Chapter 947 Bargaining
Schneider visited representatives from various countries one by one for private consultations, and the content discussed was very specific. For countries with doubts, Schneider must also analyze the trade alliance implementation draft based on their specific situations and imagine how they can use the trade alliance's environment and international relations to seek benefits in the future. After all, it is impossible for other countries to be as advanced as Haihan in almost every field. How to adapt measures to local conditions, learn from each other's strengths, and develop international trade in a targeted manner based on the actual domestic situation, Schneider has to help take the pulse. Coming up with ideas is really not an easy task.
In particular, there are countries like Johor and the Netherlands that are not on the same path as Haihan, so it will be even more difficult to persuade them to join the trade alliance. For example, the representative of the State of Johor, Ajith Shah, pointed out directly that Hai Han must respond to the illegal invasion of Johor territory. This means that even if the territory of Sing Tao cannot be taken back, Hai Han must compensate the State of Johor in other ways. Just fine.
The Dutch are more difficult to deal with than other countries. As a major maritime trading nation in this era, the Dutch have accumulated experience in international trade that these countries in the Far East can hardly match. Schneider's speech may be easier to fool other participants, but the situation of the Netherlands and Haihan is very similar. They are both based on maritime trade. They not only understand what Schneider said, but also have it. In practice, it’s just that we haven’t studied the relevant theories as deeply as Haihan did. Van Diemen's understanding of Haihan's plan was far better than that of other participants, so he also knew better what content it contained that required him to fight for better conditions with Haihan.
The current situation of the Dutch East India Company in the Far East can be described as "very difficult". Not only has the colonies and routes it expanded to Northeast Asia in recent years been taken away or suppressed by Haihan, but its own base in South Asia has also been lost. It's almost impossible to keep it. Batavia has almost fallen to the Maltalan Kingdom. If Haihan is already ready to take action, the consequences will be disastrous. The Haihan people did not even need to land for a landing. As long as they sent a fleet to cover the retreat of the Ma Da Blue Army at sea, it was enough to cut off the Dutch's hope of holding Batavia.
However, Van Diemen also realized that Haihan did not seem to intend to directly expel the East India Company from the Far East, but left a way out. As for the purpose of Haihan's doing so, Van Diemen collected various information over the past few days. After that, I roughly guessed that the Haihan people wanted to keep the Maritime Silk Road between the Far East and Europe smooth, but the Portuguese had limited transportation capacity and obviously could not undertake 100% of the transportation task, so the Haihan people Talent would need the East India Company to get into the game.
As a maritime power with high self-esteem, Van Diemen is very unwilling to be reduced to this situation. Whenever there is a chance to make a comeback, he will try his best. However, the negotiation with the Haihan people is very delicate. For the East India Company, which is at a disadvantage, it must not only stick to its own principles, but also try to get Haihan to make concessions on the existing conditions. This is indeed A very difficult task.
On the seventh day of the talks, Schneider and Van Diemen finally entered the stage of face-to-face individual consultations. Although Schneider didn't speak much Dutch, Van Diemen had spent some time in England in his early years and could speak fluent English. Therefore, both parties saved the trouble of translation and could talk directly in English. Worry about misinterpretation during translation.
"I would like to remind you that the trade alliance must retain the East India Company's power to trade directly with other countries, otherwise it will not have much practical significance for us to join this alliance." Van Diemen showed a very tough attitude, and he proposed it right away. Own conditions: "In addition, the security of the East India Company's existing colonies must be guaranteed, and we will also retain the power to continue to open new colonies!"
After Schneider patiently listened to his request, he replied calmly: "I think your company has misunderstood the solution we proposed. What we want is not to restrict your trade rights, but only through resource optimization , to improve the operational efficiency within the entire trade alliance. Your company's area of expertise is the route between the Far East and Europe, and we hope that your company can concentrate its limited transportation capacity on this route as much as possible. It’s not a waste of time traveling back and forth across the Far East, using a lot of resources but only making a small profit.”
