The turbulent international situation did not affect Austria's Near East Development Plan. One needed to be strong in order to forge iron. Otherwise, they would not be able to grasp the opportunity.
The Near East Development Plan was launched in 1884. It had been four years since then.
Four years could only be regarded as a small interlude for a country, but for a place, earth-shaking changes could take place.
Compared with the depression of war four years ago, the Near East today had become a large construction site.
Railways were moving forward like dragons; small towns were rising; old cities were still being demolished, and new cities had begun to be built.
In just four years, Austria had migrated more than three million people to the Near East and controlled most of the area.
"The Near East Development Plan is still too slow. At the current speed, it may not be completed in another ten years.
The international situation is increasingly tense, and the possibility of war breaking out 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 was advancing at an amazing speed, but in the eyes of Franz, it was still too slow.
Four years had passed, and the Near East was still a large construction site. In addition to the establishment of a number of small towns, slightly larger projects were in progress.
The original plan to complete the development and reconstruction of the Near East within ten years, but the reality told Franz that it was impossible to achieve.
Prime Minister Carr was shocked and said, "Your Majesty, our development of the Near East is already very fast. If we speed up blindly, a series of problems will arise later. "
It was not that the progress could not be speeded up, but it was difficult to speed up while ensuring the quality of the project.
After all, there was little construction machinery and equipment nowadays, and it was all carried out by manpower. It was not that the Government of Austria did not work hard, but that social productivity could not keep up with the rapid completion of the Near East Development Plan.
Franz did not study construction machinery, so he could not help with this problem at all. Even if he could draw the drawings of the equipment in the future, it would only be the drawings of the appearance. He had no idea what the inside looked like.
It was not realistic to imitate the construction equipment based on the appearance. Many of the mechanical equipment involved a lot of basic scientific knowledge, and it was impossible to build it without keeping up with the progress.
Franz shook his head and said, "The international situation is changing rapidly, and time waits for no man. The Near East Development Plan could not be completed in a short period of time, so the projects should be divided into different levels and priority should be given to the important projects.
For example, roads, bridges, stations, and other projects must be prioritized. It doesn't matter if the construction of the new city is delayed. "
Franz admitted that he was anxious, but his intuition told him that the day when the situation in Europe would be out of control was not far away.
If he did not spread out the railway network before the war broke out and lay the foundation for the mainland to connect to Africa, he really had no confidence.
Prime Minister Carr reminded, "Your Majesty, after we issued the warning, the French have already made concessions. Now the three countries are on the negotiating table.
Judging from the current situation in Europe, the French were not ready for war, and the possibility of war breaking out on the European continent was very small.
The Near East Development Plan that we have drawn up is a whole, and the various projects are complementary to each other.
If we slow down the construction of cities along the way and blindly speed up the construction of the railway, the operation of the railway will fall into a state of serious loss for a long period of time in the future. It is very uneconomical. "
The war in Europe would not break out for a while. This was not Prime Minister Carr's personal opinion. Most people in the Government of Austria thought so, and it could even be said that 99% of Europeans held this view.
There was only a small friction between France and Germany, and the French's approach could at most be regarded as political blackmail under military threat.
The biggest risk of war came from the confrontation between the two major alliances. However, between the two major alliances, only the relationship between the United Kingdom and Russia had deteriorated. The FAO could only be regarded as a normal stab in the back between the major powers.
Franz shook his head, "So be it. Anyway, we never expected the railway in the Near East to make money. Completing it ahead of time is nothing more than a little more loss.
In order to gain the strategic initiative, we can still bear this price. "
No matter how important the economic account was, it could not be compared to the strategic security of the country. The railway running through the Near East meant that Austria had a strategic advantage over France.
Of course, this was based on the background of the continuation of the war in Europe. If the winner was determined at the beginning, the plan would not be important.
Sometimes Franz wondered if he should imitate Prussia and strike first to gain the upper hand and catch the French off guard.
However, after considering the United Kingdom and Russia, Franz decisively gave up this tempting plan. If he succeeded, the gains would be limited. If he lost, he would lose his underwear.
Not taking the initiative to start a war did not mean that Franz did not do anything. The fact that the French dared to propose an overbearing clause to Germany and Germany was in fact a result of Austria's indulgence.
It seemed that the French had taken advantage of the situation, but they did not know that they had also pushed themselves to the opposite side of the European countries.
