Chapter 960

It turned out that it was not easy to find allies. There were not many countries that were qualified to be allies with France these days. Because of the interests, there were even fewer countries that could be allies with France.

Alliances also had to be based on the principle of equality. If the difference in strength between the two sides was too great, then they were not looking for allies, but for lackeys.

From the bottom of his heart, Napoleon Iv was naturally willing to accept lackeys. The problem was that no one was stupid. Why would they want to be a lackey for France for no reason?

In theory, once France showed signs of defeat, the British would most likely support them for the sake of the continent's balance, and the European countries would also stop their petty tricks.

Unfortunately, this only existed in theory. The premise was that the senior government officials of each country must maintain absolute rationality, without any personal feelings.

Obviously, this was impossible. Politicians were also human beings, and they also had emotions like ordinary people. Since there were feelings, they would more or less be affected when making decisions.

With the relationship between France and other countries, there were many people who wanted to kill them. Pretending to be weak might really lead to death.

Napoleon Iv did not dare to gamble. Even if the situation in Africa worsened and France gradually fell into a strategic disadvantage, he could only cover the lid and pretend to be very strong to deter the European countries.

"Allies?"

"Who can be our true ally?"

This was definitely an interrogation from the soul. Currently, France's only ally was Britannia. Unfortunately, this ally was not reliable.

To sum it up in one sentence, the probability of stabbing a teammate was slightly higher than the probability of stabbing an enemy.

Of course, if the Government of France was a little more thick-skinned, they could also count Monaco in. But this was meaningless. A seaside park could not affect the strength of the two sides at war.

Under the expectant gaze of his colleagues, Foreign Minister Karel Kadlec braced himself and replied, "Your Majesty, in order to break the passive political situation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has conducted in-depth research.

The British have formed an alliance with us. Although this ally is not very reliable, we still need to stabilize them.

Since the outbreak of the war, nearly one-third of our strategic supplies have been imported from Britannia. It is important to win over the British.

From a strategic point of view, if we want to change our unfavorable situation, it is best to win over the Russians.

But this was difficult to do. The Russo-Austrian Alliance had lasted for many years, and it was unrealistic to expect the Tsarist government to suddenly switch sides.

In order to break up the Russo-Austrian Alliance, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had made a lot of efforts, but unfortunately, it had little effect.

Although there was no definite evidence, through some clues, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs believed that Russia and Austria had reached an agreement. The Austrians are likely to have promised the interests of India to the Russia.

The Austrians are likely to promise the interests of India to the Russians.

Without waiting for Karel Kadlec to finish, Napoleon IV interrupted impatiently, "My minister of foreign affairs, let's not talk about this nonsense.

It is an open that the world that there is that that out out that there is that out that there are interested.

After the Austrians occupied the Ottoman Empire, they stopped expanding eastward. If there was no insider trading between Russia and Austria, there would be a problem.

As for the question of India, that is for the English to worry about. You just need to tell me if it is possible to win over the Russians.

If the Russians can't be our ally, then who can?

It doesn't have to be a superpower, even a second-tier country is fine. Even if you win over the Swiss, I will hold a celebration party for you. "

That was the truth. Napoleon IV was really not a picky eater now. Bloody lessons had taught him that it was better to have more allies.

Just look at Austria next door. As soon as the war broke out in Europe, they gathered a group of brothers and formed an anti-French alliance.

Although most of them were just bystanders, they had a large number of people and crushed France in terms of momentum.

After a moment of hesitation, Karel Kadlec replied with a slightly incomparable tone, "Your Majesty, it will take time to divide the Russian-Austrian Alliance. It is not something that can be done overnight.

We are trying to win over the Swiss, but … the results … are not optimistic. But we have stabilized the Swiss government, and they remain neutral in the war.

In order to reverse the situation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is working with the Alliance and Colombia. They have always been interested in Austrian America, but they dare not act rashly because of Austria's strength.

There is also the Japanese. After the Meiji Restoration, the strength of that small country in the Far East grew very fast and almost caught up with Belgium.

They have a conflict of interest with the Austrians in Southeast Asia, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is preparing to win them over to divide Austrian Southeast Asia.

In addition, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is also trying to win over the Empire of the Far East … "

Faced with the emperor's questioning, Karel Kadlec came up with a response plan in a short period of time. He was somewhat impressed by his wit.

On the surface, as long as these allies were won over, France could get rid of the embarrassing situation of fighting alone, and its strategic situation would be greatly improved.

In fact, everyone present knew that this was just a beautiful painting.

In theory, by winning over the Alliance and Colombia, not only could they attack the Austrian colonial system in the Americas, but they could also help France import agricultural products from these two countries.

Unfortunately, these countries were not the only ones in the Americas. Although the Alliance was not weak, there was a feud with the United States next door.

Regardless of whether they could win or not, wasn't the expedition to Austrian America creating opportunities for the enemy?

Not to mention Colombia, even if they participated in the war, it would be a problem for them at most with two infantry divisions. Any more, and the Austrians would sweep Colombia again.

The situation in the Americas could not be resolved, and the same was true for Asia. The Japanese of this day and age were in the stage of servility, and they were not as arrogant as later generations.

Before the outcome of the European war was determined, it was impossible for them to help France take the chestnuts out of the fire.

The most important thing was that they were not strong enough. Although Karel Kadlec wanted to brag for them, he really did not know what to brag about. In the end, he could only use Belgium as a comparison.

Although Austrian Southeast Asia was not the focus of the Government of Vienna's operations, there were still tens of millions of people there, and it was still possible to arm hundreds of thousands of troops. If a fight really broke out, it was still unknown who would be the one to beat.

As for the Empire of the Far East, it was better to just wash up and sleep. They were still busy with internal strife and had neither the mood nor the courage to join in the fun.

