Chapter 1432 Opening a Skylight to the Iron Curtain (Third update, please subscribe)
"This is our wedge into Europe!"
Looking at Hungary in the dusk, Li Yian, who was slightly drunk, said in a relaxed tone:
"By penetrating Hungary, we can penetrate the entire Eastern European bloc."
While talking, he walked to the sofa and sat down. He did drink two more drinks at today's banquet. Those Hungarians were really a little too enthusiastic. They were using their own way to thank them for their aid back then.
"That's true, Your Excellency. According to our data, last year alone, the total trade volume between Hungary and us exceeded 700 million yuan, 70% of which was re-exported to Poland, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Romania, and Bulgaria. Waiting for Eastern European countries,”
After pouring a cup of hot tea for you, Robert said:
"By importing our goods and then re-exporting them to Eastern European countries, Hungary can earn more than 100 million yuan in profits every year, which has prospered their economy to a great extent."
This kind of re-export trade is a characteristic of Eastern European countries. Because of Big Brother's restrictions, a lot of trade can only be carried out within the Economic Cooperation Council. However, neither Big Brother nor the goods produced by Eastern European countries can meet their production and life needs, but even if In this case, they can only be forced to accept it.
Therefore, Hungary, which enjoys a certain degree of autonomy under the Economic Cooperation Council, has become a "gap". It can directly import Western goods, and then export to Eastern European countries and even the Soviet Union under the Economic Cooperation Council framework, because of this "internal trade" ” and are not subject to import quotas.
In this way, Hungary plays the role of "re-export". A large number of commodities enter the Eastern European market through it every year, and mineral resources and other commodities produced in Eastern European countries are also sold to the West through it.
In the process, Hungary gained considerable profits, which even improved people's lives and allowed Najib's reforms to gain support from more people.
“It’s not just about profits.”
After taking a sip of tea, Li Yian said:
"The Iron Curtain is called the Iron Curtain because it is airtight, but here..."
Pointing out the window, Li Yian looked into the distance:
"This is a breakthrough point for tearing apart the Iron Curtain. Hungary has gone a long way on the road of reform. Their new economic system has broken through many restrictions on industry and agriculture. It even allows the emergence of the private economy. For Eastern Europe For all countries, this..."
What is here?
It was the starting point for the changes in Eastern Europe. In addition to Hungary, other Eastern European socialist countries also carried out different forms of reforms in history, but all achieved little success. In the past few years, Czechoslovakia's reforms that tried to get rid of Soviet control were also suppressed by the Soviet Union. Because of its short duration, it was also called the "Prague Spring".
What now?
Budapest went further and, unlike Prague, there was nothing the Soviets could do about it.
"This is the root of change. With the improvement of Hungary's economy and people's lives, Eastern European countries will inevitably follow its example. By then, the Soviet Union may have to face a problem -"
When he put down the teacup, Li Yian smiled and said:
"Should we let Eastern European countries get rid of the Soviet model, or should we directly interrupt it all!"
"Can you interrupt?"
Robert asked.
"The general trend of the world is that those who follow it will prosper, and those who go against it will perish!"
Li Yian sneered:
"They can interrupt for a while, but they can't stop the general trend. Even if they end by force, the changes in Eastern Europe will continue. It's just a matter of speed. But one thing is for sure, the more force they exert, the more opposition they will have. The greater the power..."
This is the so-called "Eastern European Paradox" during the Cold War - if Moscow does not strengthen its control, Eastern Europe will break away and run away; if the Soviet Union strengthens its control, Eastern European countries will turn away from Germany.
Therefore, throughout the Cold War, the biggest problem for Moscow was never how to confront the United States, but how to ensure that Eastern European countries continued to be accused by Moscow and that Warsaw would not collapse.
"In the end, the power to resist Moscow will swallow up everything..."
By that time, Eastern Europe will undergo dramatic changes!
After listening to your analysis, Robert thought for a while and then said:
"Your Excellency, if this is the case, Moscow will most likely use force to stop all this. After all, in their minds, force is the best way to solve all problems!"
"It is true, but not here!"
Li Yian shook his head and said:
"Relevant agreements were reached in Moscow a few years ago, and Hungary's problem has been solved. Maybe in a few years, what they regret most is letting Hungary stay in their camp."
"Your Excellency, why is this?"
Looking at the dusk outside the window, Li Yian said:
"Because they are bleeding continuously, from here..."
Bleeding from here?
