WWIII Alternative Outcome (Atlantic Resolve)

WWIII Alternative Outcome is an alternate history page within the alternate history world of Atlantic Resolve and gives an overview on what might've happened had the All Russian Federation won the Third World War. The second "point of divergence" was the Russian General Staff choosing to assign Colonel General Vyacheslav Borisov to command the North American Front instead of being the second in command of the European Front. Meanwhile, Colonel General Sergei Surovikinis was given command of the European Front.

Conventional War Timeline

 * 28 September 2016: Russian military invaded the US Pacific Northwest and NATO Eastern Europe. Colonel General Vyacheslav Borisov led Russian Forces in North America while Colonel General Sergei Surovikinis led Russian Forces in Eastern Europe.
 * 25 October 2016: Federation Occupational Authority - North America was formed by Russian commanders to govern the local population. General Borisov - Prefect of the occupational government - determined Alternative Right member Lana Lokteff to be far too unstable and instead choose to appoint someone more moderate as the top ranking US representative in the FOA.
 * 5 November 2016: Lana Lokteff attempted to create a Cascadian People's Republic but was prevented from doing so when both her and her followers were arrested by the Federal Security Service of the All Russian Federation (FSB) for rebellious activities.
 * 8 November 2016: Democratic ticket of Bernie Sanders and Tulsi Gabbard defeated the Republican ticket of Ted Cruz and Carly Fiorina.
 * 30 November 2016: Russian forces occupying the Pacific Northwest coast launched a major ground offensive. With the Pacific Northwest insurgency deemed a minor nuisance, majority of combat units took part while security is primarily handled by the FSB and the Military Police of Russia.
 * 20 January 2017: Bernie Sanders became the 45th President of the United States with inauguration taking place in Cheyenne Mountain for security reasons.
 * 28 January 2017: Russian forces won the Battle of Tszew and secured a bridgehead across the Vistula River.
 * 5 February 2017: Russian reinforcements arrived in Gdańsk, preventing a German-led NATO counterattack which was scheduled to begin that same day.
 * 14 February 2017: Russian forces won the Battles of Okanogan, Yakima, Bend, Klamath Falls, Yreka, and Arcata, thereby breaking through US National Guard lines.
 * 25 February 2017: Russian forces won the Battle of Gdańsk and secured their first significant foothold west of the Vistula River. NATO quickly shifted its frontline forces to the north in order to contain the Russian breakthrough.
 * 17 March 2017: Russian forces in Eastern Europe won the Battles of Toruń, Płock, Warsaw, Tarnobrzeg, and Kraków, thereby securing multiple bridgeheads across the Vistula. Around the same time, Russian forces in North America successfully reached the Columbia River in Washington State and the mountain passes of Central Oregon.
 * 8 April 2017: Russian forces in Eastern Europe and North America resumed offensive operations after spending several weeks consolidating and regrouping. NATO threw everything they had to hold back the Russian offensive.
 * 22 April 2017: Russian forces broke through NATO lines along the western bank of the Vistula River and began their push towards the Oder-Neisse line.

Nuclear escalation
In a bid to halt Russian advancements, US President Bernie Sanders authorized the use of tactical nuclear weapons. The attack was carried out on 25 April 2017 with multiple battlefield nuclear warheads over advancing Russian troops in Poland resulting in the deaths of thousands of casualties. Unwilling to use the same on their own soil, the US Air Force in North America instead hit Russian forces on the Pacific Northwest Front with conventional MOABs. Russian forces on both fronts immediately halted all offensive operations and assumed defense positions. In retaliation for the use of tactical nuclear weapons, Russian Borei-class submarines off the US West and East Coasts launched a nuclear counterforce strike against the Minuteman ICBM bases as well as strategic bomber bases throughout the United States. Simultaneously, the Russians launched nuclear-armed anti-ship ballistic missiles (ASBNs) against all confirmed and suspected locations of US Ohio-class submarines as well as multiple US carrier strike groups. US President Bernie Sanders started to issue a strategic launch order but was cut off when Air Force One was destroyed during takeoff from a nuclear warhead hitting Peterson AFB. By the time Vice-President Tulsi Gabbard was sworn in as the 46th President of the United States, it was too late: America's entire strategic nuclear triad was destroyed and the United States faced the prospect of disproportionate annihilation. To prevent this, President Gabbard ordered all US forces worldwide to ceasefire.

End of the War
With the Americans effectively knocked out of the fighting, all NATO and other Allied countries sued for peace over the following days with the All Russian Federation accepting limited surrender from all except one: Russian President Vladimir Putin however stated that America started World War Three and would therefore only accept unconditional surrender. On 30 April 2017, the United States of America unconditionally surrendered to the All Russian Federation. The American "Stars and Stripes" was subsequently lowered across the nation and the Russian white, blue, and red tricolour flag risen in its place. US President Tulsi Gabbard addressed the nation with the news of America's surrender and acknowledged that the United States of America were the aggressors in the Third World War, stating that Obama had approved an off-the-books military campaign through the private military company Academi, formally Blackwater, in an effort to destabilize the All Russian Federation. She also indicated that she greatly objected to the decision made by the late President Bernie Sanders to use of tactical nuclear weapons to stop Russian military advancement and accused him of forcing Russia to mount a nuclear attack against the United States which resulted in the deaths of millions of Americans. The President's speech was followed by a playing of the "State Anthem of the Russian Federation" instead of the "Star-Spangled Banner".

