Chapter 1107 Diplomacy First
The Russo-Japanese War was just a small intervention, and its impact on the international situation was far less than the much-watched Anglo-Austrian conflict.
Since Britain withdrew from the free trade system, the relationship between the two countries has deteriorated sharply. The friction and conflict that were originally suppressed by the two countries have also emerged recently.
The folk media, in particular, seem to be watching the excitement without taking it too seriously. Not only did they fuel the flames, but they also exaggerated the conflict intentionally or unintentionally. Some people even publicly called out "war".
There is a tense atmosphere in the air, and those who are a little more sensitive to the situation know that the footsteps of war are approaching.
It's not that no one went to persuade the fight. Many experts, scholars and celebrities in the society have issued a call, hoping that the two governments can sit down and have a good talk.
However, there is no use for it. The core interests of the two sides are too conflicting, and it is impossible for anyone to make major concessions.
If it can be negotiated, the two sides have already compromised. Who wants to use real money to fill the bottomless pit of war, really think everyone is warlike?
Franz has no objection to sign a peace agreement, even if the status quo is acceptable.
The problem is that the British dare not agree. The British Isles are such a big place, and the development potential is inherently limited.
If no restrictions are imposed, and according to the current situation, the strength gap between the two sides will only increase.
The British government is unwilling to make concessions, and it is even more unrealistic to expect Shinra to abolish his martial arts. The bottom line of the Vienna government is clear, at best maintaining the status quo without interfering with each other.
Since no compromise can be reached at the negotiating table, we can only follow the law of the jungle and decide the outcome on the battlefield.
The gate of the city caught fire, which affected Chiyu.
The two big rogues, Britain and Shinra, are going to fight, and the European world will naturally not be at peace. Standing in line is an eternal topic.
Supporting one family is bound to offend the other family. If you want to remain neutral in the battle for hegemony, you must first have strength to support it.
Unfortunately, there are only a handful of countries with this strength, and even fewer in Europe.
For a small country, "standing in line" is no less than a test of life and death. Once the wrong bet is made, the death of the country is not possible, but the death of the government is certain.
The most enjoyable time to stand in line was probably the anti-French war more than ten years ago.
When the Vienna government came out to recruit people, the overall situation was almost settled. As soon as the team is finished, the war is over.
This is not the case now. We really can't see who will win the Anglo-Austrian War this time.
Both have their own advantages, and either one may become the final winner, and it is even possible that no one can do anything about the other and end up with a loser in the end.
Around the guesses about the outcome of the war, a bunch of military experts are analyzing it.
This is a test of everyone's judgment. Except for those small foreign countries who followed Shinra early and determined their camp in advance, the rest of the countries had to choose a camp once, or bet on a national fortune.
Naturally, the Nordic Federation, the Netherlands, and Portugal are the first to bear the brunt. Except for the three of them, other countries supported Shinra in the last round.
Not to mention that all of them can eat big meat, but as a victorious country in the anti-French war, everyone follows Shinra, and the broth is always drunk.
In this regard, the Vienna government has done far better than the British. Just flipping through the history books will tell you that following Britain's mixed allies, immortality is also half-dead.
Not being killed by allies is considered God's blessing, and being able to preserve the capital is a burst of character.
Even if there is a loot to be divided, there are pits everywhere. It seems that if one day does not create contradictions, the British feel uncomfortable.
With such a stark contrast, in a country that has been mixed with Shinra and reaped tangible benefits, the possibility of switching jobs is very small.
As neutral countries, the Netherlands, the Nordic Federation, and Portugal are embarrassed.
In terms of interests, there is no conflict of core interests between the three countries and Yingao, let alone hatred of the country and family. It seems that they can be with anyone.
From a geographical point of view, the Three Kingdoms are a proper tragedy. They are all coastal countries, and they happen to be facing the Atlantic Ocean to the north.
This is embarrassing. On land, it will be threatened by Shinra, and at sea, it will be threatened by Britain. No matter where you stand, it feels like a pit.
There is no doubt that the Netherlands, Portugal, and the Nordic Commonwealth are the pond fish that were affected by the fire at the city gate.
Relatively speaking, Portugal is a little happier. Because of their geographical location, they are far away from the European continent, and they are separated by France and Spain from Shinra.
