Chapter 861

At the same time, it has become a scapegoat, and the Russian-Austrian alliance can also be renamed the scapegoat alliance. However, there is a difference between a backer and a backer.

Austria willingly jumped out to take the blame.

French Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Austria spread rumors, smeared the national image of France, and claimed economic losses.

Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: No, we just stated the facts and let the European people know the truth.

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The tsarist government was different. It was all people sitting at home and the pot came from the sky.

The Vienna government takes the blame. It is your love and I want to get what you want. The quarrel between France and Austria is more like a political game.

The pot thrown by the British is different. Sending troops to attack the British troops in Afghanistan is no different from declaring war.

Although they are not afraid of going to war with the British, the Russians are naturally unwilling to bear the blame for the enemy without any benefit.

St. Petersburg

Foreign Secretary Oscar Jimenez: "Your Majesty, the matter has been clarified. After the British occupied the Afghanistan area, they encountered fierce resistance from the local people, and the troops suffered heavy losses.

The British government slandered the British army who sent troops to attack Afghanistan, just to not bear the responsibility of the heavy losses on the front line, and to give an explanation to the domestic people. "

What does Anglo-Russian war mean?

Open the map and you will know that this is not a big deal at all. Except for the possibility of war in Central Asia, the two sides in other regions are out of reach.

In theory, the Royal Navy can indeed blockade the coastline of the Russian Empire, but in practice it simply cannot.

Russia's shipbuilding industry is underdeveloped, and domestic ocean shipping companies are few and far between. Most of the shipping business in overseas trade is undertaken by international shipping companies.

Including the British shipping companies, they all took a small piece of the cake. The Royal Navy is embargoing, can't even detain its own ships?

To put it bluntly, the main sea ports of the Russians are concentrated in the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea. Even if the Royal Navy blocks the door, everyone can still pretend to be doing trade with the Nordic Federation and Austria.

Without satellite monitoring these days, who knows where these ships really start and end. Arbitrary arrest of the ship will cause international disputes.

Hearing this answer, Ivanov, Minister of War, said angrily: "Your Majesty, the British are constantly challenging the bottom line of the empire, and now they can't bear it any longer.

We must use the strongest means to give them a strong counterattack. Let the whole world know that the great Russian Empire is not to be messed with! "

"Toughness" is not without reason. In fact, after Marshal Ivanov served as Minister of War, the Russian military has become relatively conservative.

If it weren't for the British government's dumping of the blame, which exposed the weakness of the British army's low combat effectiveness, Marshal Ivanov would never have jumped out of the main battle now.

Alexander III hesitated, a tsar who dared not fight was not a qualified tsar.

Peace-loving, that is only the interests of the needs. Now that the British have exposed their weaknesses, it would be completely unreasonable if they didn't take the opportunity to fall into the trap!

But are the British really that weak?

Alexander III was deeply suspicious. He knew very well that the Indian colonial army did not represent the true combat effectiveness of the British army.

Most of the troops attacking Afghanistan this time are Indian colonial troops, and the main force transferred from the mainland is less than one-fifth of the total number.

Seeing that Alexander III was swaying, Ivanov continued to swim and said, "Your Majesty, the British have long been strong outsiders.

Over the years, there has been no progress at all. The combat effectiveness of the British army may not be comparable to that of the First Near Eastern War.

The Afghan war is a proof, and the earlier South African war is also a proof.

At that time, the British were the main force, and as a result, even a group of militiamen who were temporarily entangled in Austria did not win. The combat effectiveness of the British army can be imagined.

Now is the best chance. The three Khanates in Central Asia have been crippled, and it will not be long before we invade Afghanistan.

Although the British occupied the Afghan area first, their local foundation was unstable, and the guerrillas made trouble.

We can take advantage of the situation and seize the Afghan region to lay the foundation for going south to India. "

The strong prey is the essence of this era. The original goal of the tsarist government was to capture Central Asia.

