Chapter 220 Pirates

Arthur moved quickly. After Einstein agreed to stay in Australasia temporarily, the Royal Physical Research Society in Australasia was already making preparations.

In order to better attract talents, all members of the Royal Physical Research Society will receive a salary exceeding the level of professors at famous European universities.

And each member of the Royal Physical Research Society can apply for at least AU$50,000 in research funding each year and has access to all top laboratories in Australasia.

High salaries and increased research funds are the most effective ways and means to attract those scientists.

Subsequently, Arthur appointed Einstein as vice president of the Physical Research Association and gave Einstein the job of recruiting new people.

These physical scientists all have their own unique connections. It is also a good way for them to use their connections to attract talents for Australasia.

After March 1907, the disasters in East Asia became more and more serious, and there was a trend of rice grabbing in many areas.

There are also more and more merchant ships traveling between East Asia and Australasia. They carry grain from Australasia, and the profit of each ship is several times or even ten times higher than before.

Some of these merchant ships are organized by the government, while others go there spontaneously. Arthur didn't stop him from doing this. After all, the royal family had already eaten the bulk, so it didn't matter if he let others drink some soup.

But the problem also arises from this.

In early April, when a message was passed to Arthur from the Royal Security Intelligence Service, the peaceful situation in Australasia completely changed.

The cause of the matter also starts with the famine in East Asia.

This famine in East Asia affected a wide area. In addition to the mainland of the Qing Dynasty, even Southeast Asia and the Philippines were also affected to a certain extent.

The great famine, which covers such a wide area and has such serious impact, has also forced some evil forces that were originally hidden in these areas to surface.

In the Southeast Asian region, there once was a notorious pirate group called the Moro Pirates.

In their heyday, this group of people once affected the entire Southeast Asia and nearby areas, and was one of the biggest scourges on the Southeast Asian seas.

When the British Empire's fleet was majestic, Moro pirates attacked British merchant ships.

A British sailor named Edwards was once discovered by Moro pirates on an island near Malacca. He squatted in a bamboo cage and wrote in horror: "Forty-five people were captured by them. Some had their arms cut off, some had their legs cut off, and I had my tongue cut off.”

These ruthless bandits who dare to attack the merchant ships of the world's most powerful country have been running rampant in this area for hundreds of years.

These pirates have no fixed target for robbery, and they will not let go of anything that can be exchanged for money.

Whether it is sea cucumbers and bird's nests shipped to East Asia, peppers and cloves shipped to India, silver coins or Western weapons shipped to Batavia, they are all in their pockets.

Coupled with their love of plundering people, Moro pirates have become a scourge in Southeast Asia that everyone hates.

Since the 1840s, the British Empire and the Kingdom of Spain have carried out a large number of suppression and eradication of pirates, but the Moro pirates have not stopped their piracy activities in the Southeast Asia.

It was not until after the Spanish-American War that the Americans gained control of the Philippines and used some steel-armored speedboats and small patrol boats to establish a regular cruise system that the local pirate threat was reduced.

The Moro pirates reappeared in history after World War II. At that time, due to the deterioration of the regional security situation, piracy had a resurgence in these areas.

But what Arthur didn't expect was that the famine in East Asia forced these pirates to jump out and choose to attack merchant ships transporting food in Australasia.

According to the intelligence obtained by the Royal Security Intelligence Service, at least two merchant ships have been hijacked, and at least a dozen Australasians have been arrested.

Although it is not known whether these pirates have attacked other countries, for Australasia, this is already the biggest crisis since the founding of Australasia, and Arthur must make plans immediately.

More than ten minutes later, Arthur had arrived at the meeting room of the Government Affairs Council, and other cabinet officials also arrived non-stop.

Without too much nonsense, Arthur directly and briefly explained the situation of two Australasian merchant ships being robbed by pirates, and asked the cabinet members for their opinions.

After hearing the situation, most people's faces turned a little livid.

The timing is not very friendly to all cabinet members, with cabinet elections in Australasia just over two months away.

If this matter cannot be properly resolved, I am afraid that many people will lose the election this time.

"Your Majesty, no matter what, I think our citizens and their property should be protected. If necessary, we should send out the military to protect our citizens." Prime Minister Evan thought for a while before saying.

