Soviet Union 1991

Second update

Shamanov agreed to meet with Minashvili, but for the sake of caution, he rejected the other party's request to meet at the presidential palace, and chose to meet in front of an office building in Tbilisi. Under the convention of the parties, a street in Tbilisi was rarely attacked. However, there was also a group of soldiers with live ammunition on martial law. On the one hand, there were the Georgian Freedom Army, and on the other hand, there were the Soviet troops in the same uniform. Both sides were wary of each other, fearing that they would be suddenly attacked by the other side.

Shamanov sat in the BMP3 infantry fighting vehicle, and the soldier next to him handed him a loaded rifle. But Shamanov waved his hand and firmly rejected the other party's kindness.

"Just in case, who knows what the Georgian army will think?" The soldier advised, "After all, you are the second-in-command of the 58th Army, and they may threaten you to negotiate with the Soviet army. If something goes wrong, we will not be able to explain to Commander Troshev."

"No, it will make the other party suspicious. I will just contact Minashvili normally." Shamanov shook his head. Since he climbed to the position of deputy commander-in-chief, he must have won it through real merits, so he naturally had a bottom line in his heart.

The soldier helped Shamanov open the hatch, and he bent over and got out of the narrow space. After being in the crowded space for a long time, he stretched his waist and stretched his lumbar spine. The Soviet army had already been on guard in the vicinity, and there were snipers on the roof. I guess Shamanov's head is now aimed at by no less than five snipers.

"What a dangerous negotiation." Shamanov put on his hat and slowly walked to the center of the square, where Minashvili and a team of Georgian soldiers were waiting for him to come. He made a gesture to let all the guards behind him withdraw to a certain distance before formally contacting Minashvili.

"Commander Minashvili, I am Shamanov, the deputy commander-in-chief of the 58th Army."

Minashvili did not show much reaction to the enemy, but just said hello coldly. He had deployed enough snipers in nearby buildings, enough to kill Shamanov directly, and both of them died together.

"I heard that you want to give us a way out?" Minashvili said deliberately, "I remember that you said the same thing when you negotiated with the Americans before. But only one hour after the armistice, you launched the final offensive and caught the Georgian army off guard. If it weren't for that war, we wouldn't have lost so badly."

Minashvili deliberately mentioned this matter to tell Shamanov that the Soviet Union should not try to plot against them.

"All is fair in war." Shamanov originally wanted to light the cigarette in his hand, but was worried that the other party would mistake it for a secret signal, so he gave up the idea.

"I won't say any more nonsense. I believe our words have been conveyed to your ears. If you are willing to pay 20 million US dollars or gold bars of equal value, we can give you a way out. Of course, this must be done in secret and Moscow must not know, otherwise the heads of the three people in the Supreme Command will be moved."

"I want to know why you take such a big risk to do such a thing?" Minashvili asked him.

"Benefits." Shamanov sneered, "Our wages are so pitiful that they are not enough to support a private war, so we need to quickly save up a sum of money to get more benefits for us. You don't need to know too much about this."

Shamanov's words really fulfilled Plekhanov's guess. At this time, Minashvili frowned. Gerbachev's capital chain was fully capable of paying the ransom. But if he had to take out so much cash at once, Gerbachev would be penniless in an instant.

Seeing that the other party was still hesitating, Shamanov further instigated the other party, "This money is already quite cost-effective to buy life. Only 20 million can guarantee the safety of you and Gerbachev. If you agree, the ransom will be delivered at this place three hours later."

"What if we choose to refuse?" Minashvili asked the other party tentatively.

"If you refuse, the Soviets will lose patience. We will use rocket launchers, long-range artillery, and bombers to flatten the entire presidential palace and the surrounding buildings. Listen to my advice, General Minashvili. No one wants to see such a bad situation, and we have the strength to do so. At worst, the Soviets will tear their faces apart and let the whole of Tbilisi be buried with you."

"This is not intimidation, we are stating the facts." Shamanov's answer was understated, but what he said made Minashvili shudder.

"Do you really think the Soviets care about civilian casualties? Don't be ridiculous. Moscow's order has come down. They want us to end the war as soon as possible, in a decent way. So that Moscow can declare to the outside world that we are the new Soviet army's way of fighting."

"That is to say, after our meeting, the Soviet army will attack the Tbilisi Presidential Palace at all costs. Moscow wants to win this war decently, so we have to take rougher measures. If it doesn't work, there are also caliber cruise missiles to directly bomb the presidential palace. It's just that the finishing work is more troublesome. Maybe we have to piece together the fragments of Gerbachev to confirm whether he was killed."

Shamanov's domineering reply shocked Minashvili, and for a moment he didn't know how to reply.

However, everything Shamanov said was true. The Soviet army could indeed use cruise bombing to destroy the presidential palace, but the premise was to confirm that Gerbachev was hiding in the presidential palace. Now the Georgian army has heavily protected the presidential palace, and even the Soviet reconnaissance aircraft cannot detect Gerbachev's trace. For Moscow, which wants to see him alive or dead, Shamanov will naturally try every means to lure Gerbachev out of his hiding place.

As long as Gerbachev appears outdoors, he will definitely not be able to escape the eyes of GLONASS, airborne early warning aircraft and unmanned reconnaissance aircraft.

"So, does General Shamanov have anything else to tell Gerbachev now?" Minashvili asked the other party.

Shamanov said calmly, "Of course, because our time is limited, so if I still can't meet with Gerbachev in three hours, there will be no peaceful ending you hope for."

"We will turn the whole of Tbilisi into a burning hell!" (To be continued.)