Brau Sea crisis
| Brau Sea crisis | |||||
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    Clockwise from top left: The GGF Kapirtalu Mahajara sinks after being hit by a Yuaneze missile; the ZMS Elmhill fires at the JAI Guilin; Yuaneze troops on Chitpa Island; an ACWAC naval fleet in the Brau Sea | |||||
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 Qin Chen Mao Xieren Wei Shui |
 Sartaj Bali Sharya Kamath | ||||
The Brau Sea crisis, also known as the Chitpa crisis, is an ongoing series of maritime and political disputes and subsequent military clashes in the Brau Sea. The date of the beginning of the crisis is disputed, though it is often considered to be January 4th, 2023 when the government of Yuan and several central Ausianan nations bordering Haduastan agreed to construct military bases, which Haduastan's government opposed. The crisis escalated dramatically on May 23rd, 2023, when a series of bombings hit military sites in Northern Elastan and Chittagon, Barangadesh, with the ACWAC coalition blaming Haduastan's government of supporting the terrorist groups responsible. When Haduastan denied the accusations, Yuan sent a carrier fleet into the Brau Sea and formed a blockade around the island of Chitpa. After days of tensions, including the sinking of a Haduastani tanker and the downing of four Haduastan fighter jets, Haduastan's government ceded the island of Chitpa to avoid a wider conflict, and on May 27th Yuaneze and aligned ACWAC forces began occupying the island.
The crisis has been labeled as an extension of the Jinchon Sea crisis and is considered a possible flashpoint for a second World War to break out. Spillovers directly related to the Brau Sea crisis include a May 25th, 2023 incident in which three Yuaneze naval vessels entered Titania Bay and were intercepted by the Zamastanian Navy and Drambenburgian Navy. The SMS Lange sunk the JAI Puhan, while the ZMS Elmhill sunk the JAI Guilin and captured the JIN Yantao. The crisis also led to a CCA condemnation of Yuan and Qin Chen, and many international governments closed their embassies in Shanghan and other ACWAC nations.
Background
Geopolitical tensions have existed in the Brau Sea region for hundreds of years, but the state of affairs which dominate this particular crisis arose following the World War, with the expulsion of Drambenburgian colonizing forces from Salubar and Joraistan, the partition of Haduastan and Barangadesh, the increasing importance of shipping routes between the Vulkarian Pass and the Cantalle Ocean, and the growing influence of Yuan.
Timeline
January
February
March
April
May 1-22
On May 17th, the Yuaneze warship Yuoyang sailed into Iobarayan waters, breaching both Iobarayan and Allunan territory. The warship sailed through the island straits of Alluna before entering Iobarayan waters, sailing west through the Eshowe Strait which separates Eshowe Island from the mainland, well within Iobaray's territorial waters. The ship was not given authorization to pass through, and Iobarayan military tried contacting the ship to no avail. President Brenden Kwara placed the Iobarayan military on high alert for further encroachments. As a result of the incident, Iobaray, Alluna, Costa Sarba, and Arbeet joined the Pan-Adulan Defense Coalition.
May 23-31
- May 23rd, 2023
A series of bombings hit military sites in Northern Elastan and Chittagon, Barangadesh. President Bahadar Panwar placed the Elastan national military on high alert. A series of blasts began around 1:30PM local time in the city of Habamila, with a car bomb exploding directly outside the headquarters of the Army's Northern Command. Several blasts followed in the minutes after, with at least two explosions at an airstrip possibly being the work of drones laden with explosives. The military confirmed that a fighter jet had been destroyed. Another explosion struck a checkpoint used by military police in the city of Habamila, and another explosion occured at a checkpoint in the adjacent town of Hajam'tiri. Another car bomb exploded at an army checkpoint near the border of Haduastan in an isolated mountain road, prompting some military spokespersons to say the attacks were sophisticated enough to suggest extensive knowledge of the military's inner workings and security apparatus. While the perpetrators had not been identified, Panwar and senior military officials placed blame on Haduastan, who they accused of funding a terrorist network in Salubar and Joraistan.
"The chances that this was the work of simple partisans is very low," said Panwar. "Our intelligence suggests that, while it may not be the direct work of foreign agents, the chance is that Haduastan directly supplied, aided, and abated the attackers."
In Barangadesh, a facility housing office of the National Army's East Division was the target of a car bombing, resulting in a major portion of the building and the adjacent structure collapsing. 68 people died, and President Abdul Sheihk Mahmed claimed the attack was the act of a foreign power, stating "we have reason to believe that Haduastan is responsible, or that Haduastan's government is sponsoring terrorist factions intent on causing harm towards our nation."
