Chapter 277 Chaos in Central Asia

Due to Franz's butterfly effect, although the Russians suffered heavy losses in the Near Eastern War, they won the coveted Constantinople, and in the face of victory, the domestic crisis was suppressed.

After two years of recuperation, the tsarist government began to restless again. It's just that at this time the Vienna system was rebuilt, and there was no chance for them to expand on the European continent, and the tsarist government had to turn its attention to Asia.

In October 1856, under the instigation of the Russians, the Persian Dynasty captured Herat, and the British, who were stimulated, immediately declared war on the Persian Dynasty, and the Anglo-Polish War broke out.

Herat is bordered by the Persian Gulf in the west, the Caspian Sea and the Axalt River in the north, and the Indus River in the east. Its special geographical location determines its strategic position and has become an important part of Britain and Russia's hegemony in the Asian continent.

During the Near Eastern War, the Russians had planned to send troops to expedition to India to force the British to withdraw from the war, and Herat was an unavoidable hurdle.

At that time, the Herat government, fearing that it would offend the British, refused the request of the Russians to pass through, and the relationship between the two countries deteriorated.

In order to pull this nail, the tsarist government turned to support the Persian dynasty, and now the Persians invading Herat.

Affected by the outbreak of the war in Central Asia, the negotiations in the Gulf of Guinea also took a turn for the better. In order to gain the support of international public opinion, the British government had to make concessions.

Negotiations will be much easier without the UK as a scumbag. Because the entry time was too late, the French had little local interests, the Paris government did not make great efforts to compete, and the remaining countries did not have the strength to compete.

On November 1, 1856, the seven countries of Britain, France, Océ, the United States, Portugal and the Netherlands signed the "Treaty of the Gulf of Guinea" in Vienna, also known as the "Treaty of Seven Powers".

The treaty stipulates that the coastal area of ​​the Gulf of Guinea shall be demarcated by the actual occupation area of ​​each country, and the colonial strongholds of various countries shall not attack each other.

On the surface, no one suffers. In fact, this has confirmed Austria's local hegemony, and Austria, which has the advantage of manpower, has an absolute advantage.

The United States, Spain, and France jointly occupy Liberia; Austria, Britain, and Portugal jointly occupy Sierra Leone; Austria, Portugal, France, and the Netherlands jointly occupy Côte d’Ivoire; Austria, Britain, and the Netherlands jointly occupy Ghana; Dude, Austria occupies Guinea exclusively.

The forces of the countries in the Gulf of Guinea are intertwined, making it the most chaotic area in the world. The "Seven-Power Treaty" only temporarily suppressed the contradictions between countries, but could not eliminate them.

Seeing the power distribution map of various countries, Franz had nothing to say. It was completely intertwined. For example, the British in Togo only had a stronghold of a few hundred people, but they just couldn't go.

There is no way, the British Empire is so good at sea in this era, even if Austria has an advantage in the local area, they cannot be expelled.

Franz did not feel unbalanced in his heart. Diplomacy was within the range of the cannon, and the British colonies could not be touched on the bright side. Couldn't it be possible to use black hands secretly?

Don't look at the criss-crossing forces of the countries in the Gulf of Guinea now, and think that the competition between the countries is very fierce. In fact, it is only the United Kingdom who has played the role of a shit stick. I don't want to see Austria dominate the Gulf of Guinea, so many countries have created so many countries to contain Austria. .

Without the power of so many countries, it is very likely that they will be squeezed out of the Gulf of Guinea based on their local strength alone. After all, their advantages are all at sea, and they will not be able to do it on land.

Unless you hide in the colonial stronghold and do not come out, once you go out to carry out colonization activities, you may encounter danger. This is the African continent, and a little accident is normal.

In order to avoid this situation, the London government has drawn countries to jointly carve up the Gulf of Guinea. Anyway, they got the biggest benefit, and Franz naturally won't do everything.

Don't look at the strength of the countries here, but this also represents everyone's face, and they are directly expelled, and Austria does not need to be mixed in the world.

...

Metternich said: "Your Majesty, the Anglo-Polish war has broken out, and the Russians want us to support their actions."

Support, must support! At least verbal support, no matter how restless the Russians are, as long as they don't do things on the European continent, Franz doesn't care.

Originally, the West African negotiations were deadlocked, and the British, who had naval superiority, could not easily admit defeat. As a result, as soon as the Russians made their move, they immediately gave in.

Now is the critical moment for the British to secure the Indian colony. The Russians beat the Persians to occupy Herat. Is there any doubt about their motives?

Without the French as thugs, it is possible to play against the Russians on land. Even if they have a first-mover advantage, the London government does not dare to take it lightly.

Franz thought for a while and said, "The tsarist government wants to find the bad luck of the British, just to facilitate our overseas expansion. What kind of support do they want?"

Metternich replied calmly: "In addition to diplomatic support, they also want a loan."

Another "loan", Franz understands why the German-Russian alliance collapsed in history. It's not that the Wilhelm II government is stupid, it's just that they can't afford to support the Russians.

Don't look at the development of the German Second Empire at that time, it seems to be very rich, but in fact, as a new empire, they don't have much capital accumulation at all.

No matter how fast the economy develops, it cannot change the fact that they are short of money. During the gold standard era, when the rival British controlled most of the world's gold, the German government had to be careful if it wanted to issue more money.

The economic scale in the market has reached, but unfortunately the government reserves are insufficient. It is good that the issued currency can meet its own needs. There is not much money to lend to the Russians at all.

In order to contain the British, Franz decided to admit it, thought about it, and said, "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has negotiated with the Russians. If the loan amount is small, they can agree to it, but there must be collateral."

Huge loans are impossible, and the Vienna government is not wealthy, even if the loans are limited in terms of use.

Franz does not dare to be reckless in the matter of blindly issuing currency, even if there are enough gold reserves, a large amount of currency flooding into the market will cause inflation. Even if economics is bad, he still knows this little common sense.

Metternich explained: "Your Majesty, the tsarist government should not be involved in this war, so their funding gap will not be too big.

The victory of the Near Eastern War, although many people in the tsarist government were floating. But there are also many people of insight who have recognized their own strength. They want to promote the reform of serfdom, and they have the support of Nicholas I.

After the war, Nicholas I prepared to give all the soldiers the status of free citizens, but the nobles joined forces to push back on the excuse of insufficient compensation.

Now the reformists and the conservatives are at odds with each other, and it is difficult for the tsarist government to concentrate on external expansion in a short period of time. "

Franz asked with concern: "Is it possible for the tsarist government to use the opportunity of war to divert domestic attention and carry out serfdom reform?"

After pondering for a moment, Metternich replied: "Your Majesty, this is almost impossible. The Tsarist government's finances are very difficult now, and they cannot raise so much money for the war.

India is the most important colony of the British, and the London government cannot easily give up. Once the war breaks out, it will be protracted.

It is impossible for the tsarist government to know this. What they are doing now is nothing more than blocking the British and delaying the British annexation of India. "

Obviously, the tsarist government also knew the strength of the British. As the biggest competitor, if they didn't hold back, would they still be an enemy?

Launching a proxy war is a good choice. If you succeed, you will make a lot of money. If you fail, it doesn't matter. The tsarist government is also very experienced in selling teammates.