Chapter 207: Chapter 198: Distant Friendship, Close Attack – European Edition

Arthur’s negotiations with William II went very smoothly. Of course, this time it was the German Empire that sought assistance from Australia and Arthur, so William II readily agreed to the majority of Arthur’s demands.

In the following few days, William II personally took Arthur to observe the daily training of the German Army and the naval exercises. After experiencing the powerful German Empire’s navy and army firsthand, they headed north to the Russian Empire together.

The Russian Empire was the last stop on Arthur’s European tour and one of the main purposes of his trip to Europe.

Regardless of whether the German-Russian alliance could be realized, Australia would reap substantial benefits and make a guaranteed profit.

Although the eastern part of the German Empire bordered the western part of the Russian Empire, William II and Arthur still chose to travel by warship to the Russian Empire.

Of course, this also had to do with their primary destination. William II and Nicholas II chose Bjork Island in the Gulf of Finland as the first meeting place for the German-Russian alliance negotiations. Although the formal meeting took place on the warship rather than the island, William II and Nicholas II still tacitly agreed on Bjork Island as the negotiation venue.

After three days at sea, on August 2, 1905, the two fleets carrying William II and Arthur arrived near Bjork Island.

Soon after, the Baltic Fleet carrying Nicholas II also arrived fashionably late.

Unlike the first negotiations, this time due to Australia’s participation, the meeting location was officially chosen on Bjork Island.

With the combined efforts of the attendees and servants of all three parties, a temporary negotiation site was quickly set up.

Perhaps due to the relaxed atmosphere, the tent appeared more like a vacation spot than a meeting place.

The servants brought out various foods, fruits, and prepared beverages from their respective ships.

A crucial conversation concerning the future situation in Europe began in this manner.

Among William II, Nicholas II and Arthur, William II was the oldest and also the initiator of these negotiations.

As the youngest, Arthur played more of a listener role in these negotiations, learning from the monarchs’ conversational skills and following the progress of the German-Russian talks.

After exchanging greetings, the negotiations began in earnest.

William II first reaffirmed the attitude of the German Empire, stating that it was willing to provide a large amount of loans and support the Russian Empire’s Far East policy.

Nicholas II nodded repeatedly; what William II proposed indeed struck a chord with him.

The Russian Empire’s defeat in the previous Russo-Japanese War was due not only to its internal decay but also to the lack of international support compared to the Island Nation.

Although its only ally, France, chose to support the Russian Empire, such support was limited compared to Britain’s backing of the Island Nation and completely insufficient to change the situation in the Far East.

Moreover, at the request of France, the Russian Empire’s main forces in Europe were not mobilized, and the majority of the army structure in the Far East were recruits with less than a year of training.

This led to a heavy loss of life for the Russian Empire in the last Russo-Japanese War, with over 200,000 deaths and as many as 300,000 indirect casualties.

Although these were mostly temporary recruits, they would not have too significant of an impact on the Russian Empire’s military strength.

Nevertheless, the deaths fueled widespread dissatisfaction and the war’s defeat became one of the key factors behind the Russian Empire’s instability.

If the Russian Empire had been able to mobilize one-third of its European forces to the Far East, the outcome of the war might have been different.

This led some in the Russian Empire to be disappointed with France. They believed that their heavily relied upon ally had instead become a burden during the war.

Germany’s attitude and commitment vastly differed from that of France. If it were not for the existing alliance between the Russian Empire and France, Nicholas II would have agreed to William II’s terms on the spot.

When discussing the Far East issue, Nicholas II and William II both turned to Arthur.

If Australia were to strongly support the Russian Empire in future Far East conflicts, at least half of the Russian Empire’s logistical issues in the Far East would be solved.

This was the advantage of distance. In the Far East, Australia’s influence was comparable to that of European secondary powers. In terms of weapons and resource support, it was equivalent to a powerful nation.

Arthur naturally agreed to this. Australia’s support for the Russian Empire’s actions in the Far East would bring no harm to Australia.

Moreover, the considerable arms trade would stimulate the development of Australian industry and military capabilities, benefiting Australia’s future expansion.

However, Tsardom of Russia’s Far East policy will actually be met with the desperate resistance of the Island Nation and the opposition of the British Empire and the United States.

Given the current situation of domestic strife and external troubles in the Tsardom of Russia, it is not easy to make a difference in the Far East region.