As a result of the attacks, the ACWAC coalition officially blamed Haduastan's government. Yuan's Secretary-General Qin Chen and Minister of National Defense General Wei Shui appeared in coinciding national addresses, vowing to come to the defense of ACWAC member states in the wake of the attacks, with Chen stating that the "whole might of Yuan's military will be used against those who dare cause harm to the proud nations of our alliance," and stated that while a specific group of perpetrators has not been confirmed, there were suspicions that the government of Haduastan may have been sponsoring extremist networks inside those nations, as they also had been accused of sponsoring rebel groups in Salubar and Joraistan, who recently became ACWAC members. Minister Shui said that the Yuaneze navy had dispatched a carrier fleet under the JIN Qigang to the Brau Sea as a precautionary measure and a show of intimidation, stating that "should we find indication of Haduastan's involvement and continued aggression, we will act."
Haduastan denied the accustations, and Prime Minister Sartaj Bali said that Haduastan would defend itself from attack. Bali condemned the bombings in Elastan and Barangadesh while vehemently denying any participation on the part of Haduastan, instead stating that ACWAC is "once again using false-flags and other tragic occurances to place an unwarranted and falsified reality of responsibility at the feet of our nation, in order to justify building their militaries and continuing to box us in." Bali went on to say that "Haduastan will do whatever it takes to defend itself, and if that means fighting, we will fight."
The Haduastani National Assembly subsequently reversed its peacekeeping initiative with the CCA, issuing a withdrawal order for all troops partaking in peacekeeping operations internationally. This included the 1300 troops who had been deployed to Sateroc as part of the Coalition Security Council Resolution 240. Haduastan's military was now on high alert and reservists were mobilized as a precaution, and naval ships were dispatched to intercept the fleet of Yuaneze ships.
At the same time, international intelligence agencies, including the ZIS, suggested the attacks may be false-flag operations. ZIS Director Adrian Sardou said that "there is no credible evidence to point to Haduastani involvement of any kind in the attacks throughout Central Ausiana yesterday", and President Sabine Armitage called for both sides to practice restraint. As the Yuaneze fleet headed towards the Brau Sea, the Zamastanian and Drambenburgian militaries began tracking three Yuaneze vessels which detached from the larger group and were sailing around the southwest tip of Drambenburg's peninsula, near the port town of Lasern. The ships were identified as the Chen-class destroyers JAI Guilin, JAI Puhan, and the Xining-class destroyer JIN Yantao.
- May 24th, 2023
A Haduastani JU-10 Hammer was shot down after intercepting the JIN Qigang and its fleet near Chitpa. Yuan claimed that the fighter jet, which was downed, and its compliment of adjoining aircraft performed "dangerous flybys" of the aircraft carrier Qigang in international waters. However, Haduastani military officials released a stream of satellite images and aerial camera footage which suggested the fleet had entered Haduastan's territorial waters near the island of Chitpa. Prime Minister Sartaj Bali said that Haduastan was on a war footing, and the National Assembly overwhelmingly voted and President Sharya Kamath approved a callup order, with President Kamath stating that "the defense of our nation may be required soon, and our nation must be prepared to fight against a hostile incursion." Vice President Agamjit Datewas, a general in the army, stated that intelligence and radio intercepts suggested Yuan was preparing to stage a strike of some kind, likely against the naval and air force facilities on Chitpa.
The island of Chitpa was subsequently placed under martial law, its security forces on high alert, and civilian evacuations began with dozens of ferries and hundreds of civilian vessels taking round-trips between the island and the mainland (an excruciating seven-hour ride for most). The government did not issue an official evacuation order, but the island's governor Anuraag Phadatare advised civilians to do what they consider best for their own security, saying "we are in a situation where I am not at liberty to provide false hope; we don't know what is about to happen, our state is in a perilous issue between the vessels which lay off our shores and the divide of water between us and the mainland."
President Kamath stated that the Haduastani navy was accumulating vessels to defend Chitpa should the Yuaneze attempt a sort of strike. Haduastan's Foreign Minister Ruldu Mahanti called on the CCA Security Council to issue an immediate condemnation and stand down decree against Yuan and the ACWAC nations for "perpetuating a false pretense to take unwarranted strikes against our nation." Mahanti also called on nations to support Haduastan if a strike occurs, saying "we can defend ourselves and will fight to the end to protect our people, but the reality is that Yuan's aggression and their manipulation of our neighboring states has effected our capability to wage a prolonged defense."
