"What's going on here? Is this some kind of Russian suicide squad? Or is it because of the territorial dispute over the Northern Four Islands between Russia and Japan? Brave, sure, but this seems reckless. Even though Japan is a defeated nation, its Maritime Self-Defense Force is no joke. As for Russia's Pacific Fleet stationed nearby, its strength has long since declined." A German netizen commented online, making bold claims based on the news reports.
"Japan dares to detain Russian citizens? Drop a Tsar Bomba on them! Wipe them out!" This was a comment from a Russian netizen. The call for crushing Japan quickly spread across major Russian forums, fueling widespread anti-Japanese sentiment.
Mavi sat in his hotel room, browsing through the news and online discussions. European netizens mocked and expressed hostility toward Russia over this incident, while American netizens remained neutral.
Meanwhile, Russian and domestic netizens overwhelmingly supported military intervention to retaliate against Japan. However, this was obviously impossible—it was just an outpouring of emotions online.
As for Japanese netizens, Mavi didn't even need to check; they were undoubtedly siding with their own country.
Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force had already released a statement claiming that the detained Russians had attempted to breach Japan's territorial waters, which led to their lawful arrest.
It was clear to any observant person that this was a deliberate provocation by Japan in its attempt to reclaim the Northern Four Islands. The underlying motives were obvious…
Late that night, Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister, Snieryana, called Mavi as soon as she heard the news.
"Mavi, I heard about what happened in Japan. Our Ukrainian government stands unconditionally with Russia. If you need any assistance, just let us know."
Since this was a conflict between Russia and Japan, Ukraine couldn't interfere too much. However, they were willing to provide necessary support given the strong ties between the two nations. Ignoring the situation was out of the question.
"Thank you, Deputy Prime Minister Snieryana. Let me handle this matter first," Mavi replied with gratitude.
Not long before this call, he had also received a similar phone call from Country X's officials, expressing concern and offering assistance.
Even though it was just a phone call, this kind of warm support made Mavi feel reassured—at least it proved that there was still genuine camaraderie in the world.
"Alright! Good luck! Just remember, you don't have to shoulder everything alone," Snieryana advised over the phone. She was very clear about separating official matters from personal sentiments.
"Thank you, Deputy Prime Minister Snieryana. I understand!" Mavi expressed his gratitude once again.
---
The next morning, at Tokyo International Airport, Japan—
Mavi's private jet landed right on schedule in the island nation's capital.
As soon as he disembarked, he saw Russian diplomat Airmed, who had been waiting for him. Dressed in a black suit, Airmed stood at the foot of the aircraft stairs.
"Mr. Mavi, good to see you again. I've been informed about the situation. Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs claims that the Russian citizens were arrested because they attempted to breach Japan's territorial waters, forcing the Maritime Self-Defense Force to detain them."
Airmed relayed Japan's official statement word for word to Mavi.
After the previous Turkish aircraft carrier incident, Airmed had come to fully understand Mavi's personal capabilities. Therefore, in this diplomatic matter, he was prepared to follow Mavi's lead.
"Mr. Mavi, how do you think we should approach negotiations with the Japanese government this time?"
"Maintain a firm stance," Mavi responded.
Diplomatic negotiations required a level-headed approach—too much personal emotion could lead to mistakes, giving the other side leverage and making the situation even more difficult.
After briefly discussing their strategy at the airport, the two of them got into a diplomatic vehicle and headed to the Japanese Prime Minister's Office to meet with Prime Minister Kaneda Ichiro.
Upon arrival, they were kept waiting in the reception room for over half an hour before Kaneda Ichiro finally showed up. He wore a loose-fitting black suit, and his delayed entrance was clearly a deliberate attempt to test Russia's patience.
"My apologies, gentlemen. I was tied up with other matters and kept you waiting," Kaneda Ichiro said with a fake smile before shaking hands with Mavi and Airmed.
Like most Japanese officials, Kaneda Ichiro had small, shifty eyes, a flat nose, and thin lips. He was shorter than the South Korean admiral Mavi had met previously, yet he carried himself with an air of arrogance. Even the way he looked up at Mavi seemed to be filled with misplaced confidence and self-assurance.
Without wasting time, Russian diplomat Airmed got straight to the point after shaking hands.
"Prime Minister Kaneda Ichiro, we are here regarding the 18 Russian citizens who were unjustly detained by Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force. We demand that your government release them immediately and return them to Russia."
"Unjustly detained? Mr. Airmed, according to reports from our Maritime Self-Defense Force, those 18 Russians unlawfully entered Japanese territorial waters and clashed with our forces, leaving us no choice but to detain them," Kaneda Ichiro replied with a smirk.
"Furthermore, after conducting an investigation, we discovered that these 18 individuals were highly trained special forces operatives equipped with advanced electronic recording devices. The Japanese government strongly suspects that they were engaged in espionage activities when they attempted to breach our territorial waters. Therefore, we will be charging them with espionage under Japanese law."
Kaneda Ichiro maintained his polite yet insidious smile as he countered Airmed's demands, clearly playing hardball.
Airmed immediately retorted, his tone sharp, "Espionage? As far as I know, our citizens never even entered your territorial waters. The recording devices they carried were simply for film production purposes and have nothing to do with espionage."
"That is not for you to decide, Mr. Airmed. Regardless, our government will proceed with pressing charges against these 18 Russians," Kaneda Ichiro declared firmly, showing no intention of negotiating or backing down.
His attitude was so unyielding that he didn't even bother discussing any potential conditions for their release.
Hearing such a hardline stance, Airmed's patience wore thin. He raised his voice and warned, "Prime Minister Kaneda Ichiro, if Japan insists on pursuing this baseless accusation against Russian citizens, aren't you afraid of the potential consequences?"
---
(End of Chapter)