Although supporting Russia would cause Australia to lose an armament market like the Island Nation, the Island Nation mainly relies on the British Empire and the United States, and only these two countries will provide the Island Nation with a large amount of loans.

After obtaining Arthur’s support and guarantee, Nicholas II nodded in satisfaction, which seemed to show approval for William II’s proposal to support Russia’s Far East policy.

However, a large number of people and officials in Russia still do not want to give up the alliance with France, because during the period of the French-Russian alliance, a large amount of French capital has poured into the Russian market, and Russia also relies heavily on French financial support and loans.

If the agreement with France is terminated hastily, it would also be a huge blow to the Russian Empire itself.

Moreover, there are many strikes in Russia currently. If the loan cooperation with France is suddenly cut off, even if there is a new German loan influx, the damage to the market is definitely not something that can be alleviated in a short time.

This will cause a large number of workers to lose their jobs, which will also indirectly make this Russian unrest even greater.

This is why a considerable part of Russian officials currently oppose the German-Russian alliance. Russia’s current domestic environment cannot withstand too much change. If it suddenly loses the support of French capital, it is feared that before German capital has poured in, Russia will face a greater crisis domestically.

Nicholas II himself was also aware of this point, and although he was very tempted by William II’s proposal, he was still in a state of hesitation.

The first day’s negotiations ended in such indecision. Although Germany, Russia, and Australia all have a willingness to cooperate, it is obvious that Nicholas II is still hesitant, or that opinions inside Russia are currently not unified.

After Nicholas II left in a hurry, Arthur did not rush back to the warship but looked at William II, who was slightly thoughtful, and laughed, “Cousin William, are you in a bad mood?”

Although Arthur asked knowingly, William II was not angry, but rather helplessly explained, “I really don’t know what those Frenchmen gave Russia that made them reluctant to give up the treaty with France.”

Even though William II offered a lot of terms that were favorable to Russia, Nicholas II was still hesitant.

Comparing Germany and France’s completely different attitudes towards Russia in the early stages of the Russo-Japanese War, William II even felt that Nicholas II’s head had been kicked by a donkey.

“You seem to be in a wrong area, Cousin William. Rather than becoming allies, I think Germany and Russia’s better destination is mutual neutrality.” Arthur did not answer William II, but said with a deep meaning.

“Oh? How so?” William II suddenly became interested, asking with slight surprise.

“From a geopolitical point of view, Germany and Russia are neighboring, both being one of the hegemonic powers on the European Continent. But Russia and France are far apart, with the German Empire in between, so there are no territorial conflicts.” Arthur explained.

“As French-Russian allies, both parties can acquire Germany’s territory and continue to retain Germany as a buffer. But if Germany and Russia are allies, Germany may take a share of France’s territory, but what about Russia? Now is not the Middle Ages, and the exchange of territories is not feasible.”

Even on the European Continent, the diplomatic concept of remote exchange and near attack still applies.

Although Russia attaches great importance to its Far East policy, its base camp is after all in Europe, and it has to pay attention to the development of the situation in Europe.

As French-Russian allies, the victory of the war can acquire German territory for national replenishment.

Moreover, the two countries are separated by Germany as a buffer and will not cause too many conflicts.

But German-Russian is different. If Germany and Russia are allies, the only enemy on the European Continent would be France.

However, the distance between France and Russia is too far, and Russia will naturally not be so foolish as to occupy an area without popular support.

Then just let Germany grow bigger? With the acquisition of French territory, Germany’s overall strength will definitely become stronger.

Once France is defeated, wouldn’t Russia naturally become Germany’s next potential rival?

Russia is not Germany’s current opponent, and it is naturally not the opponent of Germany after Germany has acquired more territory and land rights.

Such development also prompts Russia to think more about whether the German-Russian alliance is more suitable than the French-Russian alliance.

Apart from the fact that Russia currently cannot lose French capital on the surface, the potential crisis of the German-Russian alliance is also one of the reasons for the hesitation of Russian officials and Nicholas II.

After a moment of silence, William II nodded and said, “Indeed, the purpose of the French-Russian alliance is actually to counter the German Empire.”

“So, I think the best relationship between Germany and Russia is neutrality. Of course, how to be neutral and the diplomatic bottom line of the two countries still needs to be defined by your officials.” Arthur said with a smile.