Chapter 298 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
This night, I don’t know how many people stayed up all night to resolve this sudden crisis.
Japan is a country that is very good at blackmail, and the "Treaty of Ganghwa" was signed in the context of blackmail.
The Russian Empire is also good at blackmail. At the national level, compared with Japan, which has just gained some momentum, the Russian Empire is definitely the ancestor of blackmail.
Blackmail is addictive.
Therefore, when the Russian Empire encountered the more powerful Britain, it had to make concessions on the issue of Jumun Island and retreat to the Sea of Japan.
George is actually taking risks, but George's adventure is based on a full understanding of Japan, so the results are completely different.
Japan does not have the confidence to go to war with the Russian Empire.
Not even with British help.
Russia’s strength and Goryeo’s human resources are enough to suppress Japan. Unless Japan completes nationwide mobilization in a short time, Japan will still have no chance of winning when the three major fleets of the Russian Empire gather in East Asia.
Retreating is not the end. Once concessions are made at the military level, the ensuing defeat is inevitable.
Milyugin struck while the iron was hot and demanded that Goryeo and Japan immediately revise the relevant contents of the "Ganghwa Treaty".
According to George's opinion, there is no need to modify this, just abolish it.
Milyugin is still cautious.
Goryeo has signed unequal treaties with almost all European and American countries.
If the "Ganghwa Treaty" is directly abrogated.
Should the "Treaty of Amending and Trade" signed between Korea and the United States be abolished?
Should the relevant treaties signed between Goryeo and the Russian Empire during the Mulind era be abrogated?
George's purpose was to expel Japan from Goryeo, not to create a completely independent Goryeo.
Japan is not willing to modify the "Treaty of Ganghwa".
However, Japan's opposition cannot affect the advancement of this matter.
Witnessed by Britain, France, the United States, and Russia, Goryeo and Japan began to revise the contents of the "Ganghwa Treaty" on February 4, 1893.
The focus of the amendment focuses on tariffs, currency, coastal survey rights, and consular jurisdiction.
Min Yongyi, the representative of Goryeo who was responsible for amending the treaty, demanded that all the above unequal clauses be abolished.
Otori Keisuke, who was responsible for amending the treaty on the Japanese side, strongly opposed it. If the above rights were lost, Japan would have no competitiveness in Koryo.
Regardless of whether George renewed the contract, Vladivostok was more lively and attracted more attention than Seoul during this period.
Few people actually care about the fate of Goryeo.
East India and the Malay Peninsula have been the global focus in the past six months.
In order to eliminate the Justice Company, the British army mobilized 200,000 troops from major colonies around the world and the British mainland to gather on the Malay Peninsula, hoping to completely strangle the Justice Company.
200,000 people sounds like a lot, but spread across the Malay Peninsula, there is less than one person per square kilometer.
So far, the area controlled by the British army is still only the coastal zone, and they dare not go deep into the Malay Peninsula.
Justice Company was also unable to break through the British blockade, and the war was in a stalemate.
Dutch colonial rule in East India was on the verge of collapse.
Unlike the powerful British Empire, the Netherlands is weak and has poor resources. It really cannot afford to fight a protracted war.
At the beginning of the Fourth Aceh War, the Netherlands was ambitious. It not only sent an expeditionary force from the mainland, but also hired Gurkha soldiers from India to form an army of 100,000.
The UK can mobilize 200,000 people because the population of the UK itself is nearly 40 million. Including overseas colonies, the total population exceeds 300 million.
The Dutch mainland population is only a pitiful 4.6 million. Although East India is a Dutch colony, Kalimantan and Sumatra are not yet completely controlled by the Netherlands, so the Netherlands' ability to form an expeditionary force of 100,000 is already the limit.
Wars cost money, especially when the troops suffered heavy losses, the pensions were enough to completely bankrupt the Dutch government.
