Chapter 547

The war in the Near East broke out again, and countries that did not want to see Austria continue to expand also acted. How to pull back efficiently and meaningfully is also an art.

London

Inside the Prime Minister's Residence in Downing Street, the British Cabinet gathered. Prime Minister Gerston took out a stack of top-secret documents and distributed them to the crowd.

"This is the Austrian's battle plan. The intelligence department paid a heavy price to get it. I hope it can help us in our next operations."

It paid a heavy price, and this semi-public battle plan was almost published in the Vienna newspapers.

British intelligence agents spent £50,000 to get the initial plan. Don't ask where the money goes, intelligence is priceless.

The crowd did not speak and read it carefully. There is not much content on the document, only a general plan, which does not involve specific combat parts.

Admiral Robert frowned, and the beard on his face was particularly eye-catching: "According to this battle plan, the Austrians will win this war at no cost.

With the broken ships of the Ottoman Empire navy, they were not even able to fight back against Austria. With the loss of sea power, coalition forces can land in any area at any time.

According to the information the Navy has learned, there are at least 30 ports in the Ottoman Empire suitable for landing troops, and the actual number may be even more.

It would take at least a million troops to defend so many places. With the national strength of the Ottoman Empire, this cannot be achieved.

Once the coastal areas are eroded and a large number of war refugees are produced, the Ottoman Empire will soon be dragged down. This scorched earth plan is too vicious. "

Everyone understood Robert's words. Attacking the viciousness of the Austrians' battle plan was second, and the main purpose was to emphasize the importance of "sea power".

No one objected that sea power was indeed very important to the British Empire. What happened to the Ottoman Empire only proved this again.

Prime Minister Gerston nodded: "Yes, the Austrian plan is indeed very vicious. If we don't want to interfere, it won't be long before the Ottoman Empire collapses.

And it is still completely collapsed, and it can't even consume Austria's strength. Without this nail in the back, it would be even more difficult for us to check and balance Austria. "

He picked up a baton and pointed at the map on the wall: "You can look at this world map, which is marked on it.

These blue areas are all Austrian colonies, or spheres of influence. Only twenty years have passed, and Austria is already the second largest colonial power after us.

The issue of overseas colonial expansion is not in a hurry. Now the world is almost divided up, and the rest are some hard bones or areas with relatively low value.

Looking back to the European continent, this is the European pattern after the Prussian War. The Russian Empire was suppressed, and its influence was suppressed in Eastern Europe.

The Kingdom of Prussia has risen, and France has also revived. At present, European countries are restraining each other, and we can maintain a balance in general.

But we still can't let our guard down. From the end of the anti-French war to the present, the Austrians have been in a dominant position on the European continent through diplomatic means.

If Austria was twenty years ago, then it was a good thing that they helped us achieve a continental balance.

However, the situation has changed in the past ten years. The foreign policy of the Vienna government has become incomprehensible, and their strategic goals have become blurred.

The only certainty is that the continental balance policy is no longer the core strategy of the Vienna government, otherwise the French will not be able to annex Italy. "

Taking a step back, Gerston's expression became serious: "In today's world, there are only two countries that have the strength to threaten the hegemony of Britain." The baton tapped twice on the map, and it was France and Austria.

"Information from Paris shows that Napoleon III is already sick in bed, and the crown prince can't suppress many domestic forces at a young age. Once Napoleon III passes away, this power struggle is inevitable, and the French will not be a threat in a short time.

Austria is different, the domestic political situation is stable, Franz is in his prime, and now he has launched an ambitious war in the Near East.

Once the Ottoman Empire collapsed, the next goal of the Vienna government was to annex the German Confederation.

They chose a good time. Prussia and Russia are mutually restrained and opposed, and it is impossible to intervene together; France, in the process of handover of power, is very likely not to send troops to interfere for the sake of stability.

The rest of the European countries are nothing but grass, and it's okay to wave the flag, but it's too reluctant to ask them to check and balance Austria. Just our family, even if we want to interfere, can't do enough. "

This is the most worrying issue for the British. Austria has unified the German region, and it is the only one on the European continent. If you want to check and balance, you don't know where to start.

Now is not the original time and space, there is French and German hatred that can be used. European countries are not stupid, and they don't have enough interests. How can they rush to fight with Austria in a daze?

The Vienna government is also good at playing diplomacy. For so many years after Franz's succession, Austria has never been isolated.

The Vienna system has been established twice, and it can also be established a third time. Against the background of the confrontation between Prussia and Russia, the end of the Ottoman Empire, and the infighting of France, the establishment of Austrian continental hegemony was very successful.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Maclean: "From the standpoint of the empire, the Ottoman Empire cannot be destroyed by any means. It is not enough to support the Ottoman Empire. The strength gap between the two sides is too great, and the Sudanese government cannot last long.

want direct from Austria

It is too difficult to make a profit, and we can only find a way to do it in P.F. and Russia. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is lobbying the Berlin government to create conflict on the Prussian border, and Central Asian countries can also move to find a way to get the Russians out of the war.

Once the Russians have withdrawn from the war, we will conduct military exercises with the French in the Mediterranean, making an appearance of intervention and deterring the Vienna government.

