Chapter 847 Anglo-French Treaty

In the British embassy in Paris, British Foreign Secretary George and Minister Roberto Fernandez sat facing each other, and the atmosphere in the room was very depressed.

It can be seen from their faces that the welcome banquet that has just ended was not so pleasant.

Napoleon IV was not only absent himself, but also called a government meeting at a short notice during the banquet, and the French high-level officials left the venue.

All the powerful figures have left, and in the end only a few foreign ministry staff and a bunch of nobles with empty titles were left to receive Sir George.

The most basic principle of reciprocal reception has been abandoned. This is not just a matter of disposing of horses. It is a complete disregard for George, and it does not give the British Empire any face.

It is not surprising in diplomacy to be coldly received diplomatically. The relationship between Britain and France was inherently bad, and things more rude than this had happened. What worried George was the task.

"Your Excellency, you have been in Paris for a long time and have a good understanding of the French government. What do you think it will take to persuade the French to support us?"

George's visit to Paris has been rushed, and he can only adapt according to the actual situation before he is not sure what France wants.

After thinking for a while, Roberto Fernandez: "Sir, the French have a great appetite, and a little interest may not satisfy them.

If the situation is not particularly critical, I suggest that the French government should be stabilized. The price to be paid to win them over is too high.

In fact, the French government is now busy sorting out the interior, and the French government is unable to mix international affairs in a short period of time. "

Taking advantage of the fire is a natural state of the country. Now that Britain needs France, the French government will naturally not be polite.

George was unmoved: "What do the French want most now?"

In diplomatic activities, even eloquent eloquence is not worth the benefits.

George does not think that he can persuade the French by fooling around. Now, to win over the French government, he must show tangible benefits.

Minister Roberto Fernandez replied: "The strategic goals of the French have hardly changed. They have always aimed at hegemony on the European continent. After the Great Revolution, they have been somewhat restrained, and now there is a trend of resurgence.

Radical groups in France want to expand into Central Europe and seize continental hegemony; capitalists want to seize Belgium and the Rhineland to solve the cost of industrial raw materials.

These interest demands were opposed by the domestic aristocratic conservatives, who feared that the entry into Central Europe would trigger a new anti-French war.

It is precisely these conservatives who are in power at present. They oppose the expansion in the European continent, advocate easing relations with the European countries, and solve the problem of insufficient domestic industrial raw materials by developing colonies.

Recently, the French government has been very lively. After Napoleon IV ended his trip to Algeria, he returned to Paris and immediately ordered the replacement of a group of local bureaucrats.

In order to vacate the official hat, the major factions within the French government are fighting for life and death, and even high-ranking officials directly fight.

Now Napoleon IV is busy balancing the forces of all parties. Unless we can come up with conditions that all French interest groups cannot refuse, otherwise we will not be able to win over the French in the short term. "

Rao knew in advance that the internal situation in France was very complicated, and George could not imagine that the French government was in such a mess.

When the political struggle is fierce, there is no need to ask why. "You support, I oppose" and vice versa.

Everyone opposes for the sake of opposing, and maybe it won't work, but it's enough to hurt the other side.

Any trivial matter, everyone can quarrel endlessly, not to mention the important international team involved?

If he really did ideological work one by one, George had no doubt that he would retire before he could convince this group of people.

"Belgium and the German Confederation are our potential allies, and supporting the French expansion into Central Europe means giving up these allies.

Moreover, with the current strength of the French, the expansion into Central Europe at this time may not be successful.

With Austria's appeal, it is entirely possible to form a new anti-French alliance. Other countries cannot be sure, and the direct victims of Belgium and the German Confederation will definitely pass by the first time.

No matter who wins in the end, there will be a dominant situation in Europe, and we will be passive. "

There is no way to support the expansion of the French to Central Europe, which will not only cost Britain's international reputation, but also mean that they have to give up their fulcrum in Central Europe, and it will be difficult for them to intervene in European affairs in the future.

If that's all, it's not impossible to negotiate. Anyway, the international reputation of the British is not very good, and it will not fall anywhere.

The key is that after losing the background, Belgium and the German Confederation will definitely drag Austria into the water, and finally become France vs. the anti-French alliance headed by Austria.

Britain and Russia were mutually restrained, and the outcome of the Franco-Austrian War became uncontrollable.

Unless it's a lose-lose situation, the winner is the continental hegemon who is hostile to Britain.

Minister Roberto Fernandez nodded: "Of course, it is our national policy to maintain a balanced European continent.

If we can't start from strategy, then we can only start from economics, but the sequelae will be more serious.

For example: the unilateral repeal of the high tariffs on the French. "

Hearing this proposal, George's face suddenly fell. Not only is the sequelae more serious, it is clearly killing people.

High tariffs against France, which is the withdrawal of the French from free trade

Retaliation by the system.

Moreover, British and French tariffs are now almost equal to each other. The unilateral abolition of Britain means that French goods can freely enter and leave the British market; while British goods have to pay high tariffs to enter the French market.

If George dared to agree to such conditions, the domestic capitalists would have to tear him apart.

"Your Excellency, this joke is not funny at all. If you unilaterally drop tariffs, do you know what that means?"

Minister Roberto Fernandez nodded: "Of course, that means Britain has become an economic colony for the French.

So, from the beginning, I was against trying to win over the French at this time. Now we have too few chips in our hands and the French have too much appetite to negotiate.

In fact, we all know that the possibility of Austria's direct intervention in Central Asia is almost zero, and there is a Persian Empire in the middle.

It doesn't matter if there is a French check or not. As long as the French don't have any problems, even if they don't have to do anything, the Austrian government must take precautions.

The top priority is to find a way to end the arms race, rather than wasting time on an impossible goal. "

Risks and benefits are directly proportional. Let the French take action to contain Austria, and no one can guarantee that the gun will go wrong in the middle and detonate the war between the two countries.

If the appearance fee is not enough, how can the French government be willing to take risks?

After a pause, George said slowly: "What if we were allied with the French?

We can't support French expansion into Central Europe, but that doesn't mean we can't acquiesce to French expansion into Central Europe.

Anyway, Austria has to withstand it, and the French will not rashly send troops until they are completely sure.

Britain needs time. As long as we have resolved the Central Asian issue, whether or not this covenant will be fulfilled in the end is still in our hands. "

After pondering for a while, Roberto Fernandez said cautiously: "Sir, is this the final decision in the country?

You know, after doing this, the results of our business in France for so many years will be destroyed in one fell swoop. "

Pro-British faction does not mean unconditional pro-Britishism. Most pro-British factions will still put their own national interests first.

Originally, shorting the franc a few years ago severely offended the French, which led to a sharp decrease in the number of pro-British people in the French government.

Now there is another wave. It is estimated that even the pro-British group in the French government will disappear in the future, and only naked hatred will remain.

In the eyes of most people, traitors are even more hateful than enemies. There is actually only a thin line between the pro-British faction and the anti-British faction.

George was unmoved: "This is the price that has to be paid. If possible, I don't want to be so extreme, but there is no way for the interests of Britain.

Isn't our painstaking work just for this day?

From now on, the embassy will mobilize all of our personal connections to facilitate this alliance. "

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