"Since the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made a plan, then implement it as soon as possible. I am here waiting for your good news!"

At this point, Napoleon Iv's expectations had long fallen to the bottom. Although these potential allies were of little value, France was currently lacking allies.

In any case, it was better than nothing. He did not expect them to contribute much to the defeat of Austria, but at least they could help wave the flag and disgust the Austrians.

After a pause, Napoleon Iv added, "Our strategic core is still on the European continent. The focus of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' work should also be on the European continent.

Whether it is the British or the Russians, as long as we can pull one of them into the water, the embarrassing situation we are facing will be completely reversed.

If it is not possible, you can also go to the Nordic Federation. Don't the Danes still have the Schleswig and Holstein duchies on their minds? Then give them the duchies.

Also, you can also work with the states within the German Confederation. Don't ask them to switch sides, just ask them to slack off. "

No matter how low the success rate was, Napoleon Iv did not mind giving it a try. After all, the French army did not show the combat power they should have.

The autumn wind swept away the fallen leaves, but the direction of the wind was not right, and the leaves were swept into the French army.

…

While France was taking action, Austria was not idle. Under the instigation of the Government of Vienna, the Russian Army launched attacks on the Regions of Afghanistan again and again.

Before the end of the European war, occupying the Regions of Afghanistan and opening the door to India was too tempting.

Many high-ranking Tsarist government officials were addicted to it and were unable to extricate themselves.

Tangible benefits couldn't be compared to illusory promises. No matter how much the British and French talked, the Russians felt that occupying India was more reliable.

Of course, the most important thing was that the Regions of Afghanistan had already been occupied by the Russian Army, and they were about to win.

As long as they occupied the Regions of Afghanistan, it would be easier to fight the following battles. There was no need for the government to encourage them. The soldiers would happily charge into India.

If the Tsarist government was willing, they could completely follow Austria's example and open up overseas colonies, letting the nobles bring their private armies to solve the problem.

When robbing for themselves, the Hairy Bear's combat power would definitely be explosive, and the lobster soldiers would not be able to stop it.

It was not an exaggeration at all. As long as the Russian Army annihilated the British main force in the Regions of Afghanistan, the British would not be able to replenish in a short period of time. Without the British to hold the line, the Indian colonial army was a joke.

…

"Occupy the Regions of Afghanistan before Christmas. Which idiot gave this order?"

In the Russian Army's command center, General Ozienets looked at the order in his hand and cursed in disbelief.

It was true that the war in Afghanistan had reached a critical moment, but the enemy's resistance was even fiercer.

The reason the Russian Army was able to successfully advance was not only because they were willing to sacrifice human lives, but also because the British logistical supply line was too long and was attacked by the Afghan guerrillas every few days.

According to the Russian Army's statistics, nearly two-thirds of the British strategic supplies would disappear in the middle of transportation.

Whether they were killed by the Afghan guerrillas or divided by the domestic bureaucrats, this question would depend on the benevolent and the wise.

In short, this was a good thing for the Russian Army. Limited by logistics, the British Army on the frontline had powerful firepower, but they could not fully unleash it.

Under this kind of background, even with the natural stronghold to rely on, the British Army was still being beaten back.

In order to maximize the military achievements, General Ozienets naturally could not report the specific inside information.

In the eyes of the Tsarist government, it was all because the Russian Army was not afraid of sacrifice, hardships, and obstacles. They overcame difficulties along the way and used blood to write a song of victory.

There were two sides to everything. The series of victories stimulated the ambition of the Tsarist government, but it also consumed their patience.

Some people couldn't help but want to occupy the Regions of Afghanistan before Christmas to add glory to the annual ceremony.

Hearing General Ozienets's curse, the middle-aged officer who delivered the telegram hurriedly reminded, "Commander, this is an order from the Ministry of the Army. It also attached the opinion of the cabinet, which is equivalent to the consensus of the country. "

This was an undeserved disaster. General Ozienets dared to curse the domestic bureaucrats because his own status had risen to the same level as the domestic big shots.

If there were no accidents, after winning the war, General Ozienets would be promoted to the rank of marshal.

And it wasn't just for show. After Marshal Ivanov, there would be another big shot in the Russian Army.

No emperor liked to have an iron plate under him. The more General Ozienets scolded, the happier Alexander III would be.

General Ozienets could scold, but it didn't mean that everyone could listen. If there was an unforeseen event later and it triggered a conflict between the higher-ups, perhaps the person who scolded would be fine, but the people who listened were likely to be affected.

In a sense, this was actually a form of choosing a side. Not stopping it meant that they agreed with General Ozienets's point of view.

It didn't matter if they had a backer, but if they didn't, they might become a victim of political struggle.

"Humph!"

After a cold snort, General Ozienets decisively cut off the idea of continuing to curse. There was no other way. There were too many people involved, and they really couldn't afford to offend them.

When they didn't know, it didn't matter how they scolded, but when they knew, they must pay attention to self-restraint. This was politics.

"Call back to the Ministry of the Army. We will launch the final offensive as soon as possible, but the logistics can't keep up.

If we want to occupy the entire Regions of Afghanistan before Christmas, we need at least 1.2 billion bullets, three million artillery shells … "

It was a typical lion's mouth, but there was no other way. General Ozienets didn't have confidence in occupying the Regions of Afghanistan before Christmas, so he had to find an excuse first so that it was convenient to shirk responsibility if the mission failed.

This was also the basic skill of the Russian Army generals. Almost every high-level commander of the Russian Army was an expert at shirking responsibility.

The lack of strategic supplies had always been the Russian Army's only way to respond to the urging of the country. As long as this killer move was used, the government would have nothing to say.