As for the Afghan region, since it fell into the hands of the British, the military no longer has expectations and is ready to wait for the next opportunity.

However, the plan did not change quickly. After discovering that the British army occupying the Afghan area was weak, and even the Afghan guerrillas could not handle it, Marshal Ivanov immediately changed his mind.

"If you don't take it, you will be punished by God."

To miss such an opportunity is simply a crime. As the leader of the military, this kind of soft persimmons that are delivered to the door are turned away. Do you want to find hard bones?

Foreign Secretary Oscar Jiménez added: "We had a secret contact with the French not long ago and the Paris government has no objection to our access to the Indian Ocean.

If we turn against the British at this time, the French will not send troops to interfere, and Austria will also support us.

All diplomatic obstacles have been cleared. The remaining problems are all in the military. As long as the military is sure to win, the strategy of going south can be implemented. "

Hearing the news, Alexander III was shocked: "The French sold their teammates so quickly?"

Immediately responded,

It seems that the French government doesn't want to sell teammates, and it can't help the British now.

France and Austria are fighting over the China-Europe issue. At this time, sending troops to help the British fight, doesn't it give Austria a chance?

"Is there a financial problem?"

By convention, almost every war is preceded by a routine objection from the Treasury Department.

This is not because the finance minister does not have an overall view, but mainly because the tsarist government is poor and does not give vaccinations in advance. What if there is no money in the middle of the war?

No one wants to take the blame, so the Russian finance minister has always been the leader of the anti-war faction. As long as the financial difficulties are mentioned in advance, and half of the battles are fought without money, it is not a problem of the Ministry of Finance.

Every time the Ministry of Finance objected, and it was difficult to encounter one that did not object, it is not surprising that Alexander III was surprised.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Alisher Gulov replied with a smile: "It is indeed difficult financially, but with the efforts of our colleagues, we have raised a war fund.

Just a month ago, we signed a loan contract of 50 million Aegis with the Austrian National Bank; in addition, we also reached an agreement with a French consortium to issue bonds of 270 million francs with industrial raw materials as a guarantee.

As long as the total number of troops we put in is less than 500,000 people and the war lasts no more than a year, the finances will be able to support it. "

(£1 = 2 Aegis = 25 francs)

In fact, it is not only the military that wants to go south to seize India, the Ministry of Finance's desire for India is not inferior at all.

The tsarist government offset nearly 30 percent of its debts because of the sale of trophies after the Third Near Eastern War and a large amount of money to help settle settlers in Austria.

In addition to the debts that have been repaid in recent years, the total debt of the tsarist government has dropped by nearly 40%.

In addition to the reduction of debt pressure, Russia's economy has also achieved certain development in recent years. Although it is still at a snail-like speed, it is always moving forward.

Self-raised and borrowed, hundreds of thousands of troops a year's war funds came out.

Alexander III was surprised: "The French will issue bonds for us?"

He couldn't help but be surprised, because of the credibility, the government bonds issued by the Russian government can only be sold locally, even to the ally Austria.

No matter how good the relationship is, no matter how high the interest rate is, the financial institutions that have suffered losses are not willing to come a second time.

In contrast, financial controls in France are much looser. Bonds are risky investments, and the purchaser is responsible for the default in the event of a default, and the issuer does not need to be jointly and severally liable.

As a capitalist, as long as the interests are high enough, someone will naturally do it. To Alexander III's surprise, the French government did not intervene.

You must know that Britain and France are allies. The French issuing bonds for the Russians at this time is simply stabbing the allies again.

Finance Minister Alisher Gulov nodded: "Yes, the French government did not interfere!

However, the interest and handling fees are high, and the amount of bonds cannot be too large, and can only be carried out in the mode of fundraising by private enterprises. "

For the tsarist government, the process is not important, the most important thing is the result. There is no real difference between corporate bonds and government bonds, as long as you can get the money.

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