Chapter 358

At nine AM Moscow time, Steve and Naomi, along with their allies, sat on one side of a large wooden table; while Kozlov, his aides, and interpreters sat across from them.

Once the formalities were complete, Steve spoke directly to the Russian leader in fluent Russian. “We are here for one purpose, President Kozlov. We want a peaceful resolution to the current situation. To cut to the chase, we are willing to accept a multilateral withdrawal from the present positions to those held the last day of May.”

“Ha!” erupted Kozlov. “We proposed that very thing in mid-June, but your president would have nothing to do with it. If I accept this proposal now, my government will look weak. That solution is no longer an option, especially with the Chinese being so unreasonable. However, in the interest of peace, we will agree to withdraw once the American and other NATO forces have fallen back to their positions held in May, AND the Chinese and North Koreans have agreed to withdraw si