>>> In the mid-30ies, the Japanese economical bloc aim to limit Hong Kong growth, whose financial circles remains particularly hostile to Imperial Japan. Singapore quickly become a vital platform of this economic struggle. To strengthen their support to the Singapore city-state, the Japanese will create a regional crisis on purpose, involving its two neighbours, Indonesia and Malaysia. The Malaysian communist have then just seized power, on the promise to the westerners of eliminating the islamists opposition in the country. For that they also have to enter a regional military alliance treaty, including Indonesia.
The Kra Isthmus small war
>>> Some Japanese interests will finance the Indonesian state to fight against the Asiatic southeast warlords who are behind piracy and heroin smuggling. Due to the accords, they force the Malaysian communists to use their air base and deploy their long-range equipment in Malaysia. Modern gear is deployed by the Indonesian. Financed by the Japanese, the weapons are bought in India. The europeans have largely supplied India to open an east front against the Djihad, and the same weapons supply the smuggling rings after the war. After several incidents orchestrated, the Malaysian worry about the growing power of their neighbours, and his barely coverted support to the Malaysian Liberty Party.
>>> But from the 2037 summer, the operations against the warlords start to be slowed down. They are now supported, probably by the Triads. The Malaysian government express its doubts about the Indonesian operation, while the warlords send commando in the vinicities of the air bases used by the Indonesian. The situation become more and more blurred. The Japanese corporations have nearly reach their goal, since Singapore enter an economical mini-crisis caused by the investissors distrust. But the Indonesian generals ask their allies for more money to achieve their war with a victory. In the same time, the Malaysian prepares themselves for the Indonesian forces defeat and having to contain the warlords troops. Contacts with the Singapore authorities are taken in this way, despite the isle liberals uneasiness to deal with the Malaysian communists.
The Australian Connection
>>> the situation in the region turns to confusion. The Japanese corporations seems to continue to support the Indonesians. In the field, the Indonesian shock troops starts operating with cybernetic implants and guided weapons systems. After the Indian weapons connections, a second connection now supplies the Indonesian, from Australia.
>>> On the first line, we find
KR Systems, a Darwin company producing mainly interface software for implants and weapons systems for the Australian military forces. In the 20ies it was a shell for the ASIS, the Australian Security and Intelligence Service, and until its dissolution in 2031. Nearly all the equipment shipped to the Indonesian will have be conceived by KR Systems or one of its customers, thus using KR software. On the other hand, the involvement of
Red Electronics will never be cleared up. Employees will be followed in Indonesia on military sites. At this time Red Electronics isn't yet linked in any way to KR Systems.
Mission: Salamandre
>>> One of the less known episodes of the Tanto operation is the Salamandre mission. In the night between the 3 and 4 october 2038, a soldier unit from the 6th Shock parachutist Regiment is dropped on Sumba island. Their target is one of the "Australian connection" cyberetic clinics located on the island. They are repelled after a firefight before reaching the main building. They were supposed to hack the center computer system in order to contamine the implants, which would have a devastating effect on the Indonesians computer equipment. Two french soldiers will be killed.
>>> But if this operation was authorized on all the levels by the French state, it is because this unit was supposed to steal documents describing the Australian connection and KR Systems and Red Electronics involvement. Despite the apparent failure of their main mission, revealed by the magazine "Vision Moderne" in 2040, the government will never reveal the detailson this secondary objective and the data retrieved. No source could confirm or infirm that the french services were in possession of data concerning the Australian connection.
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>>> The Indonesian soldiers benefit from cybernetic implants installed at a high rate, seemingly at least 15 to 20 operations each day. If KR Systems gear wasn't found in the Indonesian units, no links will ever be established between the two : we still don't know how those implants were shipped, only a single clinic was ever located. At best, we know thanks to some soldiers the medical staff was made of caucasian (allegly russian, but these witness ain't likely to speak russian, or another european language else than english). In february 2038, there are fully operationnal rigger teams behind the Indonesian army armed drones squadrons, and their first assault are successful.