"But the problem is that we don't know where these pirates are stationed. Moreover, even if we know their station, can we still attack by force? If those damn pirates desperately execute our citizens What should we do?” Defense Secretary Kent immediately raised objections.

The current situation we are facing is indeed very difficult. We don't know the specific location of these pirates, and we cannot blindly dispatch troops, lest the pirates become desperate and have a mentality of perishing together.

"Oh, shit! These damn pirates, if we find them, we must skin them, chop them up and throw them into the sea to feed the sharks." Thomas, the Minister of Security, cursed.

The current situation is a dilemma for the cabinet government, because the election date is approaching, and they must deal with this matter properly as soon as possible.

But there is very little intelligence at present, and in order to ensure the safety of the captured Australasians, some brutal means cannot be used for the time being.

"Your Majesty, the more famous pirates in this area are the Moro pirates west of the Philippines and east of Kalimantan. The United States has a good patrol system for the coast near the Philippines, and the pirates near the Philippines have been basically eliminated. Therefore, I think the pirates' base should be west of the Philippines, either in the Dutch East Indies, or near Sulu in the middle area." Defense Minister Kent took out a map near Southeast Asia, analyzed it carefully for a while, and then said respectfully to Arthur.

Arthur nodded. Minister Kent's analysis is very reasonable.

After the United States conducted a large number of patrols on the coast of the Philippines, the pirates could only flee to the west and south, that is, Sulu in the west, the Sultanate and Kalimantan Island further west.

At this time, Kalimantan Island was ruled by two forces, one was the North Borneo Protectorate belonging to the British Empire in the north, and the other was Borneo in the Dutch East Indies in the south.

Of these two countries, the British Empire has always been very strong in its crackdown on pirates, and the probability of pirates appearing in the North Borneo Protectorate is also very small.

But the Dutch East Indies in the south is different. The Netherlands was originally a second- or third-rate country in Europe, and its current population has been surpassed by Australasia.

In addition, the Netherlands is too far away from the Dutch East Indies, so the rule of the Dutch East Indies is not actually solid.

If it were not for the fact that the Dutch rule in this area was agreed by the great powers, especially the British Empire, I am afraid that the Dutch East Indies would have changed hands long ago.

At present, there are more than a dozen local indigenous forces in the entire Dutch East Indies.

Some of these indigenous forces were openly subject to the rule of the Dutch East Indies, and naturally there were also areas that the Dutch East Indies could not control.

The group of Moro pirates was also likely to hide in these areas that the Dutch East Indies could not control, and develop quietly in secret.

"Your Majesty, if these pirates are hiding in Borneo or other areas, I think the indigenous forces in these areas cannot be unaware of their whereabouts. Perhaps the best breakthrough point lies in these indigenous forces. As long as we can know the specific hiding places of the pirates, we can dispatch a large-scale army to quickly eliminate these pirates and save our captured citizens." Minister Kent then suggested.

During the most rampant period of Southeast Asian pirates, almost most of the princes of the indigenous forces participated in the pirate operations.

Whether it was the lack of labor or the lack of money and food, it was one of their excuses for participating in the pirate operations.

Minister Kent's suggestion was also very simple, starting with these local indigenous forces, one after another to question the whereabouts of the pirates.

If you don't say it, it's also very simple. If you really find out that the pirates are near the indigenous forces, then this force will have no need to exist.

Now that the election day is getting closer and closer, these pirates dare to run into the muzzle of the gun, then we can only use some force to make them disappear.

"It's a good idea, Minister Kent. Does anyone else have anything to add?" Arthur nodded with satisfaction, and he very much agreed with Minister Kent's suggestion.

This is a relatively complete and reasonable solution at present when the whereabouts of the pirates are unknown.

Next, Arthur discussed the specific plan of action with the officials for a long time, and the meeting ended under Arthur's order.

This incident is a crisis for the cabinet government, but it is also an opportunity to seek re-election.

If the cabinet government can properly resolve this crisis, it can also gain the favor of the people, and the next re-election will not be so difficult.

But if it cannot be properly resolved, not only the re-election plan may be ruined, but even whether the political career can continue is a problem.

You know, protecting the lives and property of the people is what Arthur vowed to say in every speech. If the government cannot solve this matter well, even Arthur's reputation will be affected.

At that time, I can only let my fellow Taoist die rather than myself, and let these government officials take the blame.

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