Within hours, two more JU-10 fighter jets had been shot down near the Yuaneze fleet, which was in a circling pattern only miles north of the Chitpa island. Haduastan's government issued a state of emergency and warned that any further shootdowns would be met with an armed response.
A total of 14 Yuaneze naval warships were now in the Brau Sea and entered Haduastani waters off the coast of the island of Chitpa. Qin Chen stated that the presence of Yuan's ships in Haduastani waters were a direct result of Haduastan's aggression against ACWAC nations. "If they didn't want us here, they shouldn't have poked the bee hive," said Yuan's defense minister Wei Shui. "We have abandoned our decision to stay in international waters and are taking a response as we stated we would. We are occupying a portion of Yuaneze territorial waters until they call off their fighter jets from these dangerous engagements against our vessels. Once they back off, we can negotiate. But until then, we hold the cards, and your island of Chitpa stands closer to us than it does to you."
WEDA conveened an emergency meeting in Viitaniemi, Caspiaa, as Zamastanian Secretary of Defense Harold Casey authorized the dispatch of a carrier fleet to the Brau Sea, helmed by the ZMS Kordia and ZMS Dubois.
- May 25th, 2023
A Haduastani tanker ship, GGF Kapirtalu Mahajara, was hit with a missile fired from a Yuaneze destroyer when it entered a zone of water which Haduastani officials labeled as "unsafe due to hostile foreign presence", and where the Yuaneze carrier fleet had called a no-go zone for any vessels or aircraft around the flagship of the fleet off Chitpa, the aircraft carrier JIN Qigang. The crew of the Kapirtalu Mahajara managed to survive the sinking and was evacuated by Haduastani coast guard vessels.
About an hour later, another JU-10 Hammer was shot down as it neared the Yuaneze fleet. The pilot was able to eject and parachute into the sea safely, where he was rescued. Prime Minister Bali said that the "situation remains incredibly volatile, and we cannot promise that Chitpa remains safe at this moment."
The Chitpa administrative council stated on May 25th that more than 90,000 civilians had fled the island for the mainland.
The Yuaneze naval vessels which had been circling the tip of the Drambenburgian peninsula entered Titania Bay around 7 in the morning on May 25th. They were quickly intercepted by P-51 fighters, and the Zamastanian Navy and Drambenburgian Navy began making preparations to sink the vessels if needed. The Yuaneze ships sailed deeper into the Titania Bay, initially traversing along recognized international shipping lanes, but warships that do not carry Zamastanian or Drambenburgian naval flags are prohibited from sailing in Titania Bay under international law and post-World War treaties. Hours into the engagement, the Yuaneze vessels were still ignoring attempts by the Drambenburgian and Zamastanian militaries to contact them and warn them to turn around, and they were also ignoring radio communications from commercial cargo ships in the busy waters.
At about 10 in the morning, the ships split off into two groups, with the Puhan headed towards Drambenburgian waters near Insel des Todes, and the Guilin and Yantao headed towards Saint Bellevue. Both navies began pursuits and engagement efforts, with decisions made at the executive level between President Armitage and Chancellor Auster-Brautstadt to destroy the vessels if they entered sovereign waters. Around noon, the Puhan entered the Asund Gulf and was sunk by the Drambenburgian navy, with a Lange-class railgun battleship striking the vessel and forcing it to capsize. A Drambenburgian carrier fleet, helmed by the SMS Welf, rescued and took prisoner about 100 sailors from the capsized Puhan and began undertaking rescue operations to save any sailors who may still have been alive in the hull.
About thirty minutes later, the Guilin and Yantao entered Alutianan waters, still being under protection of the Zamastanian navy despite its 2021 seccesion. Alutiana's President, Stephanie Morente, gave President Armitage the right to call the operation, and at 12:26 the President gave authorization to sink the vessels. Intercepted by Zamastanian fighter jets, the Yuaneze ships encountered the ZMS Amaury and ZMS Elmhill, who tried one last time to make contact and force the ships to turn. Warning shots were fired, but with a tragectory directly towards the port of Saint Bellevue, the order was given to sink both ships. A series of missiles fired from the ZMS Elmhill, striking the Guilin and causing it to take on water quickly. Life rafts were deployed, but 131 sailors out of the ship's complement of 240 died.
