The Default Factor

The incomparable expedition of “Peter the Great” ended with the ship arriving in Cam Ranh. And then the cruiser needs to transfer to the mother country—directly to the fleet base—in the USSR.

But in Washington, at the CIA, at the Navy headquarters, plans have already been drawn up…

And aircraft carriers maneuver into position, rockets are hung under the wings of planes, submarines push toward their staging lines. What are they counting on? What do they want—satisfaction? Or are there bigger, more global meanings involved here?