Surface Action Series; The Sum of All Fears, 2002

This is the third scenario is the "Surface Action Series." Each scenario is unrelated. -For "Surface Action Series; Pacific Fleet Engagement, 2025" see: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3355921564 -For "Surface Action Series; North Atlantic Clash, 1963" see: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3362375546 The United States has enjoyed a period of unprecedented peace for the last several decades. She stands alongside her committed allies at the height of her power, and, despite the seemingly docile state of the world, she has — so far — refused to be lulled into a false sense of complacency, maintaining the largest and most well-funded military on the planet by a large margin. The once-mighty Soviet bear has fallen, replaced with a nominally ‘democratic’ and ‘free’ Free Russian Democratic Federation (FRDF), surrounded by now-independent former Soviet states. The FRDF is racked with domestic strife, recently seeing a series of major terrorist attacks being carried-out by Chechen rebels in several major Russian cities. Having tried — and failed — to handle the rebels the “hard way,” President Valentin Zorkin dropped-dead due to natural causes, allegedly while demanding that his press secretary outline how “fit and robust” he was; The stress of the failed military action against the Chechens likely contributed to his poor health. President Alexander Nemerov — described by some Western commentators as a left-leaning moderate on the post-Soviet political compass — has been sworn-in to lead the Russian people, after an ostensibly free and fair special election. His first act as President of the FRDF was to order a halt on all internal military and tactical law enforcement actions, signaling to the Chechens — and indeed the world — his intention to negotiate with rebel leaders. Chechen independence, or at least some form of unprecedented autonomy, is reportedly on the table. Despite a cooling of Russo-American relations in the last fe