Once the seeds of doubt were sown, they could no longer be erased. After carefully studying the actions of the Government of Vienna in recent years, Dumbledore became more and more confused.
If Austria wanted to target France, why did they let them annex the Regions of Italy?
When it came to propaganda to the public, it could be explained by the strength of France. As a high-level government official, Dumbledore didn't think so.
No matter how strong France was, it was no match for the European countries. If the European countries united to pressure them, they could only retreat dejectedly.
Expanding territory on the European continent had never been an easy task. The Regions of Italy weren't some backwater. Dumbledore didn't believe that Austria didn't have ambitions.
The Government of France studied this issue for many years and finally came to an unbelievable conclusion – the Government of Vienna abided by the spirit of the contract.
The truth was no longer important. The meat had been eaten anyway. No matter how suspicious they were, the Government of France couldn't give up the Regions of Italy.
It didn't matter if they couldn't figure it out. They could just look at Austria's military strength. The so-called "threat" was built on the basis of strength.
After sorting out the information on the Austrian army in recent years, Dumbledore breathed a sigh of relief. Although the threat did exist, France could still withstand it.
Take action?
Sorry, as a qualified bureaucrat, the first thing to do was to weigh the pros and cons, not act blindly.
The threat of Austria was only a potential threat. Without enough benefits, the two countries of Fao and France wouldn't fight for no reason at all.
In the war of this era, it was obvious that the defensive side had the advantage. Not to mention anything else, just the deployment of troops was determined.
In contrast, as a member of the cabinet government, Dumbledore was more worried about the military growing. It could be said that from the beginning, Jeffrey Friedman had found the wrong person.
Prussia and France were different. One country had an army, and the other had an army. What the Government of Berlin took for granted was completely different in the eyes of other governments.
Taking direct measures because there might be a threat was the mindset of a soldier. Politicians had always put interests first.
Knowing that the other party was sowing discord, jumping out without thinking was the behavior of a reckless man.
Jeffrey Friedman succeeded in sowing discord between the Fao and the FAO, but it did not change the outcome of this negotiation. It was possible for France to restrain Austria, but they had to exchange benefits.
In the face of interests, the Government of Paris still refused to give in. It was impossible to support the Pobol Federation just because of Austria's threat.
Both of them were mainland countries. For France, both Prague and Austria were potential threats. It was just a matter of how big the threat was.
…
At the critical moment of the Franco-Prussian negotiations, the Russian-Austrian negotiations also came to an end.
Foreign Minister Wesenberg: "Your Excellency, I don't see your country's sincerity. Your country's collateral is too little, and the value is not equal at all.
If you only have these as collateral, I highly suspect that your country's government will just give up on these areas. That would be a huge loss for us. "
Russia Minister Nikolayevich: "No, we are very sincere. Your Excellency, don't forget that we have even pledged our gold reserves. There is no possibility of a breach of contract. "
Wesenberg was unmoved. If it wasn't to get the Russians' gold reserves and promote currency hegemony, he wouldn't even be here to talk to the Russians.
The Tsarist government didn't have any sincerity in the so-called territory as collateral. Perhaps to prevent Austria from entering the Black Sea, the territory mortgaged by the Russians didn't have access to the sea.
The Tsarist government mortgaged Bulgaria and the area west of the Dnieper River (west-central Ukraine and Moldova) all lacked the most critical coastal areas.
In the era of sea power, there were no ports and all inland areas. The value of these territories was naturally greatly reduced.
From the perspective of the Russians, they had a reason to do this. It was easy to let the Austrians enter the Black Sea, but it was difficult to expel the Austrians.
With the broken ships of the Black Sea Fleet, once the Austrian Navy entered the Black Sea, Russia's interests in the Black Sea region would be seriously threatened.
In the face of interests, the Tsarist government didn't dare to test Austria's moral integrity. If the interests reached a certain level, the Government of Vienna might deliberately let them lose the war for the sake of the collateral.
Even with the current territory as collateral, the Tsarist government took the risk after weighing the pros and cons.
