Chapter 857

The turbulent international situation has not affected Austria's Near East development plan. Blacksmithing still needs to be hard on its own, otherwise the opportunity will come to the door, and you will not be able to grasp it.

It has been four years since the Near East Development Program was launched in 1884.

For a country, 4 years can only be regarded as a small episode; for a place, it can bring about earth-shaking changes.

Compared with the depression that just went through the war four years ago, today's Near East has become a large construction site.

Railways are advancing like dragons; small towns are rising; the old city is still being demolished, and the new city has begun to be built.

In just four years, Austria immigrated to the Near East by more than three million people and controlled most of the area.

"The development of the Near East is still too slow, and at the current pace, it may not be completed in another ten years.

The international situation is becoming increasingly tense, and the possibility of war on the European continent is increasing. We do not have enough time to wait. The government must find a way to speed up the development of the Near East. "

In the eyes of the outside world, the Near East is advancing at an alarming rate, but in the eyes of Franz, it is still too slow.

Four years later, the Near East is still a large construction site. Except for the establishment of a number of small towns, slightly larger projects are all in progress.

It was originally planned to complete the development and reconstruction of the Near East within ten years. The reality told Franz that it could not be done at all.

Prime Minister Carl was shocked and said: "Your Majesty, our Near East development is already progressing very fast. If we blindly speed up the speed, there will be a series of problems later."

The progress is not impossible to speed up, but it is difficult to speed up the project while ensuring the quality of the project.

After all, there are few construction machinery and equipment these days, and it is all carried by manpower. What restricts the rapid completion of the Near East development plan is not the failure of the Austrian government, but the inability of the social productive forces to keep up.

Franz didn't study engineering mechanics, and couldn't help at all on this issue. Even if it is possible to draw a picture of the equipment of the future, it is only an appearance drawing, and I have no idea what the inside looks like.

It is not realistic to imitate engineering equipment based on the outline drawing. Many mechanical equipments involve a lot of basic scientific knowledge, and they cannot be created without keeping up.

Franz shook his head: "The international situation is changing, and time does not wait for anyone. If the Near East development plan cannot be completed in a short time, then the projects will be classified and important projects will be prioritized.

For example, projects such as roads, bridges, stations, etc., should be ranked first; it does not matter if the new city construction project is a little later. "

Franz admitted that he was in a hurry, but his instinct told him that the day when the situation in Europe got out of control was not far away.

Before the war broke out, he had no idea how to roll out the railway network and lay the foundation for the country to connect to Africa.

Prime Minister Carr reminded: "Your Majesty, after our warning, the French have made concessions, and now the three Fabid countries have come to the negotiating table.

Judging from the current situation in Europe, the French are not yet ready for war, and the possibility of war breaking out on the European continent is still very small.

Our development plan for the Near East is a whole, and each project is complementary to each other.

Slowing down urban construction along the way and blindly speeding up railway construction will lead to serious losses in railway operation for a long time in the future, which is very uneconomical economically. "

The European war will not start for a while. This is not the personal view of Prime Minister Karl. Most people in the Austrian government think so, and it can even be said that 99% of Europeans hold this view.

There was only a little friction between Fabid, and what the French did was at best political blackmail under military threats.

The biggest risk of war also comes from the confrontation between the two major alliances. However, the relationship between the two major alliances is only deteriorating between Britain and Russia. Faao can only be regarded as a normal stabbing between the powers.

Franz shook his head: "If you lose, you will lose. Anyway, we never expected the railways in the Near East to make money, and the early completion is nothing more than a little thanks.

In order to gain strategic initiative, we can still afford this price. "

No matter how important the economic account is, it cannot be compared with national strategic security. The railroad runs through the Near East, which means that Austria has a strategic advantage over France.

Of course, this was in the context of the continuing continental war, and if the outcome had been decided at the outset, the plan would have been unimportant.

Franz sometimes wonders whether he should follow the example of Prussia and strike first and catch the French by surprise.

Only after considering Britain and Russia, Franz decisively gave up this tempting plan. If you succeed, your income is limited, and if you lose, you will lose your pants.

Not taking the initiative to provoke a war does not mean that Franz did nothing. The French dared to propose the terms of hegemony to the two countries, but it was actually indulged by Austria.

