Interplanetary War

Previous:	Rainforest Wars
Concurrent:	Mars Campaign
Next:	Hydra System Massacres
Interplanetary War
Date:	January 2164–March 2170
Location:	Sol system
Outcome:	United Nations victory
Details Belligerents United Nations Koslovics Friedens Commanders Vladimir Koslov† Oscar Bauer Strength UNSC Marines Drop Jet Platoon

The Interplanetary War, or Interplanetary Wars, involved a period of armed conflict waged throughout the Sol system between 2164 and 2170. It was fought among the United Nations; the neo-communist Koslovics, led by Vladimir Koslov; the fascist Frieden, backed by corporations of the Unified German Republic; and a number of other national governments. The fighting was the culmination of four prior years of war which included the Jovian Moons Campaign, the Rainforest Wars, and the Mars Campaign. Together with the Interplanetary War proper, these conflicts are sometimes collectively referred to as the Interplanetary Wars.

Background

Koslovics and Friedens

In the twentieth century humans finally escaped Earth's atmosphere once again to ascend into the depths of space. The first modern human travelled to the lower reaches of Earth's orbit in 1961 and then in 1969 humans set foot on Luna for the first time in millennia. Other bodies in the Sol system followed throughout the twenty-first and twenty-second century. In 2080 Earth's nations put together joint efforts to colonize Luna, Mars, and a handful of other sites in the system, including various asteroids. This period was later known as the First Diaspora. Despite the daunting technological challenge of embedding sustainable populations on these worlds, new scientific innovations eventually made it a reality, and the interplanetary colonies saw growth and prosperity during these early years.

Global wars on Earth shattered the power of old nation-states even as virulent new philosophies spread among the solar colonies. Not everyone embraced relative peace under the aegis of the United Nations, and new factions with militant ideologies exacerbated political and economic fracture lines to the breaking point. In the mid-twenty-second century, two militant movements emerged among Earth's colonies, dramatically altering the political landscape. The emergence of both was due in part to overpopulation and unrest on Earth itself.Those belonging to the first, originating in Mars' mining city of Oenotria, were known as the Koslovics. They were named for the miner-turned activist Vladmir Koslov and his family. The neo-communist Koslovic miners railed against what they saw as their financial exploitation by the corporations which dominated the colony. They looked back on the Soviet Union of the twentieth century with nostalgia and romanticized state control over industry, seeking the elimination of corporate and capitalist influence from societal structures. After the violent takeover of three major mining facilities, the Koslovics were deemed terrorists by the United Nations. Their ideas, however, gained momentum across Mars and rural parts of Luna among people who felt government-sponsored companies were violating colonists' rights. Though the Koslovics did have some supporters on Earth, they operated primarily on orbital facilities, the aforementioned colonies, and parts of the Jovian system. The other hostile ideology, embodied by the Frieden movement, grew out of the major city Katreus on Europa and received backing from a group of corporate interests in the Unified German Republic which had become frequent targets of Koslovic 'workers' crusades'. Though 'frieden' is German for 'peace', the neo-fascist Friedens formed largely in response to Koslovic elements in the Jovian colonies and quickly turned to violence. In 2158 Friedens targeted a United Nations embassy in the Europan city of Thynia and leveled the structure with military-grade explosives. As with the Koslovics, the United Nations branded them terrorists as well, and then also dispatched UN colonial advisors to Io, another Jovian moon.