"Mr. Bullwell," Anderson Colif walked over at some point, patting Bullwell Glan's shoulder, "if the Commonwealth wishes to withdraw, there is still time."
"But I must speak plainly: once you choose to withdraw, your interests in Afghanistan, and indeed the entire Middle East."
"Within this, be it oil, gold mines, iron ore, rare earth mines, or various other mineral resources, or the unique geographical location of the Middle East, none of it will have any relation to the Commonwealth."
Hearing this, Bullwell Glan was stunned. Setting aside oil, the Middle East was also the world's most important source of raw materials and a transportation hub.
Whoever controlled this place would hold the throat of Asia, Africa, and Europe, greatly restricting European powers, as well as the Dragon Country and the Polar Bear.
Otherwise, why would the Beautiful Country shamelessly blow a tube of laundry detergent into weapons of mass destruction, and invade Afghanistan multiple times at great risk.
Oil was indeed important, but the world's oil production areas were not only in the Middle East; the Polar Bear, East Africa, and even within the Beautiful Country itself had massive oil reserves.
If it were solely for oil, the Beautiful Country would not have to pay such a heavy price.
However, Bullwell Glan was still hesitant. Could the Beautiful Country truly win this war?
After all, over a hundred of their newest bomber aircraft were annihilated in Afghanistan, and several were captured and sold to the Dragon Country as scrap metal.
Now, even if Anderson Colif brought tens more planes, they would only be sending more food to Afghanistan!
But if they withdrew directly, not only would they offend the Beautiful Country, but they would have also made a grand gesture for nothing. Bullwell Glan had no way to explain this to the public.
After much deliberation, Bullwell Glan slowly spoke, "Mr. Anderson, it's not that we intentionally want to shrink back. We don't even know what weapons Afghanistan is using. To attack rashly would likely result in significant losses."
"Why don't we retreat for now? Once everything is investigated and clarified, it won't be too late to attack then!"
After Bullwell Glan finished speaking, representatives from other countries chimed in.
"That's right, that's exactly what we were thinking!"
"With the Dragon Country's help, Afghanistan's waters are too deep. Let's retreat for now."
Seeing these subordinates all getting cold feet, a strong killing intent flashed in Anderson Colif's eyes, but he quickly hid it and put on a proud demeanor.
"Heh, what is there to investigate? They merely made a deal with our country's traitors and exploited the weak high-altitude combat capabilities of bomber aircraft, destroying them by force through trackers."
"We have already escorted the traitor William Sterling, who made the deal with the Dragon Country, to the Military Court at Haiya to stand trial under military law. I will be taking over as the commander-in-chief of the Beautiful Country's army next. This time, I will absolutely not make the same mistake of only assigning bomber aircraft to independent missions, giving Afghanistan an opportunity!"
"Furthermore, this time I have not only brought two hundred high-altitude fighter jets, but in response to Afghanistan's mecha forces, I have specifically dispatched two tank corps, totaling one thousand tanks."
"Mechas sound very powerful, but in reality, they are just a pile of big toys! This time, I will personally show them what a true 'steel torrent' is!"
Hearing Anderson Colif's roar, the representatives from other countries were stunned. They never expected that the Beautiful Country, after losing a hundred stealth bombers, would immediately send two hundred more.
Even more unexpected was that in this relatively peaceful era, the Beautiful Country could suddenly produce two tank corps, possessing over a thousand main battle tanks.
Anderson Colif narrowed his eyes, enjoying the frantic changes in everyone's expressions, and then slowly spoke.
"Mr. Bullwell, and representatives from other countries, I will ask again, does anyone still wish to withdraw?"
"No more withdrawals, no more withdrawals!" Bullwell Glan was the first to declare, "The people of Afghanistan are suffering persecution by a dictator. As God's chosen people, we will spare no effort to bring them democracy and freedom."
"Mr. Anderson, please give the order. The Commonwealth has always been the Beautiful Country's best ally and a solid backing."
Representatives from other countries, unwilling to fall behind, successively expressed their stances.
"France is an ally of the Beautiful Country and will provide material support."
"Sakura Country will also firmly follow the Beautiful Country's footsteps and is willing to send an additional ten thousand troops to assist..."
Anderson Colif was pleased with everyone's statements, laughed heartily, and invited them to drink, temporarily putting aside the matter of everyone wanting to disband.
As it concerned the future of the Beautiful Country, this time the two parties did not continue to bicker but cooperated with each other, quickly arranging for fleets to transport the two tank corps and all one thousand tanks.
Following this, Anderson Colif held a military parade at the gates of Afghanistan and summoned reporters from all over the world to broadcast live.
Watching the fighter jets roaring through the sky and the endless tanks on the ground, many were awestruck.
A reporter from the Pengpai News agency, facing the camera, fawned wildly: "Do you see? This is the war potential of the Beautiful Country. As long as they are willing, they can always field the world's most powerful army."
"Afghanistan and the Dragon Country's collusion, and their little tricks, will ultimately amount to nothing. They will soon pay the price for this, and the land of Afghanistan will be turned into scorched earth."
"..."
Upon seeing this massive army of the Beautiful Country, Hafezo Smin, the leader of Afghanistan, felt a sense of despair.
The loss of a hundred top-tier stealth fighter jets would, for any other country, lead to a suspension of the offensive and a ceasefire for adjustments, if not a complete withdrawal.
Unexpectedly, the Beautiful Country was completely unaffected. They not only brought double the number of planes in a very short period but also deployed a vast tank formation.
To prevent Afghanistan from truly becoming scorched earth, Hafezo Smin hurried to seek help from Professor Jing Mingqiu.
"Professor Jing, the Beautiful Country's army is about to launch a full-scale offensive. Can that previous missile strike be repeated?"
Jing Mingqiu gently shook his head, "No. The success last time was mainly due to the Beautiful Country's arrogance and overconfidence in their fighter jets' stealth capabilities, lacking escort fighters."
"This time, they have not only prepared a large number of escort fighters but have also adjusted their radar detection range. The probability of successfully carrying out a surprise attack and annihilating them all as before is very low."
"Ah!" Hafezo Smin was anxious, "If we can't shoot down the Beautiful Country's bombers and let them bomb indiscriminately, not only will the military facilities suffer severe losses, but innocent civilians will also face immense casualties! Not to mention the ground tank forces."
"Professor Jing, do we truly have no way to deal with the Beautiful Country's mechanized forces now?"
Jing Mingqiu's lips curved into a subtle smile, "I only said that the method used last time cannot be used again; I didn't say there's no way to counter the Beautiful Country's attack."
"In World War I and World War II, planes and tanks were indeed useful, but it is now the twenty-first century."
"Sir, times have changed!"