On the surface, everyone appeared to be weak and did nothing, but subconsciously, the "French threat" theory had emerged in the minds of many people.
Don't expect everyone to be rational. With this "subconscious", if the Fao war really broke out, everyone would innately lean towards Austria when it came to choosing sides.
…
On November 24, 1888, after a series of bargaining, the three countries signed the "Coal Export Agreement" in Paris.
Without any surprise, the Government of France won. According to the provisions of the treaty: Germany and Belgium would export 50 million tons of coal to France at a fair price in the next five years, including no less than 8 million tons of high-quality coking coal.
The word "fair price" expressed the sadness of Germany and Belgium. Although there was no clear explanation in the treaty, everyone knew that this was an extremely low price.
Specifically, in less than a month after the treaty was signed, the overall retail price of coal in France fell by nearly one-fifth.
The steel industry benefited the most from the fall of coal prices. In the last month of 1888, France's steel production increased by 18% compared to the same period last year.
This was just the beginning. Affected by the fall of energy prices, the French industry began to have a second spring.
The capitalists who received the benefits did not forget to sing praises for the government. Overnight, Napoleon Iv became the greatest monarch of France.
Everyone loved to hear praises. Looking at the various kinds of praises in the newspaper, Napoleon Iv also enjoyed it.
Soon, Napoleon Iv could not be happy. After tasting the sweetness, the capitalists were not satisfied. Instead, they wanted to go further.
No matter how cheap the "fair price coal" was, it could not be compared to the benefits in their own hands. Moreover, fair price coal was not easy to buy.
The pressure from the Government of France was nothing more than forcing Germany and Belgium to reduce taxes on the coal exported to France. The coal companies still had to make a profit.
Even if the government signed the treaty, the capitalists could still not buy it. After the treaty was signed, many companies increased the factory price to the French.
There were even some national capitalists who refused to sell coal to the French as a protest against the unequal treaty.
The governments of Germany and Belgium also had moral principles. Their tax cuts had already touched the bottom line. It was impossible for them to force companies to reduce prices and export.
After the treaty was signed by the three countries, the amount of coal imported by France from Germany and Belgium did not increase. "Fair price coal" did exist, but it could not be bought.
It could also be seen from the extent of the decline in domestic coal prices. The price of coal imported by France was only the same as the international market. The coal companies of Germany and Belgium did not cooperate when they wanted to buy coal at a lower price.
The government did reduce taxes, but they were unwilling to do so. They were all capitalists. Who didn't want to make more money?
The main contradiction now was no longer the contradiction between countries, but the contradiction between capitals.
According to conventional means, the French capitalists naturally could not do anything to the coal bosses of Germany and Belgium, so they could 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?"
Foreign Minister Karel Kadlec said, "Your Majesty, we have just signed a treaty with Germany and Belgium. If we violate it so soon, we will not be able to explain it to the international community.
Judging from the current situation, there is no possibility of the two governments continuing to make concessions. If we force them to make a deal, I am afraid it will be counterproductive. "
In fact, from the beginning, Karel Kadlec had opposed forcing Germany and Belgium too much and advocated using the unified procurement contract to lower prices.
But the capitalists in the country did not cooperate. Everyone was used to freedom, so how could they give the procurement rights to the government?
It turned out that forcing really couldn't solve the problem. The three governments did reach an agreement, but the domestic companies still resisted.
Although the situation of sky-high coal prices no longer existed, it was still impossible to buy cheap coal at a lower price than the international average price.
Many companies in Germany and Belgium refused to export coal to France, not because the capitalists were patriotic, but mainly because of domestic patriotism.
Nationalism had risen, and now doing business with the French would be labeled as a traitor.
It was not just the coal companies. Many companies in Germany and Belgium did not cooperate with the French, and the whole society had set off a wave of boycotting French goods.
This was the reason why the French capitalists were anxious to ask the government for help.
If they did not suppress the anti-French wave in the two countries, France would lose a part of the international market, which was not much to begin with.
Economic Minister Elsa said, "Government interference may indeed bring uncertain risks, but the situation is now out of control.
If the government does not interfere, not only will we not get cheap coal, but we will also lose the market in Germany and Belgium.
There are signs that British capital is adding fuel to the fire. The companies that took the lead in boycotting coal exports to us all have shares of Ingao Capital behind them. "
…
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