But at this moment, no one is aware of this problem. Even in order to repair relations with Budapest and make up for the impact of sending troops, Moscow has also given priority to the high-speed rail to Budapest, and is building high-speed rail by providing loans and other methods. . Last year, when the high-speed railway from Kiev to Budapest was opened to traffic, Heda Corn even personally presided over the opening ceremony of the high-speed railway.
"This is a symbol of unbreakable brotherhood!"
From that day on, the ES250 EMU with a speed of up to 250 kilometers per hour began to run on the land of Hungary. Although it was nicknamed "High-Speed Rail", the Soviet Union's high-speed rail technology originated from NY, but they also made targeted improvements to it. Improvements: In addition to adopting a 1520 mm wide track gauge, it can also withstand a low temperature environment of -40°C.
For high-level officials, this high-speed railway is a symbol of friendship and a product of politics, but its emergence has greatly facilitated the lives of many ordinary people.
Just like now, like many Ukrainians, Liliana only needs to buy a ticket to go to Budapest.
Although applying for a passport was very difficult in the Soviet Union and required many checks, it was very easy to travel to Eastern European countries. You did not even need to apply for a passport separately, you just needed to bring your internal passport. The so-called "internal passports" are passports issued between union republics.
Because of this, for many Soviet people, going to Eastern European countries is their only opportunity to go abroad in their lifetime.
Liliana was also eager to travel abroad, so just after her 22nd birthday, she applied for a visa at the Hungarian Consulate in Kiev and obtained a travel visa easily.
With your visa, you only need one ticket to take the high-speed train to Budapest. Like now, hours into the train journey, she finally entered another country.
"Hungary..."
Looking at the unfamiliar country outside the window, Liliana's heart was filled with expectations. What she was looking forward to was not this country, nor the dazzling array of foreign goods in the department stores here.
Instead, it enters another country through Hungary.
After leaving the train station, I took a taxi to the representative office. Unlike the representative office in Moscow, which was crowded with KGB personnel, there was a long queue outside the representative office in Budapest. Among them, there were not just Hungarians. , as well as East Germans, Poles, Romanians, and of course the Soviets.
They come here because this is the easiest way for them to leave for the Western world. As long as they have a passport, they can come to Budapest and then get a visa to NY through here.
Because of this convenience, in the past few years, tens of thousands of people have traveled abroad through this curve every year. Among them, there are engineers, scholars, and of course some ordinary people, Liliana is one of them.
Any chance of getting a visa?
Liliana didn't know what was standing in the queue, but like many others, she was wearing a mask and sunglasses. Even if she didn't get a visa, there was no need to worry, because to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, she was just visiting Hungary. There is no tendency to flee.
Just like that, I queued for almost two hours.
Liliana finally met the interviewer. When they met, the interviewer took a look at his passport and didn't care at all. It was a "Ukrainian passport", but asked directly:
"Why did you get out of there."
"I want to visit abroad. I graduated from the Department of Mathematics of Kyiv University. I believe that my personal abilities can be better developed with you."
From some friends, Liliana knew how to get a visa - she had to prove her ability, so she brought not only her university diploma, but also some award certificates for her participation in the Soviet national mathematics competition certificate.
The interviewer looked at her certificate, raised the corners of his mouth slightly, and showed a smile.
Mathematics is definitely the dominant subject of the Soviet Union. It is not limited to higher mathematics. Even the interviewers know that the Mathematical Olympiad that has become popular in China in the past two years has been influenced by the Soviet Union. Many of the world's most difficult Mathematical Olympiad questions come from Combinatorial mathematics problems in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, where many Mathematical Olympiad teachers are from the Soviet Union.
In the West, mathematics has always been considered a weakness for girls. But in the Soviet Union, mathematics is a popular course for girls. Girls there are more interested in studying mathematics than in other European and American countries. This is especially true in other fields. As early as a few years ago, 40% of the Soviet Union’s chemistry Ph.D. Just all women. In contrast, Western countries are still in single digits.
After simply looking through the other party's information, and knowing that Liliana could not only speak German, but also English and French, the interviewer had a simple conversation with her in English and French, and then easily issued the visa.
Everything went smoothly. After Liliana left happily, the next person was still a woman wearing a skirt.
It is easier for women to obtain visas here than for men, especially those with higher education. It is easier for them to obtain visas, not just because they are women, but also because, from a genetic point of view, the mother's IQ has a great influence on the child's IQ.
Therefore, basically any woman with a higher education can easily obtain a visa.
The long queue outside the representative office is, to a certain extent, a kind of slow bloodletting - talents from the Sudong Group are constantly flowing out of the country, and excellent intellectual resources are flowing out of the country. This flows into another country.
(End of chapter)