Operation Manchurian Freedom (1983: Doomsday)

The First Manchurian War was a conflict between the Union of Sovereign Socialist Republics and the remanent states of the former Chinese provinces of Manchuria. The war began in 1990 with the Soviet invasion of Northern Manchuria, ending in the annexation of the region by the USSR. The war is considered the largest conflict to erupt in the region since doomsday, followed by the Second Manchurian War which would occur twenty-two years later following the bombing of a passenger train heading from Primorskaya Territory in Siberia to Korea, killing 137 people.

Background
Before doomsday the area of Manchuria was characterized by its importance manufacturing which contributed to the Chinese national infrastructure. Its industrial prominence and its key strategic location made the area a heavily targeted area on doomsday, receiving numerous nuclear strikes from the USSR. The local government was shattered immensely, leading to an increase in looting and other crimes. Several local military leaders would assume control of the area, fighting for dominance in the chaos. Several generals from the Shenyang Military Region, and the northern section of the Beijing Military Region would claim to be the true successors to the Chinese government, however to little success.

Many fled into the USSR and other neighboring areas in the early months of the post-doomsday conflict. Others, struggling to survive would organize themselves into raiding parties, attacking Siberian frontier towns. Food and other necessities were in great demand for the Chinese, turning many to the border for basic supplies. The raiding soon became widespread, and with the Soviet government in chaos, defense of the border largely fell the Russian citizens themselves. Skirmishes and racial prejudice was common, leaving many dead along China National Highway 301, and other well traveled roads.

As order began to reemerge in Siberia, the local Russian population petitioned the union for aid, as the defense of the region had become too much of an economic strain for the citizens. The Siberian government, tired of the problem, looked for a more permanent solution, hoping to establish a buffer between Siberia and lawless China to the south.

Outbreak of War
In 1990, Geydar Aliyev, 1st leader of the Union of Sovereign Socialist Republics, approved a plan to invade Northern Manchuria by the end of spring that year. Supplies were gathered and guards were established in Zabaykalsky Krai and Amur to stale opposition in time for an army to be gathered. In April the invasion commenced as units from the 7th and 35th armies crossed into Manchuria. The assault was spearheaded by Russian tanks which entered from the northeast, meeting small resistance near Bei’an. Within a few weeks a separate force consisting primarily of the 125th Guards Machinegun-Artillery Divison, and the 85th Guards Motor Rifle Division, from the Primorskaya Territory Military District managed to secure Shuangyashan and begin advancing toward Harbin. The eastern force was pinned down along the highway, and the front remained through Hiqhar for the next month. North Manchuria was temporarily designated as a territory and put under military rule. The territory consisted of the Russian occupied zone upto that point, reaching into southern Heilongjiang. It was not until November 1995 that the Territory was integrated as a state in the Union and was renamed the Manchurian Socialist Republic.

Renewed Offensive
For the next several months Russian forces were primarily tasked with pacifying the newly created Manchurian territory. Small arms fire and protests in major cities was common, leading to increased Soviet presence in Qiqihar, Daqing, Harbin, Yichun, and Hegang. The Chinese forces, loosely rallied under a local warlord, Zhang Caiwen, would continue to resist the Soviet invasion. Under the proper leadership the Chinese militia was able to successfully harass Soviet supply trains, rising the Soviet death toll in the countryside where the invaders sought to pacify. Internal fighting began to slowly tear the fledgeling resistance apart, starting in January 1991 when Zhang Caiwen was assassinated by a local warlord following a raid on his camp in Jilin. The main force camped south of Mudanjiang became under the control of Hou Shusen, one of Zhang Caiwen’s officers. Eager to prove himself and hopefully end the opposition from rival factions, an attack was led on Mudanjiang on 12 February 1991. The attack reached its height at approximately 9:00 PM local time, in which the Chinese forces managed to cross onto the northern river bank, engaging in bloody hand-to-hand combat against the Soviet artillery encampment to the north. As the night went on the Chinese casualties grew. Lack of communication led to friendly fire and many civilians killed. The majority of the surviving Chinese force had already routed by midnight. By the next morning Hou Shusen had withdrawn, suffering horrendous casualties. Fearing that he would suffer a similar fate to his predecessor, Hou Shusen disappeared into the surrounding area, falling into obscurity.

Northern militia leader, Liu Yuejun assumed control of the Chinese forces, launching a campaign from the west. The Soviet, fortifying their defenses in the major cities, would fight back dozens of attacks launched from the south and west. On 7 April 1993 the militia managed to salvage enough supplies to launch a major offensive against the Soviet garrison in Harbin. Utilizing artillery seized from the south and from the former factories in Manchuria, Liu Yuejun positioned his men to surround the major routes out of the city, bombarding the garrison for several hours. Sensing an opportunity to counterattack, the Soviet officer in charge of the defense, Iosif Gusakovsky, sent an assault force to engage a hole in the Chinese defenses. In the hastily established defense, a reasonably sized gap was sighted from Route 301 to the eastern flank, allowing Soviet transports to cut the Chinese in two. A Soviet attacked the Chinese right flank, inflicting large casualties and eliminating a valuable Chinese position. The Chinese left flank retaliated, entering the city along route 301, and engaging the Soviets about thirty feet down the road. The Chinese managed to make a small advance, securing the center of the city by nightfall. The Chinese attackers to the far left were tasked with continuing the assault, surrounding the Soviet flank. That night the Soviets managed to hold off the assault, routing the Chinese flank, which would flee the battle. By morning Liu Yuejun was forced to write up a new strategy. The central Chinese force had no choice but to fall back to cover the inevitable Soviet counterattack, drawing a new lime farther south. As the main Soviet attack began the Chinese were unable to hold back the Soviets, and Liu Yuejun called for a retreat.

The battle proved to the Soviet command that the Manchurian threat was still as real as ever. Plans for invasion were renewed, beginning in April of 1993 with the movement of the Harbin veterans farther south. Liu Yuejun panicked, ordering his ragtag army into Jilin. In the north Chiness forces under Meng Jinxi engaged the Soviet reinforcements at the Battle of Zalantun, where the Chinese managed to achieve a small victory. Forces in the north were rallied, leading Meng Jinxi to move his forces south to surround the Soviet advance and support Liu Yuejun. The Soviet forces caught up to Liu Yuejun on 1 June 1993, laying siege to the city of Changchun. The Chinese were able to create defenses out of the city’s rubble, creating a valiant defense against the Soviets, who were using artillery from the north. Meng Jinxi’s army would be pinned down at Ulan Hot by the Soviet flank, preventing reinforcements from arriving in time. On 5 June the city surrendered, and Liu Yuejun was captured. Liu Yuejun was later transferred to a prisoner camp in the northwest, facing malnutrition and disease, he attempted to lead an escape, ending in his execution.

Within the next several months the entirety of Southern Manchuria was secured by the Soviets. A separate campaign toward the coast was launched in December of 1993, leading to the fall of Dalian on 1 March 1994. Despite this, Chinese raiders would continue to harass Soviet supply trains for months to come, until the war officially ended in 1995.

Aftermath
The Soviet invasion ended in 1995, leading to the pacification of Sino-Soviet border. The Manchurian Socialist Republic was declared in 1995, encompassing the former Soviet territory of northern manchuria and all of the occupied zone in the south.