Chapter 1557 Ambitious
In the South China Sea Trade Alliance, the dominant one is naturally the country of Haihan with the largest trade volume, and a considerable proportion of the trade content between various countries and Haihan is re-export trade through the ports controlled by Haihan. The real trade objects In fact, it is the Ming Dynasty. Especially for Western countries like the Netherlands and Portugal, most of the goods they can provide can be produced by Haihan themselves. They can only obtain relatively generous profits by selling these goods to Ming Dynasty through Haihan's trade channels. The various porcelain, textiles, tea and other commodities produced by the Ming Dynasty can only be purchased in these countries through the trade center established by Haihan.
In the past, Haihan's control over the coastal areas of the Ming Dynasty was only concentrated in parts of the southeastern coast, and his control over maritime trade channels was not enough to control other countries. However, now Haihan has basically completed control of the Ming Dynasty's coastal areas from south to north. Especially in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, the most prosperous areas of the Ming Dynasty, almost all maritime trade was under the direct control of Haihan, and the Ming Dynasty officials had already recognized the status quo by building transportation and commerce. At this time, it will be much easier for Haihan to set some conditions in exchange for the obedience of the South China Sea Trade Alliance member states than before.
Haihan's comprehensive control over the Ming Dynasty's maritime import and export trade can be said to be a very powerful trade method, because it affects not only the Ming Dynasty, but also many countries in Southeast Asia and even the West. The new plan Schneider is currently proposing is to require the countries of the South China Sea Trade Alliance to unify trade standards as soon as possible, and most of the content of this standard comes from the recent trade agreement between the Ming Dynasty and Haihan.
To be precise, many industry standards and related regulations in this trade agreement were actually formulated by Haihan. This is one of the reasons why Shi Diwen met intensively with local industry leaders in Zhejiang some time ago. Schneider believes that these trade standards negotiated with Ming can also be used to change the current situation of the South China Sea Trade Alliance. After all, many orders from Southeast Asia are actually handled by Haihan and transferred to Ming for completion. If the trade standards of the Ming Dynasty, Haihan, and the South China Sea Trade Alliance can be unified, trade barriers can be effectively eliminated, and Haihan can guide these trading partner countries to accept the new rules of the game.
Schneider believes that the weight of Haihan and the Ming Dynasty should be enough to influence the decision-making of these countries, especially the two Western countries of the Netherlands and Portugal. They basically have a rigid need for some of the high-end commodities produced by the Ming Dynasty, and they cannot use force or other means. In order to break Haihan's monopoly on Ming Dynasty's sea trade, the only way left was to accept Haihan's arrangement.
So Schneider quickly summoned Thomas, the Portuguese envoy to Sanya, and Su Keyi, the Dutch envoy to Sanya, to explain to them the current situation and Haihan's new concept of international trade in the Far East.
For these two countries, Haihan is really a country that they love, hate and fear. The trade process with Haihan is actually very pleasant. The Haihan people's business reputation and settlement speed are almost impeccable, which is much more comfortable than other countries they deal with in the Far East. But at the same time, Haihan is also their strongest competitor in the Far East. All commercial routes in the waters north of the Indochina Peninsula are under the control of Haihan. Trade with the Ming Dynasty must also go through Haihan. If possible, they I am more willing to use my best method to remove this stumbling block.
But they have made this attempt many times, but it always results in failure, and every failure will make them realize that the gap in military strength between the two sides is insurmountable. Later, when I saw with my own eyes how Haihan defeated the arrogant Spanish fleet, my resentment slowly turned into happiness. Yes, Haihan is not regarded as a rival, but as a trading partner. This is probably the greatest luck for Western colonial countries like them in the Far East.
