This ensures they can complete the transaction and earn a lot of money, while preventing the South Koreans from learning and strengthening their own military, which could eventually be used against Russia.
However, this transaction required "a professional" to negotiate. After all, the South Koreans aren't fools. You need masterful skill to trick them. There weren't many people in the Russian navy with this skill, but Mavi was one of the best.
"Then, Mr. Mavi, are you free next week? We'll arrange a meeting with the South Koreans and contact you," the Pacific Fleet officer said, immediately understanding Mavi's plan. This "pull the rug out from under them" tactic wasn't something most people would think of.
The South Koreans wanted to come to Russia to get a good deal, but that wasn't going to happen. While the Russian navy did have several nuclear submarines they wanted to sell to get cash for corvettes, destroyers, or to develop more advanced nuclear submarines, the buyer would definitely not be South Korea.
Unlike the Chinese, the South Koreans have a typical small-country mentality—they bully the weak and only care about their own interests. They might be friendly now, but they could turn on you in an instant. They don't have the same sense of camaraderie as the Chinese people.
"Yes, I can be there," Mavi said. With a big spender coming to him, there was no reason for him not to get a piece of the action. It all depended on whether the South Koreans would fall for it. If they did get scammed, Mavi wouldn't leave any evidence for them to use against him. Everything would be written down clearly. It wouldn't even matter if they took it to the United Nations.
A week later, the South Korean Ministry of National Defense representative, Lu Won-ki, flew to Russia. Lu Won-ki was very confident about these negotiations. Their analysis showed that it would be difficult for the Russian navy to find a buyer to purchase all the nuclear submarines in their four fleets.
Unless they were decommissioned early, the annual maintenance costs were incredibly high. Given Russia's current GDP, the military could hardly afford to maintain these nuclear submarines.
Rather than spending so much money, it would be better to build up their naval strength. Many of Russia's active warships were already rusty from years of disrepair. Even with Mavi's help to get these deals for the government, the situation had only improved slightly. Military expenses were a bottomless pit, and it was extremely expensive to run a country as large as Russia.
When the South Korean representative arrived at the Pacific Fleet and met Mavi, he shook his hand and greeted him, "Hello, Mr. Mavi. It's an honor to finally meet you."
The single-eyelidded Lu Won-ki had done his homework on Mavi before coming to Russia. While the South Korean public might not have known, as a high-ranking official in the Ministry of National Defense, he was well aware that Mavi had interfered with their previous deal for a Ukrainian nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. This time, he was determined to get back what he had lost.
"Hello, Mr. Lu Won-ki," Mavi said. You don't hit a person who is smiling at you. Although Mavi had never liked the South Koreans, he still put on a friendly front to avoid being called rude.
"Mr. Mavi, this isn't our first time doing business, so I'll be direct. Our government is willing to pay $3.15 billion for your Type 971 attack nuclear submarine. That's $350 million more than India's offer. This price is a very serious offer."
Lu Won-ki was a head shorter than Mavi, so he had to look up at him when they shook hands and talked. But his eyes sparkled with confidence. He knew Russia's economy was in dire need of this money. Even if Russia were to lose face and reject his offer, they would lose nothing in the negotiations. They were just trying their luck.
"A price of $3.15 billion is too low. We can't do it," Mavi replied very briefly. He was deliberately bringing up the price to make the South Korean representative focus on haggling, and nothing else.
"$3.15 billion is too low? Mr. Mavi, what price is your government willing to accept?" Lu Won-ki asked Mavi with a smile. The South Koreans had the money. The fact that Russia had even accepted the negotiation invitation meant they were willing to sell the nuclear submarines. Otherwise, they wouldn't have even bothered to talk.
"At least $4 billion, or there's nothing to discuss," Mavi replied, still simple and to the point. From his perspective, it was just a side project to scam the South Koreans. If it happened, great. If not, oh well. He was just negotiating casually, letting them take the bait if they wanted to.
"$4 billion?! Isn't that a bit lacking in sincerity, Mr. Mavi? Your country sold to India for only $2.8 billion, and for $4 billion, my country can buy a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier!" Lu Won-ki said with an exaggerated expression.
$4 billion was more than the South Korean Ministry of National Defense's budget. Their maximum offer was $3.4 billion to $3.5 billion. Any more than that was too much.
"This price isn't something I can decide. The orders came from above, and this is the price we must stick to. If your country thinks it's too expensive, there's nothing I can do," Mavi said matter-of-factly. His acting was so flawless he could have been a movie star.
"Mr. Mavi? You must know that our government can't be a sucker and pay $4 billion. So why did your country arrange this meeting? There's almost nothing to talk about!" Lu Won-ki asked Mavi with a hint of anger.
He couldn't understand how the Russians operated. They called people to come all the way here and then scared them away with an absurdly high price. It was a complete waste of time.
"Then there's no need to talk. I have other things to do. Please excuse me," Mavi said, and without looking back, he walked away. This left the South Korean delegation feeling incredibly awkward and speechless. They had dealt with many countries, but none were as blunt as the Russians, who didn't even bother with a fake smile. They were just so ridiculously direct!
What they didn't know was that this was all part of Mavi's plan. He had to use a high price to refuse South Korea's purchase request because the Russian navy had two soon-to-be-decommissioned nuclear submarines that were going to be abandoned in a warship graveyard.
The nuclear reactors of these two decommissioned submarines needed to be removed. The disposal of nuclear reactors required an extremely complex and technical process. This would require a significant amount of money and a lot of manpower and resources to complete.