Dengikins misunderstood Mavi. He thought this transaction was a top military secret. Actually, it was just skirting the political edge; it didn't matter even if the Americans discovered it. After all, Russia hadn't violated the treaty at all.
"Well, thank you very much, Lieutenant General Dengikins!" Mavi replied, playing dumb. It didn't matter that the other party misunderstood; in fact, it was perfect, giving him a reason to bargain and haggle. He wasn't worried about the Ukrainian Army inflating prices on the spot and treating the missile equipment like treasure.
After a simple exchange of pleasantries at the airport, Mavi got into a Dongfeng Mengshi military vehicle and sped all the way to the Ukrainian Army's 32nd Missile Base.
Given Mavi's current status, road closures and military escorts were absolutely necessary. This was a show of respect and also a precaution against any potential incidents. For example, a certain organization sending assassins to try and kill Mavi.
At his level, he had many friends but also many enemies. Just two months prior, his bodyguards had caught three men carrying silenced weapons. They were discovered to be assassins sent by Chechen militants. They had been lurking and scouting around places Mavi frequented for over a month, waiting for the right moment to strike.
"Mr. Mavi, ahead is our Army's 32nd Missile Base. The base is equipped with land-based silos, Thunder missiles (Scud missiles), Topol missiles, Vilkha long-range rocket launchers, R-36M Satan super-heavy intercontinental ballistic missiles, and so on. It can be said to be one of our most important missile launch bases in Ukraine."
As soon as the convoy arrived at the destination, Lieutenant General Dengikins couldn't wait to start introducing the base to Mavi. Among the missiles he mentioned, the most impressive was the "R-36 Satan super-heavy intercontinental ballistic missile"!
This intercontinental ballistic missile is a multi-warhead strategic missile left over from the former Soviet Union and is also the largest and most powerful active missile in the world. Its effective payload is close to 9 tons, a capability rarely achieved even by launch vehicles. Its immense thrust allows it to carry more warheads. Its explosive yield can reach 25 million tons of TNT! That's 1600 times the power of the US atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima!
According to memories from his previous life, Ukraine had the intention to sell this R-36M ballistic missile in 2018. But no country dared to buy it...
Its power was almost half that of the Tsar Bomba. And its range was over 10,000 kilometers. Anyone who dared to buy it would definitely be spending money to bring trouble upon themselves.
"Lieutenant General Dengikins, are the Thunder missiles and Vilkha long-range rocket launchers at your base for sale? I might need to buy a few for personal use," Mavi asked casually from inside the vehicle.
Missiles with a range of 300 kilometers or less are allowed to be traded. This doesn't violate the Missile Technology Control Regime. So Mavi was very interested in importing these tactical missiles from Ukraine into his arsenal, and then selling them to those who needed them.
At this time in 2001, India's missile development capabilities were still quite backward. Iran and Pakistan were still using rocket launchers, things that relied solely on overwhelming firepower density, flying wildly and with absolutely no precision once launched.
As for Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, they had absolutely no missile development capabilities and desperately needed short-range, or even medium-range, missiles for defense... So, the business opportunities were endless; it just depended on how Mavi would sell them...
"Certainly, Mr. Mavi! I can take you to visit our base's missile depot right now," Lieutenant General Dengikins said very enthusiastically to Mavi. He couldn't wait for Mavi to buy as much of their inventory as possible.
After all, these missiles, rocket launchers, and production/R&D equipment weren't used normally. They cost money to maintain annually, took up storage space, and frankly, were consuming their army's resources every minute.
Led by Lieutenant General Dengikins, Mavi came to the Ukrainian Army's underground arsenal. Unlike the storage buildings for planes and tanks, the underground missile warehouse was clearly much sturdier. Even if subjected to enemy bombing, it would probably be very difficult to damage the rocket launchers, short-range, and medium-range missiles stored underground...
When Lieutenant General Dengikins signaled his subordinate to open the arsenal door storing the Thunder missiles and Vilkha long-range rocket launchers, Mavi, standing outside the steel barrier, saw the rows and rows of olive-green missiles placed on racks. Their neatly stacked appearance was quite pleasing to the eye.
"How many of these missiles are there in total?" After seeing such a large-scale arsenal, Mavi couldn't help but ask Lieutenant General Dengikins.
"Including the other 16 underground armories, there are a total of 2381 Thunder missiles (Scud missiles) for sale. The price for one missile is 120,000 US dollars. Buy 5 and get 1 free, buy 10 and get 3 free," Lieutenant General Dengikins said to Mavi with a hearty laugh.
These 2381 Scud missiles were part of the stock Ukraine received when the former Soviet Union dissolved (there were over 7000 in total). A large portion was kept for national defense, and another part was put up for sale to raise funds.
"One hundred twenty thousand US dollars each... buy five get one free, buy ten get three..." Even though Mavi had dealt with the Ukrainian military before and knew they sold things very cheaply, he was still surprised by the Ukrainian military this time...
Scud missiles have A and B models and can be equipped with conventional or nuclear warheads. They use vehicle-mounted mobile launchers, making them highly mobile and difficult to detect. Their maximum range is 300 kilometers, and maximum speed is 1500 meters per second. The US Patriot anti-air missile system had suffered setbacks against Scud missiles. On average, intercepting one Scud required launching four Patriots simultaneously to ensure a successful interception.
Mavi, based on memories from his previous life, recalled that in the 90s, Russia had also sold nearly 10,000 Scud missiles externally. The average selling price was 200,000 US dollars per missile, with a buy-five-get-one-free deal. This was already a very cheap price (the original price was 600,000 US dollars per missile).
He didn't expect Ukraine to be even more ruthless; they were practically selling them for peanuts...
"Yes, Mr. Mavi, 120,000 US dollars each, buy five get one free, buy ten get three free. Approximately how many missiles are you looking for?" The manufacturing cost of a Scud missile was around 80,000 US dollars, so Ukraine wasn't losing money selling this way. Instead, they could clear out some inventory and reduce annual maintenance costs.
While speaking, Lieutenant General Dengikins kept his eye on Mavi's expression. He was trying to gauge how much of the Scud inventory Mavi could potentially buy based on his reaction.
However, a certain person's surprise was fully captured by Lieutenant General Dengikins. This made him mistakenly think that Mavi was scared by the enormous quantity they had for sale. Thus, he estimated that Mavi's psychological expectation likely wouldn't be to buy many.
But just as Lieutenant General Dengikins was thinking this...
(End of Chapter)