As soon as these words were spoken, the conversation in the conference room paused, and everyone's eyes turned to the source of the voice.
Zhao Yi also turned his head to look:
It wasn't him who had just spoken, but a dark-skinned, powerfully built middle-aged military officer.
Having absorbed the memories of his predecessor, Zhao Yi had heard a little about this burly military officer who was the first to stand up.
His name is Zhang Deyong; he joined the army in his teens, performed excellently in the military camp, and was promoted all the way to his current position as Battalion Commander.
It is said that he has a knack for leading and training troops, and at over thirty years old, he is in his prime.
Seeing someone volunteer, Yang Weiguo smiled slightly and looked at Zhang Deyong:
"Good, you speak."
Hearing this, Zhang Deyong took a deep breath:
"Commander, I believe the nature of Special Forces is very similar to scouts and assault teams."
"I myself started as a scout and once led the Sharp Knife Battalion in battle against the enemy on the southern front."
"Therefore, I believe I have sufficient training and combat experience to be competent as the military chief of the Special Forces!"
Zhang Deyong's voice was loud and resonant, causing many around him to nod slightly.
In their opinion, what Zhang Deyong said was almost identical to their understanding of Special Forces, and Zhang Deyong, in terms of his personal resume, was indeed very suitable to serve as the chief officer of this soon-to-be-established Special Forces.
Zhao Yi was not surprised; historically, the nation's first Special Forces units were born out of reconnaissance detachments.
Without his presence, the Southwest Military Region's Special Forces would most likely have selected suitable officers from reconnaissance units to be responsible for training.
Yang Weiguo, in the center of the conference room, looked around, his expression calm:
From a rational perspective, Yang Weiguo also believed that Zhang Deyong was very suitable to be the training officer for the Special Forces.
However, from a strategic intuition, Yang Weiguo vaguely felt that the Special Forces should not just be an enhanced version of a reconnaissance or Sharp Knife Battalion.
If a hasty decision were made, it could very likely lead the Military Region down the wrong path in Special Forces training; one step behind would mean falling further behind, and it would be even more difficult to catch up in the future.
So, Yang Weiguo slowly spoke:
"Well said."
He first affirmed Zhang Deyong's words, then turned his gaze to some young military officers in the conference room of similar age to Zhang Deyong:
"Is there anyone else who wants to volunteer?"
Many promising young officers exchanged glances.
They all knew that this mission to establish Special Forces was both a challenge and an opportunity.
If they could seize this opportunity and achieve some results, their career development might take a big leap.
However... facing Zhang Deyong, who was the first to stand up, many interested young officers asked themselves, their experience and ability were indeed inferior to his.
Of course, it wasn't that no officers stood up; after Zhang Deyong volunteered, several company commanders, battalion commanders, and even deputy regimental level cadres stood up, expressing their willingness to serve as Special Forces training officers.
But their resumes were all inferior to Zhang Deyong's.
As for the regimental commanders of the various regiments in the Military Region and cadres above the regimental level, their positions could not be easily changed; the Military Region had already communicated with them, and these individuals would not serve as the leaders or main military officers of the Special Forces.
Just as another officer finished speaking and sat down, Zhao Yi felt the time was right and stood up:
"Commander, I want to volunteer."
As Zhao Yi's words fell, everyone turned to look at him.
Many officers had eyes filled with surprise, doubt, and even disdain.
After all, in the eyes of many, Zhao Yi was just a second-generation scion relying on his parents to gain experience in the Military Region.
They despised such people the most.
'Zhao Yi, for the sake of your predecessors who sacrificed for the country, we tolerated your coming to the Military Region to gain experience, but establishing Special Forces concerns the nation's strategic development; it's not a place for you to gain experience and qualifications!'
Many people in the conference room wanted to say this, but due to the occasion, they couldn't, so they could only stare at Zhao Yi with displeasure, hoping he would retreat when faced with difficulty.
However, Zhao Yi didn't care about their gazes; instead, he looked at Yang Weiguo and spoke eloquently:
"Commander, I believe that the understanding of Special Forces by the Comrades just now, while not entirely wrong, is somewhat biased."
"Special Forces should not be a stronger reconnaissance company or Sharp Knife Battalion, or rather, the missions Special Forces will face are far more complex and challenging than the former."
"Zhao Yi, since you say we are wrong, then you tell us! What should Special Forces be like?"
Zhang Deyong was a straightforward person and spoke directly.
Zhang Deyong's expression carried a hint of disdain for Zhao Yi:
Could a pampered second-generation relying on his father's influence really have a stronger understanding of leading troops in battle than he, the Battalion Commander of the Sharp Knife Battalion?
Zhao Yi chuckled, "Of course I will speak, otherwise, if the Military Region trains Special Forces according to Battalion Commander Zhang's understanding, it will certainly take many detours in the future."
As Zhao Yi's words fell, many in the conference room snorted softly, quite displeased with Zhao Yi's rejection of their views.
Seeing this, Yang Weiguo looked at Zhao Yi:
"Alright, Zhao Yi, stop being mysterious; just tell us directly how you view Special Forces."
"Here, we don't look at qualifications; whoever speaks well and makes sense will be entrusted with this important task of training Special Forces."
"Yes, Commander." Zhao Yi nodded, then began:
"So-called Special Forces, their strategic significance does not lie in conventional combat capabilities such as reconnaissance or assault, but rather in unconventional combat capabilities beyond these basic ones."
"For example, as the Commander mentioned earlier, some missions executed by foreign Special Forces involve important personnel being held hostage by the enemy. Are our reconnaissance companies and Sharp Knife Battalions skilled at handling such emergency situations?"
"Another example is on the southern front, I believe all Comrades are familiar with the Vietnamese work teams, and Battalion Commander Zhang should have personally faced such enemies."
"These work teams are largely a type of Special Forces; these enemies are specially trained and skilled in infiltration and rear-area sabotage. Many of our reconnaissance troops sacrificed their lives before we gradually summarized lessons learned to counter them."
"If we had similar Special Forces, wouldn't we be better able to counter the enemy's Special Forces, preventing our brother units like the reconnaissance forces from facing enemies they don't understand, thereby reducing sacrifices?"
"Furthermore, from the current global environment, I believe there will not be large-scale wars like World War I or World War II in the short term."
"So, in peacetime, preventing enemies from infiltrating our rear to conduct sabotage, counter-subversion, counter-espionage, counter-sneak attacks, and counter-hostage-taking are the important capabilities that distinguish Special Forces from conventional forces."
Zhao Yi spoke eloquently, explaining a great deal. He himself was Special Forces, so he could explain what true Special Forces were to everyone present in a simple and profound way.
"In short, I believe Special Forces are like atomic bombs; if the enemy has them and we don't, then the enemy will unscrupulously send Special Forces to wreak havoc in our home."
"Only if the enemy has them and we also have them can we deter the surrounding tigers, leopards, jackals, and wolves, and protect the nation and its people from harm!"
