King Of War: Starting with Arms Dealer

Joe Ga said with a grin, "Why doesn't the government army have the advantage in North Kivu Province?"

"Because those guerrillas are cunning!"

"You're right…"

As he spoke, Joe Ga coughed lightly and said, "But a more important reason is that the government forces are too poor. Can you acknowledge that?"

As the deputy minister of national defense, Ngira decisively said, "No, our soldiers are very good fighters, we just don't want to repeat the tragedies of the past decades."

Joe Ga understood what he meant. If a major purge was conducted, the government's power was barely sufficient, but once the situation became uncontrollable, causing a humanitarian disaster, it might lead to the independence of North Kivu and South Kivu Provinces with the support of the international community.

Congo had already split into 'Democratic Republic of the Congo' and 'Congo Braze.' If those two major mining provinces split further, then Congo would have no bargaining chips left.

Moreover, the location of North Kivu Province is crucial. It borders Uganda and Rwanda, known as the 'Great Lakes Region,' which is primarily occupied by the rebels of these two countries.

People in Africa are not very clear about the concept of national borders. If the government forces intervene strongly in North Kivu, any conflict could be tantamount to Congo needlessly taking the blame for Uganda and Rwanda.

Joe Ga would definitely not agree to get involved in that quagmire with P·B.

Because from Ngira's tone, he knew that he aimed to use the mines to offset costs, even enticing Joe Ga to invest.

Before the situation in Central Africa stabilizes, Joe Ga did not want to expand his mining ventures. His limited bank savings could not suffer such a burn either.

Giving mines was definitely not an option. They had to give money!

So Joe Ga said with a smile, "You should know that I have trained a squad for the Central African Government, and currently, they are performing completely differently. Mary Aenola even dispatched half of them to Bangui to serve as the capital's guard force.

Pal, I'm a military contractor, but my funds are limited. You can't always think about paying with mines; I don't have that much money to invest.

Or you could wait a bit. When I've regained my strength, I might try out North Kivu Province.

But before that, I can help you train a squad, not only to reequip them all but also to send some to Seville for training.

You should have heard about my progress here over the past two months. You know what elite special forces combined with the air force can achieve.

Imagine P·B Company's configuration. If that squad had a helicopter support squadron, or even a few Super Albatrosses—cheap and effective fighter planes...

Do you think you could assimilate the legacy left by Belgium United Mining Company and even swallow up a few territories of rebel groups?

And have you considered that stabilizing the 'Great Lakes Region' requires effort not only from Congo but also from Uganda and Rwanda?

Buddy, there's a lot to be done here…"

After listening, Ngira was silent for a long time, then he said, "Wait a moment," and then covered the phone to consult with others.

Joe Ga put the phone on speaker and set it aside, whistling to try to make the large-eyed baby elephant Danbao sleep. But the little elephant thought Joe Ga was free and wriggled up to him, shoving into his arms while twisting and calling to go out and play.

Joe Ga gave Danbao a few bananas to pacify him without success., but when voices emerged from the phone, Danbao quieted down, as if understanding Joe Ga was busy, snorting softly and lying down with his big head on Joe Ga's shoulder as if he too wanted to learn how to do business.

Joe Ga sighed in relief, picked up the phone and then heard an unfamiliar voice...

"Hello Hu Lang, I am Minam, the Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo. I would like to hear your opinion."

Joe Ga whistled in surprise and said with a smile, "Hello, Mr. Minam.

I was discussing with Minister Ngira the feasibility of building a capable fighting force for Congo."

Minam responded with a laugh, "In fact, I'm more interested in the 'Great Lakes Region' issue.

You should know, our relations with Uganda and Rwanda are not as good as people think.

During our times of turmoil, they took away too much wealth from our territory."

Joe Ga shook his head with a laugh. Back when Congo was still called Zaire, that turmoil could be described as Africa's world war.

The nations involved included Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Zambia Angola.

President Kabila had borrowed troops from Uganda and Rwanda to overthrow the Mobutu-ruled Zaire government.

Then, to ease ethnic tensions, he aligned himself with local tribes opposed to the Tutsi.

That angered Uganda and Rwanda, which were primarily Tutsi-dominated, and then this miraculous Kabila also borrowed troops from Tanzania, Zambia, and Angola to drive out Uganda and Rwanda.

As the core of the conflict, Congo's aftermath is imaginable. The armies that came to 'assist' naturally weren't without cost, and since the Congo Government had no money to pay them, they had to take their own things back.

Strongman Kagame leading Rwanda to prosperity with his first pot of gold —saying he got it from Congo would not be too much. He himself had once said that the troops sent to Congo never spent a Rwandan coin on military expenses, not to mention the then more dominant Uganda.

This incident occurred just over 20 years ago, and it's not easy to erase.