Schneider's statement was much more tactful than when Yan Chujie negotiated in Batavia. At that time, Yan Chujie did not connect Haihan's request with the trade alliance plan, and directly threw out the restrictions on the East India Company in a tough tone. condition. Of course, Yan Chujie's approach was not due to lack of consideration. It was precisely because of the subsequent talks and consultations that he consciously raised the conditions higher and left room for bargaining with the Dutch.
After hearing this, Van Diemen did not feel that the other party had made any concessions in attitude. Schneider only explained Heihan's intention to put forward the conditions, but did not show any intention to make changes and adjustments. So Van Diemen emphasized again: "How to arrange our company's maritime transportation capacity is our internal affairs. Even if we decide to join the South China Sea Trade Alliance, we will not allow outsiders to interfere in our internal affairs."
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Schneider was quite tough-minded. He really didn't want to be punished with a toast, so he responded immediately: "Let me put it bluntly. If your company is unwilling to accept the arrangement made by the trade alliance, then we are not prepared to accept it." Your company has joined the alliance. In addition, we cannot provide guarantees for your company’s safety in the Far East, especially in the coastal areas of Daming.”
Schneider's words sounded more than straightforward to Van Diemen's ears, they were simply a naked threat. The East India Company is now a hairless phoenix, not as good as a chicken. The colonies outside Batavia basically have little ability to protect themselves, especially Taiwan's Damuan Port, which is far away in the Ming Dynasty. It is basically a piece of meat on Haihan's mouth. When to eat and what posture to eat basically depends on Haihan's mood. If Damuan Port is lost, the Northeast Asian trade route that the East India Company has worked so hard for many years will completely collapse, and there will not even be a decent foothold north of the equator.
If someone else had made such an arrogant statement, Van Diemen might have retorted a few words, but facing the Haihan people who had already taken control of the Taiwan Strait, he really couldn't stand up and could only forcefully change the subject and said: "We The colonies established in the Far East are solely for the purpose of development and construction, and are not intended to be used for military purposes. You should not use civilian and commercial facilities as a condition to threaten our submission!”
As soon as Schneider heard this tone, he knew that this guy had softened. He immediately pursued the victory and said, "Since it is not for military purposes, we might as well include the area in the Haihan Navy's defense zone and leave all external defense to us. Of course, There should not be too many Dutch immigrants settling in the area, otherwise it will be difficult for us to protect them, so it is better to set a population limit. It is enough for the local people to be responsible for business negotiations, and the rest will settle there. It’s just a waste of resources.”
When Van Diemen heard Schneider's revealing request, he knew that he was working with Yan Chujie after all. He was eager to push the East India Company to the edge of the cliff, so that after the East India Company's use value was drained, he could do it at any time. Kick him down. But for Schneider's almost ridiculing statement, he really did not have enough confidence to refute. The armed forces in Damuan Port were only enough for basic self-defense. If Haihan really wanted to use force to conquer the place, it would probably be at the end of last year and this year. It had already fallen at the beginning. If we want to negotiate terms with the Haihan people, we have to come up with something useful. Fan Diemen gritted his teeth and said, "Then let's make an exchange and let us retain the Taiyuan Port colony and set up a business store further north. With the power, we can open to you the right of residence in the areas near the Sunda Strait ”
Schneider smiled and said: "It seems that we don't need your cooperation to enter the Sunda Strait now, right?"
Van Diemen said: "I know you have local charts and have conducted on-site inspections, but don't forget that there are French and British people west of the Sunda Strait. I can tell you that these two countries are near the Sunda Strait. The location of the stronghold.”
Schneider did not expect that Van Diemen would decisively betray the Dutch allies in Europe at such a time, and he could not help but have a new understanding of Van Diemen's determination. Of course, he also knows that although these countries are allies in Europe, they are competitors in the Far East. It is reasonable to call them brothers in person and engage in dirty tricks behind their backs. Although Haihan is not particularly worried about the potential threats posed by these countries, if useful intelligence can be collected in advance, it can save a lot of trouble.