Regarding the "trade standards" proposed by Schneider, they actually knew that this was a repeat of the same old tune. Haihan had already started to formulate international trade standards two or three years ago, and since then he has revealed his ambitions. big. But for countries like Portugal and the Netherlands, agreeing with Haihan's standards actually denies the possibility of becoming a controller in this region in the future. Therefore, although Haihan has made many requests on this issue, Portugal and the Netherlands have always adopted delaying tactics. They promised well in words, but in every possible way they shied away from implementation and would not follow the standards led by Haihan. to execute.
Portugal and the Netherlands have a much clearer understanding of the international situation than the Ming Dynasty. Unless all countries in the region can join forces to deal with Haihan, and do not hesitate to launch a large-scale war that may last for several years, Haihan will become the dominant player in the Far East. It's basically unstoppable. But forming such a military alliance is probably less likely than Haihan disappearing from the world on his own, so no one would be stupid enough to actually try to organize such an alliance to deal with Haihan.
The only more feasible strategy is to slow down Haihan's expansion and development, and try to prevent the gap in strength between the two parties from further widening. Impeding Haihan from unifying international trade standards under the framework he established through non-cooperation is the main method currently used by Portugal and the Netherlands.
This trick can be said to be quite simple and practical. Both Portugal and the Netherlands will express their approval and support for Haihan's proposal, but they will either overtly or covertly create obstacles in the implementation, making it impossible for Haihan's method to be implemented in place. Even if Haihan knew clearly that it was because of their lack of cooperation, it would be difficult to impose sanctions on them. After all, we are still partners on the surface, and it is not worth tearing our faces for these dirty things behind the scenes.
But the premise for the feasibility of this operation is that Haihan has no decisive means to restrain the two countries. No matter how much everyone curses in their hearts, they still have to continue doing business happily on the surface. However, this balance has now been destroyed by the establishment of transportation and trade between Ming Dynasty and Haihan. The previous smuggling trade will now be legalized, and Haihan has almost unilaterally taken control of the initiative. Schneider has made it clear to them that in the future, all trade between Portugal and the Netherlands and the Ming Dynasty must abide by the regulations in the trade agreement signed by the Haihan and Ming Dynasties. The trade standards established may no longer be circumvented this time.
Thomas and Su Keyi did not doubt the authenticity of the news about Haihan and Damingjian's transportation business. They believed that the Haihan people would not joke about such a big matter, and the Haihan people never disdained to use fraudulent means in trade. But precisely because of this, they immediately realized the seriousness of the matter.
Schneider directly summoned them to announce the matter. It was no longer to discuss an implementation process timetable with them as before, but to inform them of the result.
"You two, we have known each other for a long time, so there is no need to say some polite words to spy on each other. Let's get straight to the point. In the future, the trade between Portugal, the Netherlands and the Ming Dynasty must fully comply with this This trade agreement is a common requirement between our country and Ming Dynasty." Schneider said very firmly: "If you two want to ask whether there is room for bargaining or an implementation timetable, my answer is...no."< br>
"Completely leaving no room for action?" Thomas asked with a shrug. Although he had no hope after hearing Schneider's tone, he still asked subconsciously.
"This is for the common benefit of everyone. I guarantee that all countries participating in the trade will benefit from it, and the sooner it is implemented, the greater the benefits." Schneider's attitude is still very firm, and at the same time he does not forget to use some preferential conditions to appease the person sitting opposite him. of negotiating opponents. Of course, when Haihan already has a clear upper hand, he will not give any specific preferential policies. If the other party is still unwilling to submit, then subsequent trade penalties are no joke. "Isn't your country worried that this rough approach will offend its trading partners?" Su Keyi took another approach to question Schneider's decision.
"I believe that our country's true partners will naturally understand and cooperate with our work. I have already said that this will not harm the interests of participating countries, but will only provide more convenience." Schneider is so experienced that he will not be fooled at all. Su Keyi tried to get away with it verbally, but continued to use words to manipulate the other party - if you still don't cooperate, then you are not a "real partner", and don't say that you won't take care of your feelings when the time comes.