However, Joe Ga was just a military contractor, and he wasn't interested in politics. Thus, he said with a smile, "My advice is to establish a competent force, as it should be your duty to safeguard the lives and property of the people in North Kivu. To any observer, those anti-government guerrillas are a cancer.

Poor control equals tacit approval, which is bad for your image.

But if you can squeeze them eastward, then the situation would be different.

'The Great Lakes Region' topography isn't suited for large troop movements. What's needed is precise striking power…"

On the phone, Minam heard this and fell silent for a while before saying, "So, you'll be able to train a similar force for Uganda when the time comes, am I right?"

Hu Lang, what good does this do you? Just for selling arms?"

Joe Ga sighed helplessly and responded, "Someone once told me that the key to government arms procurement lies in the 'not so innocent' part.

I don't want to deal with anti-government guerrillas or terrorists, so I have to think of other methods."

As Joe Ga spoke, he heard a strange sigh from the other end of the phone and laughed, "Prime Minister, you should know that P·B Company can't achieve in North Kivu what I've achieved in Bangassou.

But I still want to make money, a lot of legal money, so I need a stable environment.

Considering the current situation in North Kivu, I don't see any possibility of integrating resources, so I definitely won't invest a dime there.

I wouldn't take the mines even if they were free because most of my capital is stuck in Central Africa."

After listening, Minam laughed and said, "So you want to train our army to raise funds? Once we squeeze the survival space of those 'Great Lakes Region' guerrillas, Uganda will turn to you for help.

Hu Lang, you're a strange man, but this is a good business."

Joe Ga laughed and said, "Indeed, it's a good business, but it requires a group of selfless leaders to push it forward. When the 'Great Lakes Region' settles down, it can produce more benefits.

Prime Minister, I'm not a politician and I don't want to get involved in politics, but I just learned a lesson yesterday, that is to enlarge the cake and treat those at the bottom well, so those sitting at the table can eat more."

Minam smiled noncommittally and said, "Great theory, but Hu Lang, are you sure it's not because Uganda's 'God's Armed Organization' is after you, so you want to relieve pressure through us?"

Joe Ga was stunned, then shook his head with a laugh, "I've heard of this 'God's Resistance Army', but I've never dealt with them. Are they also drug dealers?"

As Joe Ga spoke, he heard laughter from the other end of the phone and said helplessly, "Alright, alright. If this is your bargaining tactic, then you've succeeded.

Five hundred men, thirty thousand US Dollars each, I'll be responsible for their training and equip them with a complete set of gear.

If you really mean it, for the same price, I can arrange for 200 people to go to Seville for pilot and ground crew training.

The 'Little Lamb' is very suitable for the terrain of North Kivu, one million for a second-hand one, 1.5 million for a new one, I think 8 to 12 planes would allow you to control most of the region.

Of course, items like rocket-propelled grenades and anti-tank missiles would need to be purchased as needed by you.

I'm telling you, this is definitely..."

"No problem!"

"What?"

"I said no problem!

A team of 500, 200 from land aviation and ground crew, 10 brand-new armed 'Little Lambs.'Nôv(el)B\\jnn

No problem!"

Joe Ga paused, then said dubiously, "Is that a done deal?"

Minam laughed loudly, "Hu Lang, you're the least greedy arms dealer I've met, why wouldn't I agree?

But I'm a bit dissatisfied with the price. I think we'll give you 50 million US Dollars, plus a piece of the Tantalum Mine in North Kivu. You'll be responsible for building this team, and Ngira will lead this team directly."

Joe Ga rubbed his temples, doubting whether his brain was broken, so he couldn't even do simple math anymore.

After some thought, Joe Ga said sternly, "What is the premium part?"

Minam laughed and said, "The premium part and that piece of Tantalum Mine are your startup capital for resource integration. When North Kivu starts to improve, we hope you can help integrate the nearby six mines to achieve greater output.

The Belgian's mining startup work is already done, but our President thinks if it is handed to you, it could produce greater output."

As Minam spoke, he gave Joe Ga some time to catch his breath and then laughed, "Hu Lang, you are a highly credible person, and what you've done in Central Africa has attracted a lot of attention.

If an opportunity for collaboration arises, you're definitely our first choice!"

At that moment, Joe Ga fully realized that these people still wanted to pull him in, but it wasn't malicious.

These bastards obviously embezzled some of the 'compensation' from Belgium United Mining Company.

Six Tantalum Mines, this is more profitable than six gold mines!

That 50 million and one Tantalum Mine were probably the sum they had originally planned to pay P·B for waging the war.

But now that Joe Ga had proposed a new scheme, that money could actually come out of the treasury, considering the team belonged to Congo.

These people saved a really significant amount of money, but in the end, they achieved their goal!

Once the new team is formed, not only North Kivu but those six Tantalum Mines are definitely secured, then Joe Ga would be able to start integrating resources.

This isn't business, this is robbery!

These people are all greedy bastards, but they're giving too much!"