Chapter 40

Within forty five minutes, the War Cabinet had assembled in the Oval Office. Secretary of Defense John Weston was briefing the War Cabinet.

"It seems that a large number of the Iranian backed troops invaded Turkey using hover crafts, hitting areas where our defenses were weak, with the remainder crossing the borders from northern Syria, Iraq and Iran. They also apparently had a number of agents in place for some time before hand because our defenders reported that they were being attacked from the rear as well as from in front by the main invasion force. They were caught in a pincers movement and didn't have a chance."

"How do our casualties look so far?" asked the President.

"From our first indications, they look like they're very heavy," replied Weston.

"What type of naval forces do we have in the area?" asked Ted Reynolds.

"We have the carrier Nimitz patrolling the eastern Mediterranean, and we have a number of cruisers and other smaller ships not far from there. These ships are now enroute to southern Turkey, and should be there within the next couple of hours. We have a small task force in the immediate area now and they have already begun shelling the invaders, but I doubt if it will have a great effect on them because a lot of their forces are far enough inland to be out of range of all of our artillery except for our missiles. If the weather lifts, we'll be able to launch the birds from the Nimitz, but our latest forecasts don't predict any improvement for at least another 18 to 24 hours."

"Do we have nuclear weapons on Turkish soil?" asked President Lehrer.

"You're not thinking about attacking them with nuclear weapons, are you!?" shouted Ted Reynolds.

"No, not unless they get a hold of nuclear weapons and attack us with them. I'm worried that if they are really as strong as you seem to think, then they might be able to overrun our forces and capture our nuclear weapons there."

"I'm very concerned about that, too," admitted the Defense Secretary. We do have contingency plans to move them out in case Turkey is overwhelmed."

"Good. I want you to start implementing those plans, but be prepared to stop if the situation improves," ordered the Commander in Chief. "I don't want Makhtol capturing any of our nukes. That madman would definitely use them if he had them. I would like to keep this war non-nuclear if we possible can."

She then turned to Stewart Butterfield from the National Security Agency. "What type of radio traffic have you been able to intercept from the Iranians?"

"It was earily quiet in the twelve hours before the invasion, but there's been quite a bit of traffic since it started. They apparently have been able to obtain some pretty sophisticated encryption equipment because we've been having a hard time deciphering their messages. They're also changing their codes fairly regularly, because no sooner do we break one code than they switch to another. From what we've been able to decipher so far, it appears as if Makhtol is not going to stop with Turkey. One message said that they are on their timetable, and that they'll be in Europe in a week."

"Oh, shit. Have you notified our allies?"

"Yes. We notified the Greeks that they're probably next, answered the Director of the National Security Agency.

John Weston added, "We are now moving troops and equipment into eastern Greece by rail and by ship. If Turkey falls, we should be able to put up a strong defense in Greece and stop them there."

"I sure hope so," replied the President. "If at all possible though, I'd like to stop them in Turkey. I don't want to give up any ground unless we absolutely have to."

"I understand," said Weston. "We'll do what we can to stop those bastards."

"How are our negotiations with the Russians going?" President Lehrer asked her Secretary of Defense. "I'd like to get an idea when we will be able to take the war to Makhtol to ease the pressure on Europe."