Six-Day War

Six-Day War
Part of the Ruthish conflict
Clockwise from top left: A U.C. F-15 taking off in East Ruthen The Strecknitz suburb of Sagard am Möhne during the early hours of 20 July after a West Ruthish bombing Tanks from the U.C. intervention force in the liberated town of Haferfeld U.C. peacekeepers removing bodies after an airstrike in Sagard am Möhne West Ruthish soldiers laying mines in East Ruthen
Date 20 July 1999 – 26 July 1999 (de facto) (6 days) 20 July 1999 – present (de jure) (25 years, 4 months and 1 week) Location Ruthen, Swarin Sea, Hunsrück Valley Result Inconclusive Territorial changes Ruthish Demilitarized Zone established Both East and West Ruthen evacuate all civilians from within 3 miles of the inner-Ruthish border
Belligerents
East Ruthen	West Ruthen
Community of Nations insert UCMAR nations Supported by: *insert supportive non-combatants	Supported by: *insert supportive non-combatants
Commanders and leaders
Niels Steinitz Jannick Kohnstamm Vinzenz Fischinger Thorsten Moldenhauer Paulus Pollmächer Jakob von Meyer	Gabriel Wehner Heiner Denker Sören Brandis Eduard Salzer Roland Hauffe † Otto Sternhell
Strength
142,376 UCMAR Forces insertcountry insertnum Together: x	608,422
Casualties and losses
325 soldiers killed 1064 civilians killed 56 missing x soldiers killed	413 soldiers killed 34 civilians killed 2 missing
Additional 8 foreign civilians killed

The Six-Day War, (Ruthish: Sechstagekrieg; Juli-Krise), was fought between East Ruthen and West Ruthen that began on 20 July 1999 when West Ruthen invaded East Ruthen and ended on 26 July with the signing of an armistice and the withdrawal of West Ruthish soldiers from East Ruthen. The war involved combatants from Ruthen as well as x nations as part of the United Congress Monitoring Authority for Ruthen (UCMAR) which initially supported East Ruthen but later shifted towards monitoring the Ruthish Demilitarised Zone. It was the first war fought between two nations in Calesia since the end of the Great War and is generally regarded as the closest the world came to descending into full-scale nuclear war.

Following the Great War, Ruthen had been divided into two separate nations in 1944 as a result of the Ruthish crisis. The legitimate and internationally recognised government of Ruthen emerged as the People's Republic of Ruthen whilst the Waldish backed Republic of Ruthen struggled to secure political or diplomatic legitimacy following its independence. As a result of the controversial nature of the division of Ruthen, neither state was permitted to join the United Congress until a reunified Ruthish state could be established. Inter-Ruthish relations fluctuated throughout the twentieth century, with relative diplomatic lows such as the Hunsrück crisis in 1979 and periods of positive relations such as the Grenzpolitik period between 1980 and 1983. Relations between each state had deteriorated as a result of the East's adoption of the Hauswald Doctrine and the hijacking of Luftverkehr Flight 86 in 1986 which resulted in the aircraft crashing over the Swarin Sea after running out of fuel killing all 87 people on board. Relations were at their worst period since the division of Ruthen by the summer of 1999 largely as a result of East Ruthen's planned military exercise Heimverteidiger 99 which was scheduled to occur in September and had prompted fears within West Ruthen's government of an imminent invasion by East Ruthen and its allies.

West Ruthen launched its surprise invasion at 4AM CEST with an estimated 15,000 West Ruthish soldiers having crossed the Hunsrück river by sunrise. Simultaneously West Ruthen's air force launched air raids and missile attacks at targets in East Ruthen including Sagrad International Airport and the Ramberger-Gebäude which housed the East Ruthish Ministry of Defence. Initial air attacks and military advances were left unchallenged as communications between East Ruthen's government and its military ceased for several hours whilst members of the East Ruthish government were avoiding assassination attempts by West Ruthish special forces. The war was quickly condemned in a near unanimous vote at an emergency summit of the United Congress, within hours of the invasion commencing and with the prospect of East Ruthen collapsing imminent, the UC adopted Resolution 1233 which created UCMAR and authorised a UC intervention force in East Ruthen.

The West Ruthish advance stalled on 21 July unexpectedly after an unforeseen storm developed over Ruthen and failed to dissipate for several days which allowed the East Ruthish military to regroup and prevent further attacks with the aid of UCMAR forces. After having advanced 70 kilometres into East Ruthen, the West Ruthish military faced supply issues after they lost air superiority to the East and UCMAR forces on 22 July and were pushed back in some areas. After a stalemate had developed on 23 July, the UC announced the creation of a no-fly zone over the entirety of East and West Ruthen which crippled the West Ruthish air force, additionally an East Ruthish naval blockade which had began after the start of the invasion caused further supply issues and fears of an amphibious landing in West Ruthen. Ceasefire talks began on 25 July in Dahemia between Ruthish military figures and officials from UCMAR and several other nations, a formal ceasefire was formally signed on 26 July and West Ruthen announced its withdrawal from East Ruthen which would be finalised on 30 July after the formal end of the war. The Ruthish Demilitarised Zone (DMZ/EMZ) was formally established on 4 August 1999 and a strip of land measuring at minimum 3 miles from the border on each side was to be fully depopulated and no civilians or military personnel permitted to return. A further 10 miles from this would be under the oversight of UCMAR and require permits to enter but would not be depopulated. Additionally the airspace over the DMZ was to be permanently closed and the maritime waters of Ruthen were also to be effected by the DMZ.

The war was notable for its television coverage by the international media and helped pioneer live TV coverage of similar events. The media coverage of the war became the most watched television event in history as fears of a nuclear war developed during the course of the conflict. Additionally it was also one of the first major events reported on by news organisations through the internet adding to its cultural impact. The war also helped East Ruthen secure diplomatic legitimacy as it was presented as the victim of an aggressive war which led to its recognition by several nations and for both Ruthish states to join the UC in 2001 becoming the most recent states to join the organisation.

Background

Hauswald doctrine

Madlene Hauswald, East Ruthish Foreign Minister (1980–2003) and creator of the Hauswald Doctrine

The aircraft involved with the Luftverkehr Flight 86 hijacking

Ruthish syndrome

• Definitely not Gulf War syndrome