What's more, the three anti-ship missiles on the radar were simulated with incredible realism. Their trajectories and launch points were recreated so accurately that the delegates couldn't help but be amazed. They thought to themselves that the Russian Navy's simulation system was quite good. If they could buy it for their own navy, war games would become much more realistic.
However, just as the delegates were thinking this, a fierce series of explosions suddenly and devastatingly went off on the surface of the sea!
The location of the explosions was precisely on the Sovremenny-class destroyer, which was marked as a target!
"Boom! Boom! Boom!" Massive waves, along with the impact of the explosions, slammed mercilessly into both sides of the destroyer. The 8,000-ton fully loaded Sovremenny-class destroyer shook violently on the sea.
The Chinese delegation, sitting in the cabin, looked on in shock. They were clearly stunned by the sudden explosions.
"What's going on?! An explosion?"
"Are those real anti-ship missiles? No way, right?"
"There should still be people on that destroyer, shouldn't there? Is this a major mistake?" Unaware of what was happening, the delegates were frozen in the cabin.
They had originally thought that this naval battle was being conducted via electronic simulation. But they never expected the Russian Navy to be so bold! They were actually using real explosives! Why would they play so aggressively...
Considering the confusion among the group, Mavi directly explained over the communication system, "Please don't worry, the Sovremenny-class destroyer that just exploded is a decommissioned Russian naval ship. Its navigation is controlled by an unmanned maritime system, and there are no crew members on board."
Mavi's voice was calm on the communication device. The delegates couldn't help but shake their heads and sigh. "The Russian Navy is so fearless! What if a missile misfired and hit one of the anti-submarine ships in the distance? That would be a major military accident!"
Since they knew the rules of the battle beforehand, the anti-submarine ships escorting the destroyer maintained a very safe distance. If a nuclear submarine's anti-ship missile could miss at that range, Mavi just had one thing to say: "The Russians should just give up on being a country!"
Other countries' torpedoes and even main naval guns don't miss that badly. If a Russian submarine's guided missile made such a blunder, they would be a laughingstock to the whole world... Fortunately, that's nearly impossible.
"Mr. Mavi, your navy's military exercise is truly spectacular! How did your nuclear submarine evade such a dense sonar matrix and achieve such a precise strike?" Two scientists from the delegation asked Mavi with admiration.
In addition to inheriting the high speed and great diving depth of Soviet-Russian submarines, Russian nuclear submarines also paid special attention to stealth and noise reduction technology. To a certain extent, they could avoid sonar detection, making them a great deterrent to other countries' navies.
The British Defense Minister once publicly admitted that Russian naval nuclear submarines were able to sneak into key areas of British waters without the Royal Navy's knowledge. They would deploy sonar buoys to monitor important hydrographic information and observe the activities of the British naval fleet.
And this had happened more than once. The Royal Navy was powerless to stop it unless they could upgrade their underwater monitoring systems. Otherwise, they could only be played with by the Russians like this.
"Dr. Wang and Dr. Li, if you don't mind, I will arrange for one of our submarine scientists to meet with you later to discuss some questions about nuclear submarines," Mavi said with a smile.
Instead of just talking about some surface-level data, it would be better to arrange a meeting between the scientists from both countries. This would allow for a deeper conversation.
Upon hearing Mavi's words, Dr. Wang and Dr. Li's eyes lit up with joy. "Really? Mr. Mavi, that would be wonderful! We have many questions about your country's submarines."
This arrangement by Mavi was like a gift to China. Just like with the Varyag aircraft carrier, he secretly arranged for scientists to go to a domestic shipyard to help them design and develop a conventionally powered aircraft carrier. This was giving the Chinese people advanced experience, allowing them to grow rapidly in their alliance.
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After seeing off the Chinese delegation, Mavi patiently waited for their response. It made no sense for them to refuse such an important strategic military asset as a nuclear submarine.
However, while he was waiting for the answer, Russia's neighbor, South Korea, suddenly sent someone to contact the Pacific Fleet, expressing interest in buying their attack-class nuclear submarines. They were even willing to pay more than what India had offered.
"Mr. Mavi, the South Korean government is willing to pay $3.15 billion to buy a Project 971 attack-class nuclear submarine. What do you think? Should we do this deal?" A Pacific Fleet officer asked Mavi over the phone.
Before this, the South Koreans had learned that India had successfully purchased a Project 971 nuclear submarine from the Russian Navy for $2.8 billion.
So, being a wealthy country, they were willing to pay an additional $350 million to do this deal with Russia. They knew the Russians had more nuclear submarines that needed to be sold.
Last year in Ukraine, a South Korean representative competed with Russia for the Ulyanovsk nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. Thanks to a little trick by Mavi, they were able to avert a crisis. Now, the shameless South Koreans were using their wealth and a "can't hurt to ask" attitude to see if the Russian military was willing to sell them a nuclear submarine.
If the Russians were willing, the South Koreans could buy the submarine, study it themselves, and heavily develop their own submarine technology. They could then use this to deal with their neighbors. It was a well-thought-out plan. They were trying to take advantage of the fact that the Russian government was short on money.
"$3.15 billion? This is a great opportunity. I think we should definitely do it," Mavi replied over the phone after thinking for a moment. Since the South Koreans wanted to give them money, there was no reason to refuse.
"However, the core equipment and technology of the Project 971 nuclear submarine must be removed before the transaction. This way, the South Koreans won't be able to learn our techniques. They won't be able to turn around and challenge us with our own technology," Mavi said, showing his cunning businessman side. He told the Pacific Fleet officer a very clever and devious plan.