embedded CIA analysts with General Carson's staff indicate the "united front" did not exist despite Atlanta's warnings and wishes, and as such we remain suspicious of Romanian intentions. The CIA has made contact with known Romanian communist groups in Moldova who wish to revitalize the fight and may be convinced to seek American and Victorian support in independence.

ASIA

China has unveiled new fighter jets in a rather public display. According to the Republic Daily News Agency, the new planes are set to enter service sometime next year and appear to be quite modern. Given previous observations of Chinese forces in Sweden and Zhejiang, this modernization is impressive and nearly unprecedented, especially considering other known equipment used by China appears to be WWII stock or slightly updated designs. We shall continue to monitor the Chinese nation as it continues to expand.

WORLDWIDE

We have made contact with known Communist and Socialist groups in several countries that are appreciative of any assistance, without much regard for where or how that assistance comes from. This shall be detailed in a separate document which is to be delivered directly to President van Baarle's hands upon completion.

[Markus Wilding]

Progress continues on the new Boston and Iowa-class ships for the SRA, with expected commission dates to be sometime next year.

The Marines have been fully refitted and the SRMC command has declared all Marine units fit for fighting. Meanwhile, losses sustained in Romania continue to be slotted for refit and rearmament. It is expected that three armored corps, 2 mechanized corps, replacement fighters and replacement submarines will be finished by the end of 1961, including new Whale-class submarines which are expected to supplement the Barbel-class in service.

Congress has ordered the development of a new army, consisting of four infantry divisions, designated the 10th Infantry Corps and 7th Mechanized Corps. These units will provide more flexibility for upcoming campaigns. Additionally, extra stocks of sarin have been ordered for the Chemical Corps.

[Markus Wilding]

The Socialist Republic Marine Corps has expressed interest in manufacturing a new, lightweight rifle for the Marines to use, citing general displeasure with continually deploying the heavy M14 and M54 rifles and lacking adequate ammunition-carrying capacity for the average soldier. The Airborne has also expressed interest in this idea, although the Army as a whole has rejected such a concept based on experience fighting in the plains of Illinois and Indiana, citing the better range and power that the larger 7.62mm round offers compared to the SRMC's proposed 5.56mm cartridge. Therefore, independent of Army command, the Airborne and Marines have begun jointly exploring concepts related to this sort of design, researching the potential benefits a soldier with a smaller caliber rifle could offer in exchange for losing potential one-shot-one-kill mentality the Army holds dear to with the M14.

Meanwhile, the SRA has ordered refit and replenishment to units lost, while continually progressing developments made elsewhere in order to ensure the SRA is fully up to date and prepared to engage any enemy, foreign or domestic. These developments include rebuilding units that have been damaged, upgrading older ships to new types, and scrapping older ships to make way for new designs while also upgrading planes to abandon the F-86 entirely in favor of units equipped with F-100s. These units too will gradually be replaced by new designs consisting mostly of the F-4 Phantom plane.

[Markus Wilding]

Citing general unease within the Socialist Republic Army concerning the Army's armor corps, Studebaker-Packard has been tasked with designing a new main battle tank prototype and a new armored personnel carrier prototype. This new APC prototype is expected to mark a change in American mechanized infantry doctrine, as dissatisfaction has been reported with the M59 armored personnel carrier - key criticisms being lack of sufficient armament and armor, as well as general doctrinal disfavor towards the idea of dropping off infantry unprotected into a combat zone expected to be rife with radiation and chemical residue. Therefore, the Armor Board has required that this new vehicle can keep operational mobility with the new tank, can protect the crew and infantry from artillery fragmentation and fire from calibers up to 20mm, NBC protection, and also a radio to communicate with other vehicles and unit commanders.

The new tank, also expected to be developed by Studebaker-Packard, is to have a new 125mm gun following recent advancements in Korean and Chinese tank technology, as well as reports showing comparable American designs performing poorly in the French Civil War. Engineers from Georgia Tech have also been signed on to develop a new method to increase armor plate performance without sacrificing excessive steel or overburdening the engine with too much weight.