At the end of the 19th century, the wave of colonization also came to an end. The land suitable for colonization in the world had been divided up, leaving only some leftovers and hard bones.
With the expansion of colonization, the buffer between countries no longer existed, and international conflicts increased day by day.
Especially the competition for the remaining land, it became white-hot. This situation continued until the "Anglo-Austrian War." After the UK and Austria had a serious duel in South Africa, everyone realized the horror of war and gradually calmed down.
The essence of European colonization was to make money, not to expand the so-called territory. While competing for colonization, everyone first had to consider the problem of investment and return.
The UK, Fao, and Germany were the big winners in the colonial era. Even the French Empire, which had the fewest colonies, had at least ten million square kilometers.
As vested interests, the UK, Fao, and Germany were full. The pursuit of colonies was no longer as fanatical. The most fertile areas had been divided up, and the remaining leftover areas were no longer worth the three countries fighting.
The British took the initiative to propose a three-country alliance, in addition to dividing the Fao alliance, and also to ease the conflict with the Fao.
Looking at the map, the UK, Fao, and Germany already occupied half of the world. As long as there were no internal problems in the three countries, this hegemony could not be shaken.
For those with vested interests, stability was the best choice. Everyone was wearing shoes now, and they could not play with their lives like they did when they were barefoot.
The tripartite balance was the most stable structure. Before the balance was broken, it was difficult for the world to be chaotic. Including the conflict between Prussia and Russia, in fact, it was deliberately allowed to happen by the three countries.
Three countries divided the world together, and the benefits were greater than four or five countries divided the world together.
Prussia and Russia were not weak. If they did not fight against each other, they also had the strength to participate in the division of the world. This was what the old empires did not want to see.
Under the common will of the three countries, the conflict between Prussia and Russia could not be solved. Just like the conflict between France and Germany in the original space-time, there was no possibility of easing without a winner.
…
In the Palace of Vienna, Franz also had high expectations for the meeting of the three countries. Although the UK, Fao, and Germany were against each other, they still had the same position on the core issues.
For example, maintaining the stability of Europe, attacking the challengers of the new empires, and consolidating the world hegemony of the three countries.
If one were to look at the ratio of hegemony distribution, the United Kingdom, United Kingdom, and United Kingdom were basically 4.2: 3.0: 2.8. Based on the data alone, Austria seemed to be at a disadvantage, which was completely inconsistent with the strength of the country.
However, this was not the case. The so-called hegemony was essentially the right to speak internationally. Austria joined the colonial expansion much later than England and France, so its influence overseas was naturally not as good as England and France.
This was not something that could be changed overnight. Anyway, as long as he could get his hands on the substantial benefits, Franz was not in a hurry to gain international influence.
Foreign Minister Wesenberg handed over a document. "Your Majesty, this is the draft for the first day of negotiations. The main contents were divided into two parts:
First, clear the sphere of influence of each country in the form of treaties, reduce international conflicts, and may invite other colonial countries to participate in the later stage.
Secondly, they would work together to suppress their potential competitors. The British had also categorized them according to the degree of threat.
In the first echelon are the Russian Empire and the United States of America;
In the second echelon are the Pu Bo Federation, the United States of America, and Spain;
In the third echelon, there are more countries, including the Nordic Federation, the German Federal Empire, Brazil, and Argentina …
In general, except for the countries in the first and second echelons, the rest are not worth worrying about. These countries may have the potential to develop, but in the short term, there are no signs of any of them rising. "
There was no doubt that this threat report was simply to make up the numbers. Now, the only threats that the British were really worried about were the United Kingdom and France and the other countries were too far away from them.
If they really wanted the Russian Empire, Russia, and France to cooperate sincerely, unless the Russian Empire cheated and swallowed the Pu Bo Federation, then it might cause panic among the three countries, and they might join forces to attack.
Otherwise, everyone would just talk about it or make things difficult for him in the diplomatic arena. It was usually impossible to directly attack. The relationship between the three countries was not that good, and it was too difficult to get everyone to completely let down their guard and cooperate.
Franz took the document. "Let's talk about the division of influence first! What do we have to pay to obtain those areas?
It's not a matter of a day to suppress a new powerful country. We just need to prevent the United States from unifying the world, and prevent a winner from being decided in Prussia. "
It was not that Franz did not know the importance of suppressing competitors, but the problem was that the strength of these countries was still limited, and no one was aware of the threat at all.
The British being able to bring it up so early was already an outstanding strategic insight. It was just that these threats only existed in the future and were full of uncertainty, but the benefits of dividing the sphere of influence were right in front of them.
Politics could not be taken for granted, and no one could ignore the benefits in front of them just to fight against possible enemies in the future.
Instead of worrying about potential competitors, it was better to think about the competitors in front of them first. It was good to have good foresight and to see the problems far ahead, but the premise of all this was that Austria was still strong.
If they were not strong enough and did not have the qualifications to share the hegemony of the world, then even if they got rid of these potential competitors, it would be like helping others.
Wesenberg replied, "This time, the scope of influence is very wide, almost covering the entire world. It includes the Mediterranean, West Asia, Southeast Asia, Far East, Africa, South America, and so on.
Our interests are mainly concentrated in the Mediterranean, Africa, Southeast Asia, South America, as well as West Asia and the Arabian Peninsula. "
Franz was shocked. If this plan became a reality, then the international situation would change dramatically.
The major colonial empires divided the sphere of influence through treaties. It seemed to be of little use, but in fact, as long as an agreement was reached, the conflict between countries would be reduced by more than half.
Even if there was a conflict, everyone could get the three major countries to intervene and greatly reduce the possibility of war breaking out.
From this, it did not seem like John Bull's style at all. When did the British become so peace-loving?
Alright, Franz admitted that he was biased against the British, but this was the conclusion that came from the accumulation of countless cases.
In the past few hundred years, more than half of the wars in Europe had been related to the British, and it really had nothing to do with peace-loving.
"Do you know the reason why the British suddenly want to reduce international conflicts?"
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
