Chapter 839 Loyalty
The situation of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia is very complicated, including the former Kingdom of Bulgaria, the former Kingdom of Serbia, Slovenia and Croatia obtained from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and Bosnia and Herzegovina and North Macedonia obtained from the Ottoman Empire.
So many regions are integrated together, with different beliefs, races, habits, backgrounds, and even different languages. This is a disaster for a country.
The good news is that the main ethnic group of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia is still Slavs, and the population of other ethnic groups is not large. This has brought about a turning point in the forced Slavization of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia, like Russia, uses Orthodox Christianity as its state religion. Those who do not agree with this are free to leave. Governments at all levels not only do not impose restrictions, but also provide all conveniences and gifts to leave the country.
This is extremely rare at a time when all countries regard population as their most important resource.
Many people who did not recognize the Orthodox Church left in anger after this rule was established.
Those who stayed did not completely convert to Orthodox Christianity. Many of them were unable to leave their homeland and had different opinions.
After ten years of hard work, the situation in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia has gradually stabilized, but along with economic development, it has also brought about some new problems, especially in Croatia and Slovenia, where calls for more rights have become louder and louder.
Adrianople was wary of these voices.
Now it's just a matter of asking for more rights.
When the power reaches a certain level, is it necessary to strive for autonomy?
And then——
independent?
The struggle for power between localities and kingdoms has been around for a long time and will not disappear in the future. Adrianople is more concerned about whether it is affected by external forces than the local councilors who work hard to fight for their rights.
It is normal for local councilors to safeguard local interests and fight for rights, and there is nothing wrong with it.
But if there is contact with external forces, the purpose is no longer simple.
Especially benefit transfer.
The two countries that Adrianople is most wary of are the Kingdom of Italy and the United Kingdom.
The hatred between Italy and Yugoslavia can no longer be resolved through peaceful means, and there will eventually be a war between the two countries.
Britain does not want to see a peaceful coexistence in the Balkans because of Russia.
When Yugoslavia was founded, the British took the initiative to come to Yugoslavia, hoping to invest in Yugoslavia.
If it were any other country, not only would they be overjoyed, but at least they would not turn them away.
Yugoslavia refused to accept British investment, not even donations, including humanitarian ones, and did not deal with the British at all.
Unlike Yugoslavia, the Kingdom of Greece not only did not reject Britain's so-called "donation", but also opened its domestic resources to the UK and welcomed British capital to invest in the Kingdom of Greece.
In the tourism industry that George once mentioned to Georgi, British investment accounts for 30%.
The reason why Russia does not interfere is because more than 50% of the investment comes from Russia.
The UK's key investment area is the Aegean Sea. Although the British are also very interested in the Adriatic Sea on the other side of the Kingdom of Greece, they are not allowed to enter.
After the World War, the Kingdom of Greece leased Corfu, located at the entrance to the Adriatic Sea, to the Russian Navy for 99 years.
The Russian Navy not only built a port and naval base in Corfu, but also built an airport and complete supporting facilities.
What makes the British uncomfortable is that the resorts and sanatoriums in Corfu are only open to the Russian navy and their families, and even the Greeks refuse to receive them.
Therefore, in the past two years, there have been endless calls in Greece to take back Corfu Island. The Kingdom of Greece complied with public opinion and took the initiative to contact the Russian Navy Ministry on this issue.
From Peter to Kolchak, the two navy ministers had an extremely firm attitude towards Corfu. Not only did they not agree to terminate the lease contract early, but they also emphasized many times that Russia would take the initiative to renew the lease contract after it expired.
There has also been an agreement in this regard that as long as the Russian Navy is willing to continue the lease, the Kingdom of Greece cannot refuse.
When Mannerheim was in urgent mediation, Georgi flew to Alexandria and took the initiative to visit George.
Georgi is not visiting Russia as a king, but as a private person to visit old friends.
George will definitely not turn away old friends. Although the Kingdom of Greece does not have as close a relationship with Russia as Yugoslavia and Romania, it is still an important part of the Balkan Alliance. The personal relationship between Georgi and George has always been very good. .
Georgi stayed away, hoping that Russia could give more help to the Kingdom of Greece.
Against the background of the economic crisis, although the number of Russian tourists to Greece has not decreased, the number of tourists from Western Europe has plummeted, which will inevitably have an impact on the Greek economy.
The consumption enthusiasm of Russian tourists also decreased significantly after the outbreak of the economic crisis.
“It’s such a good thing if you want to help but don’t want to pay the price!”
George was unhappy. Last year, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia proposed building a railway from Adrianople to Athens, but it was shelved due to the economic situation of the Kingdom of Greece.
Greece did not refuse, but hoped that the cost of building the railway would be borne by the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, or it would be a loan from the Kingdom of Yugoslavia or Russia.