Opération: Tanto
>>> But the Japanese bloc is far from having only allies. It's the French DGSE who puts one foot, the infamous Tanto operation. Several French services agents are involved to various degrees in Hong Kong and Bangkok on the software black market. It's military computer virus, the same models on the same supports that those bought by the German Bundeswehr to Mueller-Schlüter Infotech. At that moment, MSI works closely with Esprit Industries, itself building the communications systems of several customers that have to make run MSI software. Links between the DGSE and Esprit Industries SDEI have came into existence a long time ago. The network have several members in Germany, most probably part of Saeder-Krupp special services. The german megacorporation involvement is unclear, it is more likely it was to avoid a SDEI and DGSE agents network to be created directly in Germany. These computer virus ends quickly in the South East Asian warlords arsenal.
>>> It notably includes scrambling software saturating drones and guided weapons systems. Gear used massively by the Indonesian army ! Worst, an "implants killer" prototype virus will be first tried on the Kra Isthmus, a technology still classified. Quickly, the warlord and even more the Triads backing them, are directly involved in this smuggling, while they are its first customers, they draw high financial benefit from it. Cause this equipment also interest the Chinese warlords, Japanese terrorists groups, shadowrunners and Siberian rebels. Even if the sources of the connection were never fully understood, it had certainly produced massive benefices. Even the DGSE and the SDEI exploited a part of those, ready to constitute slush funds for black ops. Money laundering mecanism are put into place by several Esprit Industries subsidiaries.
The Breaking Up
>>> In the first half of the 2039 year, the Japanese abruptely stop their backing. The special forces military advisors assisting the Indonesian army are recalled. The situation change came alledgly from unofficial negociations between the Japanese economical bloc and Singapore government. The ballet starts recess negociations, and the Indonesian are quickly isolated. The warlords won't attempt to make the break toward the Malaysian border, and the main hawks in the Indonesian general staff are eliminated by assassins, probably Traids members, in early may 2039. The Kra Isthmus war put out itself after a few weeks of skirmish.
>>> But the Tanto operation smuggling don't stop. If the attack military softwares supplies is interrupted, the DGSE networks still work with the Triads, and Esprit Industries reinforce its position in Asia (ironically, the firm asian offices are in Singapore). However the assassination in early 2040 in Bangkok of a french-chinese businessman, close to french political figures, and the link established with corporate offices matricial espionage in France, will speed up the end of the operation Tanto. The responsible for corporate affairs at the DGSE and Matignon divert the attention toward the operation Tanto by putting on the forefront the French-Japanese economical relations. The DSTtake back the affair from Lyon police service, assimilated to economical espionage. The DST agents investigate the connections with help from the British MI-6 and the NMA. The observers explain this by the French government will to clean up the DGSE, an action pursued according to some by the Polydope scandal and the involvement there of Total-Elf.
Repercussions
>>> In the early year 2041, majority of the people involved in the operation Tanto in Europe are imprisonned or fleeing. Even a few important members of the Triads are arrested in Hong Kong. The legal procedures will only reveal a small part of the network functioning, since the state had more interet in hiding it, some of the investigations will never brought any real proofs.
>>> Last but not least, in 2039 KR Systems and Red Electronics, with a third Australian company, SandTech, are bought out by Werner Global,
Hugh Werner holding, who's funding is division WERNTech. He takes advantage of the selling out made by the Japanese agents who wants to disappear quickly. It seems there are no connection between SandTech and the operation Tanto. On the other hand, KR Systems was declared in 2027 with the name Kowinsky-Ryan Systems. Hugh Werner mother's name was Mary O'Ryan, and for one of his close relatives, Frank Tyler, Theresa Kowinsky-tyler. Frank Tyler, after serving in the marine commando with Werner, work from 2025 to 2031 in the Australian intelligence services, and later in the
NMA. The KR Systems founder, using the name Phillip Strand, has never been identified.
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