Europe
The All Russian Federation occupied the Baltic States, Poland, Czech Republic, and Slovakia. Additionally Hungary and Romania were jointly occupied by Russia and Serbia while Turkey occupied North Thrace (Bulgaria) and West Thrace (Greece). The Turkish Republic of North Cyprus occupied the entire Cypriot island. NATO was required to dissolve itself with immediate effect as per terms of the peace agreement. The All Russian Federation was given expedited membership in the European Union as the new dominant political and military power within the supranational organization. As a result the All Russian Federation had achieved de facto economic control over Europe and used its new position to avoid the economic collapse the pre-war Russian government feared. BREXIT was cancelled due to a new EU Constitution prohibiting member states from unilaterally leaving the Russian-dominated entity.

North America
In North America, the Russians solidified their occupation of the western Pacific Northwest region and deployed additional forces into the area. Additionally, UN peacekeeping missions were conducted in hotspots throughout the United States and in areas that were effected by the Russian nuclear attack. Notably the peacekeepers primarily consisted of members of the Commonwealth of Independent States and other Russian allies, making it an unofficial extension of Russia's occupation of American soil. The United States was also required to pay trillions of dollars in war reparations which greatly increased the national debt. Despite America having unconditionally surrendered and the Federation Occupational Authority - North America seizing control over the country, Tulsi Gabbard was allowed to remain President of the United States. President Gabbard issued an executive order calling for the unilateral dismantling of all remaining tactical nuclear weapons and agreed to place all of America's nuclear power plants under Russian political and military overseers.

Union of Sovereign States
A joint summit for the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) in Sochi, Russia on 11 October 2017. It was during this meeting that all members opted for the Creation of the Union of Sovereign States through the merger of both groups thereby resurrecting the vision of Mikhail Gorbachev. The Union of Sovereign States flag was temporarily the CIS flag though there have been proposals including the old Soviet flag, a red version of the CIS flag, and several flags previously proposed for the EAEU. The Sovereign Union of Nations was adopted as the State Anthem of the Union of Sovereign States which played to the tune of the State Anthems of the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation. The All Russian Federation retained the latter anthem with Vladimir Putin outright rejecting a proposal from a moderate minority to restore the Patriotic Song. All individual European member states retained membership in the European Union which heightened Russia's dominance over that supranational organization.

Occupation of the United States
While open military occupation was initially limited to the Pacific Northwest territory seized by the Russians during the war, Russian military officers quickly assumed command over all major United States military units worldwide while FSB officers took charge of most law enforcement agencies around the country. Over time, the All Russian Federation and, later, the Union of Sovereign States gradually expanded their military presence throughout the United States. The Russian military was formally granted leases to several US military installations along the Eastern Seaboard including Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (Maine), Governors Island (New York) Naval Support Activity Hampton Roads (Virginia), and Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point (North Carolina). Russia also assumed command of Vandenberg Air Force Base and Naval Air Station Alameda in California. US President Tulsi Gabbard had also granted use of the Cheyenne Mountain Complex in Colorado by the Russian Air Force only for the US military garrison there to refuse to turn over control and side with the American Resistance. The Russians sent in GRU Spetsnaz and the 76th Guards Air Assault Division to assault the mountain. The Russians were able to take the base but not before the Resistance was able to inflict severe damage to the installation. Russia's role in the UN peacekeeping missions in the United States Mid-West also greatly increased. The pro-Russian American Unity Party was formed through the official merger between the Republican and Democratic Parties. Several members from both parties refused to comply with the changes, vowing to continue to do everything in their power to bring an end to Russian occupation and depose the pro-Russian Gabbard Administration. The Armed Forces of the All Russian Federation continued to grow in numbers and strength due to economic boost from war reparations and dominance over the EU allowing for a much bigger defense budget. By November 2019, the Russian military had reached Soviet-era strength levels this time as a modernized professional fighting force. As such the Russians were able to further reinforce their occupational forces in the United States. War crimes tribunals were also held with many US political and military leaders being forced to stand trial including former US President Barack Obama, former Secretary of Defense Ash Carter, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Joseph Dunford, etc.

Independent Republic of Texas
The Republic of Texas seceded from the United States of America on 28 April 2017 three days following the destruction of America's strategic arsenal and the subsequent cease-fire. When Russian Vladimir Putin vowed to accept only unconditional surrender from the United States, the Texas state government rightfully concluded that Russian military occupation was inevitable so Governor Greg Abbott gave a speech declaring that the Republic of Texas was once again an independent nation. Surprisingly the Russians were among the first countries to recognize the new country, likely due to the reduction in opposition to the pro-Russian administration of US President Tulsi Gabbard.

American Resistance Government
Following the unconditional surrender of the United States of America to the All Russian Federation, the American Resistance had become a nationwide organization seeking to bring an end to Russia's gradually increasing occupation of US soil. Eventually, the American Resistance created its own government which they declared was the one true government of the United States of America. The Battle Cry of Freedom was selected as the official anthem of the American Resistance Government. Jeb Bush, former Governor of Florida, was elected President of the American Resistance Government. In his inaugural address, President Bush denounced the current administration as a puppet regime that was collaborating with a hostile foreign power occupying American soil. US President Tulsi Gabbard declared in a counterspeech that the federal government remained sole legitimate government in the country and then proceeded to condemn the so-called American Resistance Government as a domestic terrorist organization.