Moments later, the Amaury opened fire on the Yantao which was trailing about 6 miles behind, striking the ship's communication masts. However, the radio silence by the Yantao was broken, and its captain stated he would surrender the vessel to avoid destruction. Standard surrender procedure followed, and all sailors and crew aboard the Yantao were told to stand on the deck of the ship as more Zamastanian naval vessels approached to surround the ship and take prisoners. The navy released audio of the Yantao captain surrendering, with panic clear in his tone saying "please, ZMS Amaury, this is the JIN Yantao. We surrender. Do not fire. We surrender - the Guilin should not have approached - we surrender."
The 266 member crew of the Yantao were transferred over to ships and ferried to the mainland, where they were officially put in custody alongside those rescued from the Guilin. Secretary of Defense Harold Casey said of the Yantao's surrender; "we were frankly prepared for a slaughter. We're overjoyed that the captain and commanders aboard the Yantao did the right thing to save their men, and one can only imagine the panic they must have had set in when they saw their sister ship go down."
The damaged Yantao was subsequently towed back to port. The ship will remain in Saint Bellevue until proper accomadations can be made in Aurelia, where military officials made their intentions clear to study the vessel.
Instead of threatening retaliation for the Titania Bay sinkings, Yuan claimed the Yuaneze vessels had gone rogue. Qin Chen called the sinking "criminal acts," though prefacing that the "commanders of those vessels acted on their own accord, and thus while we condemn the actions of the Drambenburgian and Zamastanian militaries in taking such provocative actions, we detest the rogue elements in our ships which took reckless action." Wei Shui, Defense Minister, said that the military had told the ships in question to conduct "freedom of maritime travel" operations in key shipping lanes which cross through the international center bounds of Titania Bay, but the officers on board the vessels panicked and strayed from their 'purely peace-operated' mission. The military pushed back on claims that the Zamastanians had captured a third Yuaneze warship and pushed back on claims that either side had taken hundreds of sailors prisoner, instead claiming that each ship sunk had went down with most lives lost aboard. Chen stated "the Euronian powers and Yuan must not get into a conflict over this. It would spell the end of the world. Our world is better when we cooperate despite our differences, and we will continue to work to do so despite these events in Titania Bay."
- May 26th, 2023
- May 27th, 2023
Coming on the heels of days of back-and-forth tension, Prime Minister Bali directed his government to seek a peace settlement to avoid a war breaking out. With a deadline set by Yuan and ACWAC membership to handover individuals responsible for bombings in Elastan and Barangadesh, and with no one responsible in custody, an alternative route to surrender Chitpa was ordered in exchange for a halt in hostilities. At noon on May 27th, Haduastan's government cededed Chitpa to Yuan, and ACWAC forces begin to occupy the island.
ACWAC members undertook their first ever joint-military active combat operation, as coordinated amphibious landings began taking place on Chitpa. President Qin Chen, speaking publicly to a crowd in Shanghan, said that the Haduastani government had "failed to comply with demands to handover suspected terrorists ACWAC deems responsible for the attacks of May 23rd", and the consequences would be the capitulation of the island of Chipta. Yuan's military command stated they are taking "every precaution to avoid civilian losses". More than 30,000 troops were in the stages of landing on the island to minimal resistance on the 27th, though contingents of Haduastani army and naval command on the island vowed to resist the occupation and were fighting back. Haduastani defenders largely fled the island, though two naval ships which were previously docked in the city's main port had since withdrawn to about 50 miles off its coast and did not try to intervene. Governor Anuraag Phadatare was reportedly captured and taken into custody by Yuaneze forces.
Haduastan's government has labeled the independent factions' defense of the island as "unacceptable," with President Kamath saying "we need to accept the realities of the situation." Almost immediately after the deal was made public, hundreds of thousands of people across Haduastan began protesting and demanding that the government resign, with opposition leaders calling the concession of the island "a shameful betrayal of our people and a weak response to foreign aggression.".
"This is not the desired approach but it's the only one we have," Bali said to jeers and boos from the National Assembly. "We have assurances that the Yuan alliance will not further pursue hostilities with us in this current state."
Opposition leader Vasishtha Ayyangar said of the deal that it was the "most atrocious event to have occurred to our nation in decades, sacrificing the livelihoods of millions for a lie perpetrated by the enemy which the government has fallen upon to save face. Instead of defending our country and standing up to the foreign threat, the President and Prime Minister have instead stabbed Chitpa in the back to save their own hides." Ayyangar petitioned National Assembly for a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister Bali and President Kamath.
