Operation Verdant Blade

### Outcome

Widespread success; green energy plans adopted by most nations and increased ICO influence secured

## Location

### Conflict

ICO Environmental Restoration Mission in the Ágidásos
Third Polmarian Reunification War
18th Kagrabadi Fitna
Bargadic Resource Wars

### Operational Area

 Participating nations

 Regions under some form of international governance/direct involvement during Verdant Blade

## Members

### Participating Nations

 Lemetiate of Airolia
 Republic of Kariq
 Eirstad
 Vastra
 Ospheros Dominion
 Grand Regency of Lear
 Federal Republic of Ionia
 West Kalshei Federation
 Republic of Kherfiyyah
 Second Republic of Polmaria

### Participating NGOs

*(IOs are included among this list.)*

Green Cross
ICOAID
ICO Full Stomachs Initiative/ICO Essential Provisions Initiative
International Peacekeeping Office
ICO Desertification Research & Restoration Office
International Environmental Restabilization Office

**Operation Verdant Blade**, publicly known as the Yulean Clean Energy Initiative, was a partially clandestine ICO-backed, organized, and funded effort to enforce or otherwise encourage green energy policies globally in the wake of horrific ecological disaster during the early 21st century. The initial vestiges of the operation were first implemented in 2005, then formally established the following year.

The legacy of Operation Verdant Blade remains marred by controversy due to the instability it often caused and its alleged nature as a form of neo-colonialism ("eco-colonialism"). Due to many of its more controversial elements being clandestine, the exact number of deaths attributable to the policies enforced by Verdant Blade is highly debated, especially because of the inherently indirect nature of the operation.

## Antecedents

Prior to Verdant Blade, numerous appeals by the ICO, scientific colleges/universities/organizations, and other groups had been made to the world post-War of the End-Times to demilitarize and slow carbon emissions. However, due to the devastated nature of much of Helinska, a lack of ability by developing nations, and general unwillingness to follow through on any of the requirements by already developed nations, many of these calls were only given lip service.

As such, carbon emissions continued to rise, increasing global temperatures by an average of 3 degrees by 2000 from 1954's average temperature. By the turn of the millennium, desert and savannah regions worldwide had become far more inhospitable, turning former cradles of civilization and locations of some of the first cities into desolate wastelands with no local water sources. Many mass migrations outside of developed metropolises followed due to a lack of food, water, and arable land.

With 'freak' weather patterns becoming commonplace and ecological projections that prophesied a near-inhabitable Yulea within the century by 2005, the International Ecological Restabilization Office was formed and given a metaphorical blank check to curb the calamitous carbon emissions currently being output.

## History

Verdant Blade and the Yulean Clean Energy Initiative (YCEI, or Clean Energy Initiative) were split up into numerous subsections with their own bureaucracies and security clearances to help obscure the classified elements of the operation; a monumental task in an international organization.

### Participating Nations

The participating nations, listed to the right, were countries that in some way provided direct funding, personnel assistance, or otherwise directly influenced the operation. Much of Verdant Blade's funding and personnel came from standing international agencies (such as ICOAID and the PAO), however, their support was critical in the operation's existence. Every participating nation in turn received aid themselves in some regard.

### Plan *Verde*

Plan *Verde* was the publicly-announced purpose of the Clean Energy Initiative, consisting of 'final warning' announcements, clearly-outlined goals for nations to follow, and free and/or loaned technical advisors, ecological engineers, financial assistance, access to clean energy technology, and a rejuvenated effort to convince nations to change to green energy.

Plan *Verde* was a massive success among developed and post-civil war nations alike, with the WKF, SR Polmaria, Kherfiyyah, Eirstad, Airolia, North Sea Federation, and Lear all receiving developmental aid and constructing flood barriers, amzelenium reactors, wind and solar farms, and beginning the transition out of gas-powered energy. A total of 638.8 billion Airolian Marks were spent by Airolia alone on Verdant Blade, with the vast majority of those funds being used for Plan *Verde*.

Vastra and the Ospheros Dominion were both already under the ICO Pan-Merelaux Environmental Restoration Mission (ICOMER) by 1957, which had been making large strides in restoring local ecology. As such, Plan *Verde* and YCEI in general acted as simply renewed funding for the operation and a temporary boost of influence for international staff located there.

