Time flew by, and it was winter again.
Based on Franz's many years of experience, he could judge that it was a warm winter. Usually, it would snow in Glockner Mountain at this time. This year, there was very little rain, let alone snow.
Warm winter plus drought had almost announced a reduction in agricultural production for the coming year. Austria was an industrial and agricultural country. Agriculture occupied an important position in the national economy.
The Government of Vienna had always attached great importance to agricultural production. After many years of efforts, the domestic agricultural infrastructure had been improved, and there was a complete disaster response system.
Usually, as long as it was not a large-scale disaster that affected the country, Franz would not care. Now it caught his attention, mainly because it happened in Vienna.
Agriculture Minister Holls: "Your Majesty, the current situation is not too bad. According to the monitoring data from all over the country, the scope of the disaster is not very large.
It is mainly concentrated around Vienna and in the Bohemian area. These areas are relatively developed in industry and commerce, and the people are more resistant to risks. The winter wheat production will not have much impact. "
This was the benefit of the industrial era. In economically developed areas, it had become a common social phenomenon for farmers to work in the city during the slack season.
Increasing the source of income naturally increased the ability to resist risks. If it was still an agricultural society, the government would be vigilant.
Franz just asked casually. A certain range of food production was within Austria's tolerance range, and there was no need for "disaster relief."
A reduction in production was not a failure. A loss of 100 pounds per mu of land was not enough to bankrupt farmers. Unless the disaster was continuous, government relief was needed. Otherwise, the people could survive the disaster by themselves.
…
Foreign Minister Wesenberg: "Your Majesty, there has just been news from Paris that the French are ready to send troops to escort the son of Isabella II back home. The battle for the Spanish throne is coming to an end.
According to the information collected, Britain and France should have reached an agreement. The Foreign Ministry thinks it may be related to the Near East War. The Government of London made concessions on the issue of the Spanish throne in exchange for France's support on the Near East issue. "
It was no surprise to Franz that if the British wanted to keep the Osman Empire, they must pull in the French.
Although the Government of Paris continued to fight, they also did not want to see Austria pull out the nail behind them. It was not surprising that the French chose to support the English, who had given way over the Spanish throne.
The Austrians wanted a stable rear, and so did the French. Spain was different from the Osman Empire. The French could not pull out this nail even if they wanted to.
It wasn't a matter of whether they could win or not. The key was that they couldn't use force. The European countries might be able to accept the end of the Osman Empire, but they would never allow Spain to be annexed.
Since he couldn't kill him, he would rope him in. The current Spain was also a mess with a lot of internal problems. Supporting a pro-French and weak government was completely in line with the interests of France.
The reputation of Queen Isabella II of Spain had long been tarnished, and the reputation of her son, King Alfonso XII, had also been tarnished. If he wanted to sit on the throne, he could not do without the support of the French.
With a weak pro-French government, the French would not have to worry about the threat from Spain for a long time to come.
Franz: "In that case, let's get ready to wrap things up. Send a message to Hummel. Once the British and French fully intervene, they will negotiate with the Osman Empire. The bottom line is to take over the area under our control, plus Jerusalem.
On the side of the Russians, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will also appease them. How much they can gain will depend on the diplomatic ability of the Tsarist government. "
Franz knew that this might be the last joint military operation of the Russo-Austrian Alliance. According to the current international situation, the alliance between Austria and Russia already had more disadvantages than advantages.
Alexander Ii Of Russia was talented and bold. He suppressed the various forces in the country and completed the initial social reform, but his diplomatic performance was really not flattering.
On one hand, the historical burden of the Russian Empire was too heavy, and they didn't adjust their mentality in time. On the other hand, they valued territory too much and didn't have a good relationship with all of their neighbors.
It wasn't that it was wrong to value territory. The problem was that a lot of the Russian Empire's territory was robbed, and it was similar to a colony.
When they were strong, they could value it as much as they wanted. When they were weak, they should pay attention to the methods and give in when it was necessary.
Unfortunately, the Tsarist government didn't do that. The last war between Prussia and Russia, the Russians lost, in fact, because they lost in diplomacy.
If the Tsarist government restrained their ambitions, at least there wouldn't be problems in Central Asia and the Far East. If it wasn't for the expansion of the Tsarist government before the war, which angered them, Prussia wouldn't have been able to find an ally.
Logically, after being beaten by society, the Tsarist government should wake up and take the initiative to repair relations with their neighbors. If there were any problems, they would wait until they defeated Prussia and slowly deal with it.