It is not impossible for the Kingdom of Yugoslavia to bear the responsibility alone, but it requires that after the construction is completed, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia will be responsible for operating it.
This proposal was again rejected by the Kingdom of Greece.
Greece's bottom line is joint ventures, citing national security.
"What can I do? I cannot allow another country to control the railway directly to the capital, even if that country is an ally."
Georgi did not think the Greek kingdom's demands were excessive.
"Inexplicable pride, does Russia have to go through the railway if it wants to attack Greece?"
George hopes that the Balkan Alliance can cooperate more closely.
"I won't bother you, why don't we merge the two countries?"
Georgi's speech was astonishing. "Why do you say that? Russia has never attempted to annex the Kingdom of Greece."
George wondered if he no longer wanted to be the king.
"Oh! It's so hard for me to be criticized as a loser of power and an insult to the country just by being in Corfu!"
Georgi looked up to the sky and sighed, he was also very stressed.
"Didn't the Navy pay rent?"
George did not think that the Russian navy's lease of Corfu was harming the Kingdom of Greece.
On the contrary, George believed that the Russian navy's base in Corfu was a protection for the Greek kingdom.
For the same reason, Russia's base on Crete also protects the Kingdom of Greece.
Only part of Crete is leased.
"Some people don't think so -"
6◇9◇Book◇Bar
Georgi also felt uncomfortable.
Leasing Corfu to the Russian Navy may seem like a loss of power and humiliation to the country. In fact, Greece, under the protection of Russia, can devote more resources to economic development instead of going to war.
Greece has many mountains and poor resources. It cannot even be self-sufficient in food. The so-called "millions with armor" is nonsense.
The reason why Greece became independent was not because there were many Greeks and they were able to fight, but because Britain, France, and Russia joined forces to defeat the Ottoman Empire, and Greece became independent.
Without the help of Britain, France and Russia, Greece would have collapsed thousands of miles away as shown in the Greco-Turkish War.
"You have to be wary of the infiltration of certain countries. Not everyone wants peaceful coexistence in the Balkans."
George reminded Georgi to be wary of sugar-coated bullets from certain countries.
The British are the best at mixing in sand and never forget to provoke confrontation. Especially in the case of the Balkans, the British will succeed if they are not careful.
A chaotic Balkans can effectively involve Russia's energy, so even if this situation does not bring direct benefits to the UK and may even damage the investment of British companies, the British government will harm others and not benefit itself.
The British do this kind of thing a lot.
"George, Greece is not Russia, and there are many things I can't do about it."
Georgi also knew that the British were uneasy and well-intentioned, but Greece also had its own national conditions.
A small country with few people has no right to talk about its rise. It can only be reduced to a vassal and pursue a small fortune at most.
Even if it embraces its thighs, it must be careful of being annexed, otherwise it may lead to the destruction of the country. Therefore, Greece cannot put all its eggs in the Russian basket.
Okay, George just promised that Russia has no intention of annexing Greece.
But what about Yugoslavia?
George had no intention, but what about Guchkov? What about Vasily? What about George's successor?
The tragedy of Greece is that it has no ability to resist, so it can only hedge its bets.
At least compared with Russia, which is just around the corner, Britain is less likely to annex Greece.
"So what are you complaining about?"
George spread his hands and could only say that knowledge deserves suffering.
Greece made the right choice.
But another option for Greece is to work hard and be self-reliant. All the people are soldiers and do not rely on any country. If anyone wants to annex me, I will die and break his teeth. I can’t steam, cook or beat him. Plaques, copper peas that don’t burst when fried, and ring loudly.
Without this kind of determination, there is no talk of independence.
The third brother was overjoyed, are you complimenting me——
Slippers: Right down there!
"——"
The corners of Georgi's mouth twitched, but in the end he didn't say anything.
A gentleman would rather starve to death than eat the food that comes to him. The king also has dignity.
George did not have high requirements for his allies. It was good to work hard like Phyllis, but it was also an attitude to wait for death like Georgi.
Even if the sky is high like Carroll, George can tolerate it as long as it does not endanger Russian interests.
After all, everyone has his or her own ambitions.
Like Carroll, if the Romanians can't bear it anymore and ask Russia to help justice, Russia will naturally not ignore the call for justice and let it go.
The Romanians themselves do not resist, and Russia is even less likely to interfere in Romania's internal affairs.
George looked at Georgi and then returned to the fishing rod.
Russia is not sitting idly by. Vasily once suggested that Russia help Georgi establish a force loyal to him and strengthen domestic control.
After much thought, Georgi declined Vasily's proposal.
It is hard to say who will be loyal to the army that Russia helped to form. If Russia also takes the opportunity to mix in the sand, the consequences will be disastrous.
(End of chapter)