Eastern European oligarchs formalize territorial control as the EO, establishing private military command structures.
The EO didn't so much form as crystallize — a dozen oligarchs who'd already been running private fiefdoms stopped pretending there was a state above them. The Moscow Compact of 2052 established mutual defense obligations and resource-sharing protocols.
The EO's PMC culture is its defining feature. No standing army — a rotating alliance of private military companies under contract to the Compact Council. Loyalty is purchased. It generates constant low-grade conflict and extraordinary operators.