"If your government took out all of your gold reserves as collateral, we naturally wouldn't be worried that you would breach the contract. However, your country only took out half of the gold reserves.
Your country has always been a major producer of gold. Every year, dozens or even hundreds of tons of gold are mined. It isn't difficult to replenish this part of the reserves.
Your Excellency should know that we are not interested in your territory. Not every piece of land is priceless. Especially after losing the access to the sea, it has greatly depreciated. "
Minister Nikolayevich frowned. It wasn't difficult to replenish the gold reserves. This was for Britain and Austria. It was very difficult for other countries in the world to increase their gold reserves.
It was true that Russia was a major producer of gold in the world, but it couldn't stop the outflow of gold every year! Especially with the upcoming war, a large amount of gold and silver outflow was unavoidable.
Taking out all of their gold reserves meant handing over their economic lifeline to the hands of the Austrians. If they didn't want the ruble to become waste paper, Russia could only obediently be the younger brother.
Minister Nikolayevich said, "Your Excellency, this is impossible. Mortgaging half of the reserves is already our bottom line.
The territory mortgage can be discussed, and we can add some ports. In return, your country has to provide a guarantee for our loan with the Nordic Federation and guarantee that your navy will never enter the Black Sea. "
In order to raise money, the Tsarist government repeatedly lowered their bottom line. Especially after the bad news from London, the Tsarist government's bottom line was lowered again.
Today, Alexander Ii Of Russia had no way out. If they didn't start the war in advance, it would be too late when the enemy was ready.
The word "compromise" was never in the dictionary of the Russians. The Prussian war had essentially become a way for the Tsarist government to transfer internal contradictions. Once it stopped, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Knowing that if a war broke out now, they might suffer heavy losses, but the Tsarist government had to bite the bullet.
Wesenberg said, "Yes, but your country must come up with an equivalent collateral. Once your government breaches the contract, we will have to pay the debt on your behalf. Safety must be guaranteed.
I can't guarantee that the navy will never enter the Black Sea. However, we can make an agreement. As long as your government does not breach the contract, the Austrian navy will not enter the Black Sea. "
The word "collateral" had almost become Nikolayevich's nightmare. As long as he thought of this word, his scalp would tingle. The negotiations between Russia and Austria had consumed a lot of his energy.
On the contrary, whether the Austrian navy could enter the Black Sea was a small problem. As long as the interests were in place, no one could stop them.
Nikolayevich hurriedly said, "Your Excellency, this is just a normal commercial loan guarantee. We can pay the collateral. There is no risk, so your country can rest assured. "
Wesenberg shook his head, "I'm sorry, Your Excellency. The war is about to break out. If your country can win the war, then I believe there will be no problems.
Once your country loses the war, or it is a tie. At that time, your government will be unable to repay the debt. Can you really fulfill the contract? "
It was almost direct that he doubted the credibility of the Tsarist government. In his opinion, if the Tsarist government lost the war, they would definitely be able to fulfill the contract normally. On the contrary, there was no guarantee that they would win the war.
Even if the defeated Russian Empire wanted to refuse, the Nordic Federation could send troops to take it themselves. Everyone was good at hitting someone when they were down.
In contrast, Austria's collateral was a bit troublesome. Part of Western Ukraine was likely to fall into the hands of the Prussian Federation after the war. If the Government of Vienna wanted to get these areas, it would be another storm.
…
After a war of words, on October 10, 1879, Russia and Austria signed the "Russian-Austrian Trade Agreement" in Vienna. The treaty stipulated:
The Russian Empire mortgaged the area west of the Dnieper River and the Russian The Balkans to raise 480 million SNR from Austria, including 180 million SNR loans and 300 million SNR bonds. (Note: Not including Odessa and Constantinople)
Loan interest: 3.5%/month
Bond interest: 8.4%/year
Handling fee: 3%
…
A week later, the representatives of Russia, Austria and the Nordic Federation signed the "Debt Guarantee Contract" in St. Peter Castle. The Government of Vienna provided a security guarantee for the debt of Russia and the Nordic Federation.
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