Schneider has extremely powerful conditions in his hands this time, and naturally he will not give in even a single cent. If these two countries still insist on their past attitudes, then Schneider will make a big move. He has obtained the authorization from the Executive Committee to initiate trade sanctions when the situation warrants, that is, to partially suspend the trade projects between the two countries and the Ming Dynasty. The highest level is to completely block their trade with the Ming Dynasty until the maritime requirements are met. up to the conditions proposed by Han.
The special method of trade sanctions has actually been written into the agreement as early as the establishment of the South China Sea Trade Alliance, but no country has ever used this method in bilateral trade. Even if Haihan is qualified to use this method, he is unwilling to cause a lose-lose outcome. But now that the objective conditions needed for Haihan to control international trade have been fully formed. Haihan can use extremely simple means to hold Portugal and the Netherlands hostage, so Schneider will naturally not hesitate to use such extreme measures.
However, even in the current atmosphere, Schneider still did not take the initiative to mention the word "trade sanctions", but continued to use words to hint to the ministers of the two countries. Haihan did not rule out using some more extreme means to achieve the goal if necessary. Purpose.
For the ministers of these two countries, the current situation is indeed quite embarrassing. Although Portugal and the Netherlands have ports in Macao, Guangdong and Danyuan, Taiwan, their trade with the Ming Dynasty has to be restricted by Haihan. Especially in the waters north of the Fujian Strait, merchant ships from Portugal and the Netherlands can only dock at ports specified by Haihan. In the future, all trade contents must be registered with Haihan before being allowed to trade with merchants from the Ming Dynasty. trade. If Haihan wants to put on someone's shoes, it's really just a matter of words.
Thomas and Su Keyi looked at each other, and they could see obvious helplessness in each other's eyes. It seems that since they came to Sanada as Minister Haihan, they have never gained an upper hand in various negotiations with Haihan, and this will probably be another frustrating experience in their careers.
The feeling of being controlled by others is quite uncomfortable, especially for maritime powers like Portugal and the Netherlands, which have almost achieved global colonization, but have to suffer in the Far East. Su Keyi himself is of Chinese descent who grew up in Batavia and has never really experienced the power of the Netherlands, so that's fine. But Thomas is a genuine Portuguese, and he knows very well how terrifying this kind of strength suppression is. Before this, only Spain could do this. But thinking about the tragic experience of the Spaniards in the South China Sea, Thomas instantly felt that he had nothing to complain about. The threat of trade sanctions was at least much lighter than the military strike.
"Well, I think there should be full mutual trust between partners. I have always admired your country's business methods. I believe you will not let me down this time, right?" Thomas took the lead in expressing compromise. . In fact, he did not have a choice. Schneider did not leave rejection as an option to them at all.
"Your decision is wise." Schneider nodded slightly to Thomas. Although this was the result he expected, he was still somewhat proud of being able to defeat his opponent with just a verbal exchange.
Schneider then turned his eyes to Su Keyi, waiting for him to make a statement. Compared with the Portuguese, the Dutch East India Company is obviously more difficult to deal with. In the past, the grievances with Haihan were deeper, and now they are more competitive. Although Su Keyi is a Chinese, his position is completely on the side of the Dutch, so Schneider does not expect him to make a rash decision that is not beneficial to the East India Company because of his closeness to Haihan.
"What did Mr. Su say?" Seeing that Su Keyi had not spoken for a long time, Schneider couldn't help but urge him.
Thomas has already entered a state of watching the show. The competitive relationship between Portugal and the Netherlands is more direct. Even if his personal relationship with Su Keyi is okay, from his standpoint, of course he would like Haihan to fall out with the Netherlands and then terminate the Netherlands' presence in Anglia. All trading activities in the area north of Buena Island freed up this huge market for Portugal to operate. However, he would not deliberately use words to provoke conflict between the two families. Playing such a trick in front of the extremely shrewd Schneider would probably have the opposite effect.
Su Keyi sighed and said helplessly: "I can agree to your country's conditions, but I also have conditions to raise."
(End of chapter)