Unfortunately, the Tsarist government didn't change their mindset and treat the retaking of their homeland as an enemy invasion, thinking that they were the victims.
There was no doubt that they wouldn't have friends if they played this way. Franz very much suspected that in the next war between Prussia and Russia, the Russians would also be besieged.
Because of their relationship with the Russo-Austrian Alliance, Austria didn't have a good relationship with these countries. Of course, Austria was strong enough. Even if they didn't have a good relationship, they were still treated like a great power and didn't affect their trade with other countries.
Prime Minister Felix reminded, "Your Majesty, why don't we inform the Tsarist government first and give them some buffer time."
The Russo-Austrian Alliance wasn't over yet, and they couldn't be too obvious about cheating their teammates. The current situation in the Near East was mainly due to Austria's supply of strategic materials.
If Austria withdrew from the war, the Tsarist government wouldn't be able to afford the cost. The same strategic materials had different costs for different countries.
Relatively speaking, industrial countries with their own production capacity had lower costs for strategic materials, while agricultural countries that needed imports had to bear much higher costs.
Taking weapons and ammunition as an example, the cost of Russia's weapons was one-third higher than that of Austria's. This was the cost in normal times. In times of war, it was even possible for it to be higher by half.
There were many factors involved, such as production costs, transportation costs, procurement costs, and the integrity of the bureaucratic system.
If the Government of Vienna sided with the Russians now, perhaps the Osman Empire didn't need to pay anything, and the Tsarist government could only withdraw its troops.
The main enemy of the Russians was the Kingdom of Prussia. The Tsarist government couldn't fight the Osman Empire with all its strength.
Up until now, the Tsarist government's strategic goal of weakening the Osman Empire had been achieved. Even if the Osman Empire was reborn, it wouldn't be able to threaten the Russian Empire within 20 years.
Franz naturally followed the good advice since he didn't need to pay a price to remind the Russians.
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs should inform the Russians and pass the news of Britain and France getting closer to them. I'm sure the Tsarist government will understand."
They had no choice but to understand. Without Austria's money and supplies, the Tsarist government didn't have the financial resources to continue the war.
…
In the Prime Minister's office in Downing Street, Prime Minister Gelston was in a very bad mood. He said in a cold tone, "Raúl, summon the cabinet for a meeting."
Franz thought that the British had made concessions on the Spanish throne in order to protect the Osman Empire. In fact, the Government of London hadn't made a decision so quickly.
Austria was a threat, and France was also a threat. No matter which one was allowed to grow, it would threaten the interests of Britannia.
Unless there was no other way, the Government of London wouldn't compromise with the French.
In the original timeline, the British had turned to the Allies, and the German Empire had expanded their navy, which made them feel threatened. Before that, they had been wavering.
Now Austria didn't expand their navy. The size of their navy had always been below the French, and the total tonnage was ranked third in the world.
From the British's point of view, the Fao was a huge threat to both countries. However, these two threats had a common weakness. They had to develop their land power at the same time. In Europe, the two countries restrained each other, so the pressure on the Government of London wasn't great.
…
Prime Minister Gelston asked, "Sir Marquis, didn't you tell me that the French were busy fighting among themselves and didn't want to participate in international affairs?
What's going on now? We helped them contain Austria, and the French directly sent troops to interfere in the battle for the Spanish throne.
I can't imagine how much of a sensation this news would cause if it got out. "
Marquis Maclean also wanted to cry, but no tears came out. He really didn't expect the French to suddenly make this move in the midst of their internal strife.
It had to be said that the French had chosen a good time. Britain and Austria had a conflict because of the Osman issue. The two countries restrained each other and had no time to intervene in the battle for the Spanish throne.
"Sir Prime Minister, this was an error of judgment on our part. We underestimated the ambitions of the French. Now that things have come to this, we must find a way to deal with the aftermath, or we will create the biggest joke of the century.
In the current situation, we can only choose one of two. Either we join forces with the French to protect the Osman Empire, or we join forces with Austria to force the French to give up interfering in the Spanish succession.
My personal suggestion is to protect the Osman Empire first. The problem of Spain is long. There are no permanent allies in politics. Today the Spanish government can be pro-French, tomorrow they can be pro-British.
If the Osman Empire is destroyed, it will be difficult to resurrect it. Without the restraint of the Osman Empire, Austria can fully expand into Central Europe, and the balance of Europe is likely to be broken. "
There was another reason that Marquis Maclean didn't say, and that was that the war to intervene in the Near East had already begun. If they stopped now, it would be tantamount to the failure of the intervention, and they would be criticized by the opposition.
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