It seems that the French took advantage, but they also pushed themselves to the opposite side of European countries.

On the surface, everyone has shown nothing to do with weakness, but the subconscious "French Threat Theory" has already surfaced in many people's minds.

Don't expect everyone to be rational. With this "subconsciousness", if the Franco-Austrian War breaks out, everyone will be inclined to Austria when they stand in line.

...

On November 24, 1888, after a series of haggling, the Fabius and Germany signed the Coal Export Agreement in Paris.

No surprises, the French government

According to the treaty, the two countries will export 50 million tons of coal to France at par in the next five years, of which high-quality coking coal shall not be less than 8 million tons.

The word "parity" has exhausted the heartache of the two countries. Although there is no clear explanation in the treaty, everyone knows that this is an ultra-low price.

Specifically, less than a month after the signing of the treaty, the overall retail price of coal in France fell by nearly one-fifth.

Coal prices fell, the biggest beneficiary is the steel industry. In the last month of 1888, French steel production increased by 18% compared to the same period last year.

This is just the beginning, as the French industry is beginning to rejuvenate due to falling energy prices.

The capitalists who have benefited have not forgotten to sing praises to the government. Napoleon IV became the greatest monarch of France overnight.

Everyone likes to hear good words, and Napoleon IV also enjoyed it when he saw the flower-style praise in the newspaper.

Soon Napoleon IV was not happy. After tasting the sweetness, the capitalists were not satisfied, but wanted to go further.

"Affordable coal", no matter how cheap it is, is not as good as getting it in your hands, not to mention that cheap coal is not very easy to buy.

The pressure of the French government is nothing more than forcing the two countries to reduce taxes on coal exported to France, and coal mining companies still need to make profits.

Even if the government signs a treaty, the capitalists can still refuse to buy it. Many companies have raised the ex-factory price for the French after the treaty was signed.

Even some national capitalists simply refused to sell coal to the French in protest against the unequal treaty.

The governments of the two countries also have integrity. Their tax cuts have already hit the bottom line. It is impossible for them to force companies to lower prices for exports.

After the three countries signed the treaty, the quantity of coal imported by France from Belgium and Germany did not rise but fell. "parity coal" does exist, but it cannot be bought.

It can also be seen from the decline in domestic coal prices that the price of coal imported from France is only at the same level as the international market.

The government has indeed cut taxes, but people just don't want to cut prices. We are all capitalists, who doesn't want to make more money?

The main contradiction now is not the contradiction between countries, but the contradiction between capitals.

According to conventional means, French capital can't help the coal bosses of the two countries, and can only ask the government for help.

...

In the Palace of Versailles, Napoleon IV frowned and asked, "What do you think of the proposal of the Steel Guild?"

Minister of Foreign Affairs Karel Kadlec: "Your Majesty, we have just signed a treaty with Bede and Germany, and the breach of contract so soon cannot be explained by the international community.

Judging from the current situation, there is no possibility that the two governments will continue to make concessions. If they force them to trade, it may be counterproductive. "

In fact, from the very beginning, Karel Kadlec was against excessive coercion of the two countries, and advocated the use of a unified procurement contract to lower prices.

However, the domestic capitalists do not cooperate, everyone is used to freedom, how can we give the purchasing power to the government?

Facts have proved that persecution does not solve the problem, and the governments of the three countries have indeed reached an agreement, but domestic companies still resist it.

Although the sky-high coal price no longer exists, it is still impossible to purchase cheap coal below the international average price.

Many companies in the two countries refuse to export coal to France, not because of how patriotic the capitalists are, but mainly because of domestic patriotism.

Nationalism has risen, and now doing business with the French is a traitor.

Not only coal mining companies, but many companies in Belgium and Germany are not cooperating with the French, and the whole society has set off a wave of boycotting French goods.

This is why French capitalists are eager to seek government help.

If the anti-French wave in the two countries is not suppressed, France will lose a part of its small international market.

Economy Secretary Elsa: "It is true that government intervention can pose uncertain risks, but the situation is now out of control.

If the government does not intervene, we will not only lose access to cheap coal, but also lose markets in Belgium and Germany.

There are various indications that there is also British capital behind this fueling the flames. Several companies that took the lead in boycotting coal exports to us are all backed by Yingao Capital. "

...