"Major General Duke, it's late over there. This call from Baghdad at this hour must not be for a virtual coffee chat."
"Director Simon, the situation is urgent. I need the Central Intelligence Agency's assistance to intervene in a crisis that's taking shape."
Duke skipped all formalities and went straight to the point.
"We have just received highly credible urgent intel. It states that the highest commander of the Kurd Ard, General Barzani, plans to mount a coup in the next few hours, targeting his uncle, Masood, the chairman of the Kold Autonomous Region. The thod is to orchestrate an ambush disguised as an 'Abu You Brigade Rebel Army attack' during Masood's inspection trip to Kirkuk, intending to eliminate Masood and pin the bla on the Abu You Brigade, paving the way for Barzani to seize supre power in the autonomous region."
"Our assessnt,"
Duke continued: "If the coup succeeds and Masood is killed, the Kurd Region will inevitably fall into large-scale civil war. Barzani's radical approach will disrupt the existing fragile balance, enticing deeper involvent from Turkey and Persia in the northwest Illiguo affairs, providing a resurgence space for the remnants of extremist organization 1515, and ultimately devastating the security frawork we've built in Northern Illiguo over the past years."
He paused for half a second and voiced the core intent of his call:
"Ti is extrely tight, just a few hours left to turn the situation around. Our military cannot directly intervene until obtaining explicit directives from Baghdad and Washington to prevent the assassination. I need to know, does the Central Intelligence Agency have deployable secret assets in Elbil that can urgently intervene to thwart this coup conspiracy and ensure Masood's safety?"
On the other end of the line, Simon fell into a brief silence.
He quickly pulled up the latest deploynt overview of the CIA's human and operational resources in Northern Illiguo, particularly in the Kurd Region, while weighing the credibility of Duke's intel and the severity of the situation.
About seven or eight seconds later, Simon replied.
"Major General Duke, the situation is indeed tricky. Regarding your request for action support..."
He paused slightly, seemingly choosing his words.
"Based on the information I currently have, we have no more than six permanent and rapidly deployable operative personnel in Elbil and its neighboring regions. Their main task is intelligence collection and not executing high-intensity direct action, let alone confronting a heavily ard ambush group. Even if I deploy them all, the chance of success is very low."
Simon stood up, walking to the corner of the office where the water dispenser was, pouring himself half a cup of ice water.
"Therefore, directly dispatching our personnel for ard intervention is not feasible."
Upon hearing Simon was also helpless, Duke's brow furrowed slightly: "You an..."
Simon took a sip of ice water and then said, "Song Heping. You might want to try reaching out to him, don't forget, this guy's military operational capability surpasses even your Delta."
He returned to the desk but didn't sit down, leaning against the table edge, his tone shifting to an analytically guided approach:
"Taking action from Song Heping's side is very beneficial to our overall U.S. interests. If he succeeds, we are pleased, and regional stability is maintained. If he fails, or the action triggers an unexpected chain reaction, the responsibility is his own, after all, he is the PMC Company's boss. Who can argue with that?"
Typical Langley mindset.
"I understand your analysis, Director Simon."
Duke's response was cautious and pragmatic, "Intervening through Song Heping indeed bypasses our primary obstacle. Yet, the key is ensuring he will take action and the action is successful. We lack a formal collaborative relationship with him and there's no command chain."
"So, this requires skillful contact and negotiation, Major General Duke." Simon's tone felt like issuing a special task, "I suggest you, in a personal and informal manner, establish contact with him as soon as possible. Use secure private lines, avoiding official records. Clarify the stakes to him, emphasizing the direct threat Masood's death poses to his Kirkuk interests."
Simon's fingers unconsciously tapped gently on the smooth surface of the mahogany table.
"The entire contact and any ensuing action must maintain 'deniability', this is crucial, understand?"
"Deniability."
aning that if sothing goes wrong, bla can be smoothly deflected.
Duke on the other end of the line absorbed Simon's suggestion, weighing its pros, cons, and risks.
"I understand, Director Simon." Duke replied, "I will contact Song Heping imdiately and have a thorough discussion. Thank you for your analysis and advice."
"Good luck, Major. Hope it's good news next ti we connect." Simon finished and ended the call.
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