As part of Plan *Verde*, nations were encouraged to convert their large cities into large or no-emission urban centers (green cities), with financial and other developmental aids given as incentive. The very first ICO-recognized Green City was Lear, capital of the Grand Regency of Lear, in 2034. 6 years later, in 2040, both Szendrodvarke and New Edovalk were similarly recognized as Green Cities.

### Plan *Ouro*

Plan *Ouro* was the primary clandestine branch of the Clean Energy Initiative, consisting of lobbying elected representatives for nations' green parties or similar alternatives, stoking public outrage against large corporations and national lethargy towards climate change, and engaging in various other forms of civil escalation.

However, its most direct form of intervention was limited military intervention or targeted attacks on important targets. Many conservative or otherwise uncooperative politicians (the number is estimated around 90) were assassinated or forced into resignation alongside CEOs, chairmen, and other key personnel of high pollution companies, as well as important military staff when necessary. Precision drone strikes and other attacks (sometimes by international forces, sometimes by local insurgents armed by the White Cross) on industrial sites, non-clean energy infrastructure, oil refineries, and other such locations crippled energy economies and often forced nations to turn to international developmental aid.

Plan *Ouro*'s personnel were drawn entirely from international reserves-- no national volunteers or regiments on part-time deployments were drawn so as to prevent potential conflicts of interest.

### Operation Sententiae

Operation Sententiae was the name given to large-scale and non-covert military and police actions undertaken by multinational forces working under the ICO with the aim of safeguarding environmental statutes. Operations such as ICOISFSP, ICOERMA, ICOTYR, the ICO's involvement in the 18th Kagrabadi Fitna and subsequent establishment of the Republic of Al-Ansam, and the ICO's operations in the Syndicate Wars.

The establishment of the ICO Preemptive Security Force Auster-Septentrio (ICOSFAS) had been long-discussed prior to Verdant Blade, though more as a concept rather than as operational planning, and Sententiae proved the perfect distraction for its creation. ICOSFAS' mandate was, as stated by its website: "To safeguard against any potential threats in the Arctic and Antarctic, including drilling, overfishing, and other such ecological emergencies that could arise", as well as to "Monitor and research environmental statuses of the ice shelves, glaciers, local flora and fauna". ICOSFAS, in accordance with its mandate, forced any military, drilling, fishing, whaling, or other similar vessels outside of Arctic and Antarctic waters, sparking the then-infamous Redcliffs Incident during which a civilian whaling vessel under the International Ospheros Trading Company, the IOT Mecilia Red, was fired upon and sunk by international peacekeeping forces, resulting in the death of 2 civilians and the wounding of 5 others.

Sententiae was incredibly controversial at its inception, however, Plan *Ouro*'s psychological warfare operations against civilian populations had largely conditioned or made them more favorable to such an idea; there was no significant enough outcry to force the operations to cease or otherwise limit their scale of operation.

## Controversy

The largest controversy surrounding Verdant Blade was that it was seen as a gross overstepping of boundaries by an intergovernmental organization. However, this opinion was most popular among established ruling classes, politicians, or large business owners-- many people outside of Eredan saw the ICO's interventions as a necessary evil and national inaction as a symptom of corruption. The ICO's prior successes in the War of the End-Times meant that many, especially in Helinska and Merelaux, still had extremely high opinions of the Organization, and Plans *Verde* and *Ouro* meant that those not already in favor of the Organization were in some way influenced by it.

The majority of its controversy emerged some 50 years following its conclusion, when Plan *Ouro* was declassified, especially regarding the assassinations of foreign nationals and the organization of attacks.

## Effects and Aftermath

Verdant Blade, combined with the War of the End-Times, allowed the ICO's reputation to soar with both civilian and governmental groups. Additionally, it proved the Organization's capability to achieve its goals without the shackles of its national components, and greatly increased its influence and control. Numerous Transitional Authorities were established in the wake of Verdant Blade.

However, Verdant Blade's controversy drove a wedge between it and its member-states; yet, its newfound influence allowed it to continue existing partially through force and otherwise through its co-dependents. The establishment/empowerment of the Aurelian Senate, Triumvirate, and other such supranational unions were influenced by the ICO's heavy-handedness in Verdant Blade.

More importantly, Verdant Blade curbed carbon emissions and theoretically postponed Yulea's ecological demise by nearly a century. Further environmental regulations and clean energy revelations only assisted in pushing back the eventual deadline. Following Verdant Blade, the ICO's regulations were considered as "far less talk and far more action", as spoken by a Central Eredanese Federation Council representative.