Even if a war breaks out, they will not be reduced to a battlefield. As long as they don't act too active, they might be able to fool them.
The Nordic Federation is also considered improvised, and it is also a medium-sized country. Even if they insisted not to stand in line, Shinra and Britain didn't give up.
It is too difficult to clear the field, and the income is not proportional to the effort. No one wants to go guerrillas in the ravines of Sweden, at least ignore them until it is decided.
It may be suppressed in the future, but it will not be too serious. As long as you behave calmly enough, a few years of forbearance will pass.
The most tragic is undoubtedly the Netherlands, which happens to be in a position between Britain and Shinra, and is very close to both sides.
Support the British, and the army of the Holy Roman Empire will be able to come in on the same day; support the Holy Roman Empire, and the Royal Navy will teach them how to behave in minutes.
If the British government is bold enough to launch a landing operation, then the Netherlands is also one of the first choices.
And of course, Belgium next door. It's just that the Belgian team is early, as the younger brother of the direct line, the Vienna government
Definitely look after.
If nothing else, just so many military airports in Belgium are worth the cost of the Vienna government.
After all, to bomb the British Isles, it is too suitable to take off from here, which is regarded as a forward position.
In theory, starting the counter-offensive from France is also a good choice to take advantage of Fao's hatred.
It's a pity that this thing is not suitable for the British. Britain and France are also feuding, and the mass base is not necessarily better.
What's more, the distance from France to Shinra is too far. It can't play the role of raid at all, and can only honestly fight positional warfare.
The disparity in the strength of the two armies is too great, but anyone with an online IQ of the British government would not think of a decisive battle with Shinra on land.
Even if Tou Tie launched a landing operation, it would have more significance for political propaganda than for actual military significance. Pretend to show that you are fighting back, just give the country an explanation.
It was actually staged in the two world wars in the original time and space. For political needs, the British have launched many battles to send people to their heads.
Although he didn't achieve any decent record, he succeeded in trapping his allies!
Franz fully understands the plight of the Netherlands, but politics is not conscientious, and the pressure to be exerted is still a lot.
Under the general trend, no one can help, not to mention the Dutch, even Franz can't be aloof.
With the constant tension in the international situation, the semi-retired Franz the Great has to make appearances from time to time to increase everyone's confidence.
No way, who made the protagonist this time the Navy?
Just as the British wanted to fool the Shinra Navy out, Franz also wanted to fool the British Navy in and rely on joint naval and air operations to secure the victory.
Unfortunately, everyone is not the master of fooling. Even at the invitation of the Vienna government in the name of naval exchanges, the British just took out a few old-fashioned battleships to make up the number.
Just the broken ship, not to mention the government's credibility to attack. Even if the war had broken out, Franz wouldn't even look at it.
Everyone is smart, and they are all on their guard. If you want to win by opportunistic tricks, there is no operability at all.
However, as a challenger, in order to win the war, the Shinra Navy must take the initiative to go out and fight the British.
Don't say that other people have no bottom, even Franz himself lacks confidence in his own navy. Dare to challenge, that is the number he has prepared from the beginning.
Learning from the Americans in World War II, winning first does not count as winning, only laughing is the real winner.
At the Vienna Palace, Franz asked while waving a big brush: "What is the international reaction after our news release?"
If you look closely, it is a pair of ink and wash. It wouldn't be surprising if it happened in East Asia, but it's unusual here in Europe.
This is all pediatrics, perhaps because of age, Franz has become more willful.
Aside from being politically sane, she has completely indulged herself in everyday life. In a world where entertainment is scarce, it's not surprising to pick up old hobbies.
As for whether the hobby is too unusual and will attract attention, it is no longer within the scope of Franz's consideration.
The only regret is that Franz's painter is not at home, and the picture of a hundred birds facing a phoenix imitated by his artistic processing finally turned into a picture of chickens pecking at rice.
It doesn't matter, these guys present can't tell the difference between grass chicken and phoenix anyway. As for whether it will distort everyone's aesthetics, it is not within the scope of Franz's consideration.
In fact, Franz was forced to play with ink and wash. Because his oil painting skills are also not enough, he is ashamed to take it out to meet people. You can only play with what everyone doesn't understand, and it's convenient to take it out and pretend to fool people.