However, what Schneider really cares about is not the actual value of the information given by Van Diemen, but the attitude he showed means that the Dutch do not want to fight Heihan to the end. As long as the conditions are right, they They will probably still make certain concessions in order to join the South China Sea Trade Alliance. This is what Schneider wants to see.
As for whether to retain the colonies north of the equator for the Dutch, and the degree of restrictions on the East India Company's actions in Northeast Asia in the future, these are all projects that can be discussed slowly. Haihan does not really want to build a sea iron barrel. The formation completely shut out the Netherlands. Both Haihan and the Netherlands are commercial entities that pursue practical interests. As long as they join the trade alliance, many things can be negotiated on the basis of common interests.
"There is no rush in the Sunda Strait for the time being, but we will open ports on Belitung Island and Bangka Island. Is this request okay?" Schneider also took the initiative to show his kindness and took a step back. However, this step was not because of Van Diemen. The response made by the performance was a plan that Haihan had planned long ago.
There is no natural harbor near the Sunda Strait for Haihan to build a large-scale comprehensive seaport, and Canada has no plans to drive the Netherlands out of this area. Therefore, after on-site inspections in the past few months, Haihan’s construction plan For the time being, we will only push southward to the Bangka-Belitung line, instead of directly establishing a colonial settlement at the western end of Java Island or the southern end of Sumatra Island. The tin mines on Bangka Island and Belitung Island are of far greater significance to Haihan than building a colony near the Sunda Strait. After all, the investment in developing minerals is small and the output is fast, and the cycle of recovering development costs is much longer than building a settlement. Normal settlement is much faster and more cost-effective from an economic point of view.
Of course, the reason for this decision was also influenced by Xingdao. Before this cruise in the South China Sea, although Haihan also intended to take action near the Strait of Malacca, he lacked a grasp of the actual local situation, so he never made a decision. However, after comparing the conditions in the Strait of Malacca and the Strait of Sunda, both the military and the Executive Committee undoubtedly chose Star Island, the eastern entrance and exit of the Strait of Malacca, as the next development target. With the current capabilities and development plans of Haihan, it is impossible to launch major projects in both Star Island and the Sunda Strait at the same time, so the control of the Sunda Strait has been postponed backwards.
Van Diemen did not know that Haihan had information on the mineral deposits on Bangka and Belitung Islands, and was quite surprised by Schneider's concession. In his opinion, apart from growing pepper, there seemed to be nothing else good on these two islands. In addition, there was no natural harbor in the area, so Van Diemen didn't have to worry too much about the Haihan people stationing an armed fleet there, so he did not object to Schneider's proposal at the moment. However, after Haihan began to mine tin mines on a large scale in the area, the news finally reached Batavia, and Van Diemen realized that Haihan's move had been planned long ago, but it was too late to regret it.
Negotiations are always accompanied by concessions and compromises, and even a strong one like Haihan will not be an exception. After all, the purpose of this business alliance is to attract more countries to join, not to exclude a certain country. Even rivals like Haihan and Holland, who have had several armed conflicts, will immediately return to their nature as businessmen and win more for themselves through talks as long as they realize that both parties have common interests that can be developed. Benefit.
Van Diemen found that his negotiations with Schneider were also very difficult. This difficulty was different from Yan Chujie's tough attitude, but a shrewdness he had never seen before. He felt that all his conditions and requirements were calculated by the other party. , and when he was counting one or two steps, Schneider might have already counted five or six steps, causing him to be restricted at every step. It seems that they have obtained concessions from Haihan and gained some advantages, but the situation still seems to be under the control of the other party. The so-called concession is just a small sweetener intentionally thrown out by the other party.
(End of chapter)