Their conversation was laced with deep aning.
Morins had also run a background check on Song Heping.
He had so understanding of Song Heping's rise in Illiguo, but of course, he didn't know the details.
He knew that Song Heping was at odds with the CIA, but he was unaware that at this ti, Song Heping had actually smoothed things over with Simon, the CIA station chief in Illiguo.
anwhile, Song Heping had thoroughly investigated Morins, focusing mainly on whether there were any connections between the ard organizations in Colombia and the CIA.
Previously, the CIA mostly controlled the South Arican arms market, and they did so through a proxy model; cultivating compliant arms dealers, and allowing them to traffic arms in South Arica.
This was done to prevent Russian arms dealers from entering the market. After all, if you don't do it, soone else will, just like the drug trade—even if a major drug lord like Pablo is taken down, other drug lords will rise.
The CIA later realized it's better to control than to suppress.
The advantage of this control model is like a water supply system - whoever holds the valve controls where the water flows, which can be adjusted to weaken or support as needed.
On the surface, the United States usually harbors a strong aversion toward leftist ard organizations due to ideological conflicts with Arican positions. Therefore, Colombia's two main ard groups, the National Liberation Army (ELN) and the Revolutionary Ard Forces of Colombia (FARC), are not favored by the United States. In fact, these two ard groups also hold hostility towards the United States.
In light of this, the United States Governnt decided to provide funding to the Colombian Governnt to assist them in their fight against drug trafficking organizations and to eliminate the ELN and FARC within the country. These organizations were listed as terrorist groups by the United States, making their situation quite difficult. However, the matter was not so simple.
Although the United States publicly fought drug cri, the CIA was covertly involved in controlling the drug market in South Arica. This practice ant that the drug trafficking organizations in South Arica could never be completely eradicated, creating a situation akin to "the grass that regrows with the spring wind after a wild fire". Whenever these drug trafficking groups rose again, they would often collude with local ard organizations because only through such alliances could they establish a foothold.
For example, the FARC had a close relationship with local drug trafficking groups in Colombia, benefiting from mutual exploitation and growing strong together. The drug traffickers gained the protection and safety from the ard groups, while the ard groups received funding and weapons. This interdependent relationship allowed both parties to grow and strengthen.
Although the CIA tried to control the drug market in South Arica, their efforts often ended in failure.
The compliant drug traffickers they supported would often beco less obedient as they grew stronger, much like the past Agaida Lamp Brother.
After all, no one wants to be a pawn forever.
Logically, the CIA should be fully committed to assisting the military or agencies like the Drug Enforcent Administration (DEA) in cooperation with the governnts of South Arican countries, tackling the drug problem once and for all—that would be a long-term solution.
However, the CIA seed unable to give up the drug trade, as if they too were addicted to the narcotics.
Through drug trade, the CIA was able to obtain large amounts of operational funds unregulated by Congress, used to execute secret operations, and even to subvert the governnts of other countries.
For instance, in 1979, a revolution erupted in Central Arica's Nicaragua and the pro-Arican regi was overthrown.
The Aricans couldn't tolerate a governnt in their own backyard that opposed them, so the CIA decided to support the pro-Arican anti-governnt ard forces in Nicaragua and provided them with continuous funding and arms support.
However, war is an enormous drain that requires sustained financial support. The Nixon Governnt originally planned to request funds from Congress, but was rejected.
After all, the United States, as wealthy as it is, had many financial demands, and even the landlord's house had no excess grain. Moreover, once these expenses were made public, the United States would face criticism from the international community.
Therefore, the CIA had to figure out a way to raise funds themselves. They quickly found a clever thod—drug trafficking. The CIA used planes flying direct to Nicaragua to deliver weapons and intelligence personnel, while bringing back tons of drugs from this chaotic country into the United States.
They would then sell the drugs through various covert channels and used the money earned to support pro-Arican forces.
From that ti on, the drug war between South Arica and the United States fell into a strange cycle—the more drugs were banned, the more they proliferated; prohibition was simply ineffective.
It was for this reason that ELN and FARC, two ard organizations, had been trading with arms dealers who were actually CIA agents through various secretive ans, or purchasing weapons from drug trafficking groups to pass on to themselves.
As ti passed, these ard groups, ard with newly acquired weapons, seized territory, captured weapons from the governnt army, and even colluded with corrupt elents within the military to obtain so of the weapons supplied by the United States to help the Colombian governnt fight drug lords.
However, the situation had recently changed. An extraditable drug lord that the United States governnt was very keen on, Silverto, had been released from prison, and to extradite him, the Aricans and the Colombian governnt had started negotiations again. To show sincerity, the United States provided not just funding, but also sent Special Forces mbers to assist Colombia in training their troops, help suppress the increasingly powerful ELN and FARC ard organizations, and began cutting off the supply of arms to these two groups via the CIA.
It was also for this reason that lately Morins had been having a tough ti, which is why he wanted to cooperate with General Rama and purchase arms from them.
However, they didn't expect their first trade to be disrupted by the United Self-Defense Forces (AUC).
Song Heping guessed that Morins would definitely have to find new arms dealers to purchase weapons from, or else, without replenishnt, his troops would hardly be able to survive the encirclent and suppression by the Colombian governnt army and AUC—it was likely just a matter of ti before their downfall.
Therefore, Song Heping was actually quite calm inside. The ard organization leader sitting across from him with a darkening face didn't dare to, and didn't want to, do anything to him.
Indeed, after a long ti, Morins across from him let out a sigh and said leisurely, "Alright... I can try to make another deal with General Rama, but as you said, paynt upon delivery."
"Done." Song Heping said, "Then, Colonel, your first order of business..."
"Wait, I have one more condition." Morins interrupted Song Heping, "If we establish a long-term cooperative relationship in the future, you must provide military training for my n. Money is not an issue!"
"Provide military training!?" Song Heping pointed towards the door, "You don't expect to send people here to train you, do you? No, that's too risky. By doing so, my identity will be completely exposed. Colonel, it's not that I don't want to make your money, but have you not thought that by now ELN is on the terrorist list of the United States governnt? Although I know that list is nonsense, I am still mixing in under the Aricans' roof, so aren't you asking to court my own death? Our cooperation must remain secret. Even after establishing a trade channel, I won't co into direct contact. You and General Rama will have to communicate one-on-one."
Upon hearing this, Morins' face changed again.
He was rarely rejected so directly and candidly.
But he had to admit that Song Heping's words were not false.
He certainly couldn't ask soone to risk their life and fortune for his money.
After all, one needs to be alive to spend money.
Before Morins could respond with a new answer, a burst of dense gunfire was heard from outside.
Ratatatatata—
Followed by soone shouting in Spanish—
"Attack!"
Song Heping was suddenly startled, a terrifying thought flashing through his mind—the camp was under attack!
Morins, sitting opposite him, stood up swiftly, his face ghastly pale as he drew his pistol and aid it at Song Heping: "Are you with the governnt army?!"
Song Heping wanted to say he wasn't, but then he thought about it and realized, indeed, it was too much of a coincidence.
Now it really was like a streak of yellow mud on his pants—it wasn't shit, but it might as well have been!
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