In the upper class, if there is no artistic element, it is easy to be despised as a bumpkin.
Professionals saw the wear gang, and it was completely overthinking. If you don't believe me, just take a pair and put it out for auction. As long as it is stamped with Franz's impression, it is definitely worth more than the original painting of Saint.
Art that has withstood the test of the market is the real art. If you suspect that there is something wrong with the work, it must be because your own artistic accomplishment is not enough.
Seeing the emperor's special hobby, everyone got used to it. It's nothing more than some incomprehensible calligraphy and painting, and it doesn't matter at all.
Foreign Secretary Leo stepped forward and replied: "Your Majesty, the reaction of the international community is very intense. No country wants us to go to war with the British, including our allies.
Since the news was passed on, the phone of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been blown up, and they are all here to inquire about the situation.
Among them, the Dutch were the most active, communicating with more than ten countries including Belgium, Spain, and the Nordic Federation overnight to prepare for diplomatic mediation. "
The news that a war may break out makes the entire European world sleepless, and Franz can be regarded as setting a record.
But it's not surprising to think about it. A war broke out between Shinra and Britain, and each European country has one count, and all of them have to suffer losses. The difference is only in the degree of damage.
If nothing else, everyone's maritime trade is no play. Once the war breaks out, the two sides are bound to block each other.
If Shinra wants to block Britain, the only way to do it is to pull the European countries together, or it will be useless.
The same is true for the British. Just cutting off the overseas trade of the Holy Roman Empire and not blocking other European countries, is it still a blockade?
Being cut off from overseas trade lines, what will happen to the two big hooligans, but many small countries are willing to
There will be heavy losses.
If it lasts for a short period of time, it will be fine, and everyone will grit their teeth and hold on to the matter.
In particular, several countries that rely on maritime trade may collapse directly because of the war.
In this context, it is normal for people to react violently. If there is no response, that's the problem.
After finishing the last point, put down the pen, picked up the towel and wiped his hands, Franz said slowly: "Let's officially make contact with the countries!
They want to use diplomatic mediation, so don't stop them. Countries will not easily surrender without experiencing failure.
Tell them that as long as the British are willing to maintain the status quo, then they can sign a peace agreement with them.
When necessary, in order to show our peace-loving sincerity, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can unilaterally make a unilateral commitment not to initiate war to buy time for the construction of warships. "
In the face of international interests, treaties are a piece of waste paper, and commitments are a joke.
In recent decades, the Vienna government has not defaulted, and that is only because the default bargaining chip is not large enough.
When it comes to world hegemony, it is completely different. It's worth losing even the government's credibility if you can fool the British and lay the groundwork for winning the war.
Well, Franz didn't hold out hope either. The British are not stupid, and maintaining the status quo does not include stopping shipbuilding.
It's just that this batch of warships is now in service, and the Royal Navy is barely able to withstand it without losing control.
But if you follow the old calendar and build more than a dozen dreadnoughts every year, the British government can only run wild.
There is no doubt that Franz can do such a thing. At this crossroads now, there is no room for him to back down.
Domestic interest groups, big and small, are now trying to overturn the British top-ranking cake.
Foreign Secretary Leo: "Okay, Your Majesty! I'll go back and implement it, and promise to leave the responsibility for starting the war to the British."
Although the Vienna government has formulated a detailed battle plan, there is still no precise conclusion about when the war will be launched.
But one thing is certain, that is, after the dumpling starts, the later the war breaks out, the better.
In this context, it has also changed from impossible to possible to throw the blame for the war on the British.
Just drag it on, time is on Shinra's side. The fact that the Vienna government has dragged on does not mean that the British have also dragged on.
According to the most popular theory, whoever can't help but start the war first is the instigator of the war.
As for the cause and effect, just ignore it, ordinary people don't have so many ideas.
If it's just an ordinary war, it doesn't matter who started it first. This time is different. A war between Shinra and Britain will bring disaster to a large group of pond fish.
In the event of an unpredictable disaster, we have to give everyone an outlet to vent the grievances in our hearts.
Although he is a world hegemon, there is no one who will not be scolded, but it is better to let the British go to the top of the tank than to fight for hatred by himself.