- May 28th, 2023
- May 29th, 2023
- May 30th, 2023
- May 31st, 2023
June
Casualties
Reactions
International
Emmiria: Emmirian President Akram Sulaiman led the calls to condemn Yuan's actions in the Brau Sea. The Emmirian government called ACWAC's claims "unfounded and dangerous speculation," and Sulaiman called the escalation a "potentially world-threatening event... two of the world's largest militaries, armed with nuclear weapons, standing off in tense back and forth of rhetoric, should not be the state of events we are currently seeing. The world is watching with gathered breath, and I advise all parties to take restraint."
Iobaray: President Brenden Kwara condemned Yuan's actions and said Iobaray would "come to Haduastan's humanitarian aid, but we must avoid a war."
Zamastan: On May 24th, President Armitage briefly spoke from the Presidential Residence in Tofino, stating that she had met with the national security team and that Secretary of Defense Harold Casey had authorized the dispatch of the ZMS Kordia and ZMS Dubois carrier groups into the Brau Sea. Coming only a day after the decision to set a withdrawal timeline from Terehan, the President urged Yuan's president Qin Chen to order her navy to stand down, saying "your predecessor was ousted for similar war-mongering. Don't follow the path of Chairman Xi, pursue peace on your continent. If you don't, the effects on your nation and the rest of the world will be beyond belief in the possibility of destruction and carnage."
Secretary of State Chantelle Carson confirmed that the embassy staff in Lalkot was being evacuated, and urged Zamastanian nationals on the island of Chitpa to evacuate if they have the means to do so. Ambassador to Haduastan, Oscar Spillett, said that he and his staff had been ordered by the State Department to evacuate and were being relocated to Lutharia. Likewise, the embassies in Tasiastan and Jaginistan were also being evacuated, as those nations also faced pressure from ACWAC in recent months and were increasingly worried of action from Yuan and its bloc of allegient member states.
Haduastan, despite being a regional ally of Zamastan, does not have a defense agreement with it. President Armitage ruled out direct military intervention in the crisis, saying that a strike on Yuan by Zamastan would essentially start a wider war. However, conversations being held between WEDA officials in Caspiaa suggested there may be a course of action which would allow WEDA to lead evacuation and humanitarian efforts from Chitpa. "A military intervention where we take out Yuaneze forces attacking Haduastan is a non-starter," said Secretary of Defense Casey. "Do that, and we start World War 2. We aren't doing that, for the sake of the world we aren't doing that. But there are other avenues, and not the least of which being, Yuan should withdraw and practice restraint immediately."
Jyau: Chancellor Anton Wimmer ordered the evacuation of the Haduastan embassy in Lalkot over fears of a potential conflict, and Wimmer called on Yuan to "practice restraint" and withdraw from the Brau Sea, calling the situation "the most severe standoff between developed militaries our world has seen since the World War." He went on to say "Haduastan and her people are our friends, regardless of their political relationship with the Jyau government and the rest of the TTPA. We cannot rush to their defense under legal pretenses without getting drawn into a conflict, but we will always push back against the vehemently dangerous and escalatory rhetoric by Yuan and its allies."
Drambenburg: While the government of Drambenburg took a stern stance to Yuan's aggressions, Chancellor Giorg Auster-Brautstadt controversially stated in reference to Haduastan's exit from the TTPA the prior year; "it seems Haduastan has learned a new dance move - the betrayal waltz. We never knew they were such nimble dancers!"
Besmenia: In her speech to the Nortuan Congress in Allengin, Prime Minister Elisabeth Rademacher said that events between ACWAC and Haduastan, as well as the sinking of Yuaneze warships in Titania Bay, made it clear that a "Second World War" was becoming more and more likely. "We have reached a point where a new World War between Zamastan and Yuan and their allies is becoming more and more likely and poses a great danger to humanity," Rademacher said. "A new World War could also be the most violent and bloodiest war ever by using more and more destructive weapons. The Coalition of Crown Albatross and the CCA Security Council must intervene immediately to prevent the worst from happening."
When asked about the role of the Alliance of Nortuan States and Nortua in general in a "Second World War", Rademacher mentioned: "In the World War of 1949-1954, Nortua was fortunately spared, but by the regime in Syraranto and and the proximity of Yuan's military in western Nortua, part of a "Second World War" could possibly also take place here in Nortua. The Alliance of Nortuan States, the Western Euronia Defense Alliance and the Sotoan Basin Union are all three close partners and have been working together for years to keep the peace here in Nortua. In a "Second World War", the three organizations would have a good chance of working together against Yuan."
Besmenia, a non-permanent member of the CCA Security Council at the time of the crisis, voted to condemn Yuan.