Franz doesn't like taking risks, no matter what he does, he has to do it later, which is an advantage and a disadvantage. As long as we create enough momentum and pull together European countries to mediate together, there is a very high possibility that Austria will give up.

If the plan fails, we create trouble overseas to distract the Vienna government.

Austria's colonial system is not impeccable, we can't move Austrian Africa, and Central America is not easy to move, and other regions are different. "

Chancellor of the Exchequer Lark Lloyd asked: "Sounds like a good plan, but where are our interests? We can't afford to spend so much and gain nothing, right?"

The biggest feature of British diplomacy is pragmatism. There is no problem in suppressing Austria, but it cannot harm Britain's own interests.

It is not a matter of one sentence to win over European countries. It requires a price. Even if a small country helps to raise the flag, it also requires an appearance fee, which has a cost.

In particular, the last method, starting directly from the Austrian colonies, requires more investment.

Not to mention the benefits, Austria's most fertile colonies can't be moved, and the leftovers are so cold that there is no return at all.

In Alaska it's ice, a little fur at most, or to catch a few fish. If Britain was interested, it would have been in the hands of the last century, so there is no need to wait until now.

Patagonia is not much better. The colonial stronghold that the Spaniards have abandoned is obviously a loss-making business.

Argentina and Chile are somewhat interested in this land, but they are not brave enough to grab it from Austria, or they are not tempted enough.

The Austrian Southeast Asia is relatively fertile, but the cost of seizing it is too high, and even thugs cannot be found in the surrounding areas, unless the British go there in person.

But considering the cost, even if the plan was successful, Britain would lose money. Not just losing money, but also gaining an enemy.

To suppress Austria, these investments are worth it. The most troublesome thing is that they didn't fight, forcing France and Austria to move closer together, and that was a big loss.

Maclean stood up, walked over to the hanging map, and drew a circle with his hands.

"This is the current map of Austria, which is double the size of the First Near Eastern War."

A little bit on the map: "This is the Suez Canal. Once the Ottoman Empire is over, Austria's power will be linked together, and its influence will spread to the Indian Ocean.

The Suez River is the Sinai Peninsula of Austria on one side and the Egypt of the French on the other. The second outlet of the Mediterranean, there is nothing to do with us, everyone must have an idea!

This action may not hurt Austria's vitality. At least it can reach into the Suez Canal and turn the French-Austrian co-management into a three-nation co-management of Britain, France and Austria? "

The Suez Canal, France and Austria, are very close, and they do not give the British a chance to intervene. If they want to get in, they must first divide the relationship between France and Austria.

The London government has been trying, but with little success. Although there are many pro-British factions in the Paris government, being pro-British does not mean that they will betray the country.

Napoleon III was not a fuel-efficient lamp either. When it comes to the issue of the Suez Canal, he did not talk to the UK at all. There is no room for negotiation, let alone a hand in it?

Not to mention Austria, Franz regards the Suez Canal as the lifeblood. The Vienna government is thinking about how to dominate the Suez Canal and let the British intervene. How is it possible?

...

In Paris, Napoleon III, who was bedridden, was no longer concerned with the war in the Near East. He had reached the last moment of his life, and the ministers did not dare to bother him with these questions.

In case the emperor was stimulated to receive a box lunch when reporting, he would become a sinner. The current Napoleon III is not the unlucky person who was expelled from the throne in the original time and space. The French people still support the emperor.

Even if the little emperor doesn't care too much, the spittle stars outside can kill people. In short, the emperor's recuperation was far more important than the war in the Near East.

Crown Prince Eugene, who presides over government affairs, was influenced by Napoleon III and chose "steady" in case of uncertainty, so as to remain unchanged and respond to changes.

It’s okay to shout slogans, but the Paris government has been calling on both sides to exercise restraint, not taking actual actions. It seems to be following the lead of the London government, waiting for the British to act, and they are waving the flag.

The French people's unmoving approach makes the British feel extremely difficult. They are really not used to it without this thug charging forward!

...

At the Vienna Palace, Franz put down the newspaper in his hand: "Have the Prussians still acted?"

The reaction of Britain and France was expected by Franz, but the actions of the Berlin government made him a little confused.

If the Prussians had no ambitions for Poland, they wouldn't believe Franz was killed. But if you have ambitions, you should act. Once-in-a-lifetime opportunities have appeared, and the Berlin government has not moved at all. What is this?

Did William I see through his plans? This is also not true, even if the Prussians saw through the plan, they could not refuse to annex Poland.

Even if there is concern that Polish nationalism is too strong, this does not affect the two countries' co-monarchy. The big deal is to run two sets of government teams, each of which is in charge of its own.

There are so many examples of this, the original time and space of the Austro-Hungarian Empire is

An upgraded version of the common monarchy system, but also a degraded version of the unified empire.

Intelligence chief Taylor: "No. We have resisted the Berlin government, and so far, they have not taken any action.

By the way, recently, there have been many meetings in the Berlin Palace, and sometimes they are held until late at night. The Prussians strictly blocked the news, and no one knew the specific content of the meeting.

According to the observation of intelligence personnel, after the participants came out, their expressions were more serious, and some people were still gloomy. Preliminary judgment, it should be a dispute. "

It's good to have abnormal behavior, the most fearful thing is that there is no movement at all. For a big country, as long as it does not make big mistakes, it is difficult for the outside world to defeat it.