with a calm, confident smile. There were times during the last two
days when that smile would have been a lie, and victory was all the
sweeter for having been uncertain. In the delicate balance of
international politics, sometimes appearances mattered more than
reality.
Reality: The United States could have smashed Cuba into a glowing
ember, had it wished. Illusion: The United States was a force for
stability in the region. Result: Smaller nations would flock to
America’s side, providing training opportunities and much-needed votes
on the main floor and, she had to admit, a bigger drain on the State
Department as they demanded money and technical assistance as their
just due.
No matter. In the long run, it was better for those nations to be
allied with the United States than to be open to foreign influences
such as Libya. She sighed, and wondered if this entire scenario could
have been averted had the first Cuban Missile Crisis been handled
appropriately. What would it have taken to tempt Castro away from the
Soviet yoke?
Money? Would that alone have been enough? She doubted it, and there
was no point in second-guessing President Kennedy at this point. What
mattered was that Cuba was once again a nuclear-free part of the United
States’ backyard.
She took a deep breath and began her address. “My fellow ambassadors,
I know you will join with me in expressing deep remorse over the
industrial accident that occurred in western Cuba just this morning.”
She turned a sympathetic gaze on the Cuban ambassador. “Sir, my staff
tells me that you have recently discovered a large coal deposit on the
westernmost dp of your island.” She noted with pleasure the puzzled
expression on his face. “What a tragedy, to have such a massive
cave-in so soon after you began exploiting those resources. Perhaps,
if the offer would not be taken amiss, I could suggest that we render
some technical assistance and support to your nation? If it would be
acceptable or desired, of course.” Ball in your court, she thought,
watching the range of emotions flit across his face. Will you reject
the offer here, in front of so many others who have taken advantage of
our generosity? I suspect that you have the authority to do absolutely
nothing, and will initiate the appropriate stalling measures until you
can confer with your grand supreme leader. For just a moment, she
wished that the Cuban president had been visiting the naval base when
the American firepower had rained down on it. How much easier it would
have been for everyone had he simply ceased to be alive.
But no, those consequences would have been unacceptable as well.
Assassination was not a part of American foreign policy, as evidenced
by the Coalition restraint during Desert Storm and Desert Shield. In
earlier centuries, nations such as Cuba and, of course, those of the
Middle East had found assassination to be the quickest way to clarify
difficult questions of sovereignty and succession.
But in the modern world, even the collateral damage of killing a
nation’s leader while pursuing a valid military objective would have
been looked at askance by the world community.
“Of course, I will have to ascertain the status of the rescue
operations before replying,” the Cuban ambassador managed finally.
“Your gracious offer will not be forgotten.”
She glared back. “See that it’s not. It remains available, since you
have need of it.” She turned back to the chairman.
“And now, on to other business. I understand that the representative
of the Bahamas is having a birthday today.
May I be the first to extend my congratulations?”
And so the business of international diplomacy churned on, a tangled
web of personal relations, illusions, and political power. As she
watched the nations struggle through the morass of conflicting
loyalties and orders, she marveled that the august body, conceived with
such good intentions, could ever accomplish anything.
1100 Local (+5 GMT) The Pentagon Pamela Drake stormed past the
secretary and barged into Admiral Loggins’s office. She was pale,
still drained looking, although a quick shower and change of clothes at
her hotel in Crystal City had washed away most of the dirt and grime