After the news of the Aceh Sultanate's occupation of the Old Port spread back to the Netherlands, it directly led to the collapse of the cabinet organized by Prime Minister Hesbert von.
The first thing the new prime minister did after taking office was not to consider how to conquer the Aceh Sultanate, but how to end the war with dignity.
For the same reason, Britain has now given up conquering the Malay Peninsula and is willing to return to its previous "non-intervention" status.
"If you want me to mediate, let's discuss the compensation issue of the Giant now."
George began to settle old scores.
In the past six months, four Amur ships have been detained by the British Channel Squadron and the Far East Fleet for various reasons. This account must be settled first.
“How much compensation do you think is appropriate?”
Hubbard didn't dwell on the issue.
“300,000—pounds!”
George’s offer made Hubbard frown.
The "Giant" is a 3,000-ton merchant ship.
Today’s armored cruisers, based on the price of armor steel, basically only cost about 100 pounds per ton.
300,000 pounds is roughly the price of a 3,000-ton cruiser.
Referring to the compensation price of the "Giant", the UK has to compensate George for more than 1.5 million pounds.
The "Majesty" class battleship that the UK is about to start building this year will cost only about 1.5 million pounds.
"If you don't agree with this standard, then there is nothing to talk about."
George made it clear that it was blackmail.
Don't accept it?
That’s easy to say, let’s continue fighting.
I don’t know if 1.5 million pounds is enough to support the 200,000 expeditionary force for one month.
So all countries emphasize not to start war lightly, not to start war lightly. It’s really not that they love peace, but that they really can’t afford it.
The British should be thankful that at least they still have something to talk about.
The Dutch wanted to sue for peace but could not find a middleman.
The last truce between the Netherlands and Aceh was achieved through the joint mediation of the Russian Empire and Britain. This time the Aceh War was initiated by the Dutch, who did not even give the British and the Russian Empire face.
Then who is qualified to mediate?
The Dutch are still very resourceful. They begged and begged, and they actually begged William II.
Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, cousin of William II.
So Prince Heinrich, the younger brother of William II, came to Vladivostok.
Prince Heinrich did not go to George directly, but first visited Catherine.
This is the benefit of relatives.
George had to return to Yuriev Palace to welcome the arrival of Prince Heinrich.
"Unless the Dutch leave East India, there is no possibility of the Aceh War ending."
They are all real relatives of his family, and George did not go around in circles and made his request directly.
"George, this is too much to ask for."
Heinrich hoped that George would save some face for his cousin.
“Is your alliance with the Austrians excessive?”
George didn't even give him the honor of being a prince, so his cousin might as well go and play with the handkerchief.
“George, these are two different things.”
Prince Heinrich didn’t want to talk about anything else.
The entanglement of interests between countries is too complicated. If everything is taken seriously, the world will be in chaos.
“What would you do if it were you?”
George got to the heart of the matter.
From Germany's standpoint, Prince Heinrich certainly did not want to see the Russian Empire getting involved in East India.
So on this issue, Germany and the UK have the same position.
I can’t get it, and you can’t take advantage of it.
Prince Heinrich was blocked by George when he was about to speak.
"Don't say that Germany will give up East India, that will make you lose my trust."
"Maybe you can also choose to jointly manage it——"
Prince Heinrich himself said this Don't believe it.
Prince Heinrich's mediation has not yet begun, and Prince Alfred also comes to Vladivostok.
Prince Alfred also came to the Malay Peninsula.
Britain was willing to compensate George for the losses caused by the seizure of the ship.
But the amount George requested was too large, and the British royal family and Congress also wanted to save face.
“You can seize my ship as you say, don’t I want to lose face?”
George is both proud of himself.
"George, this is a misunderstanding, no one wants to see this happen."
Alfred was in a bad mood.
The last time he was in Aceh, Alfred had already seen George's strength and greed. If it weren't for the fact that Britain was really in trouble, Alfred really didn't want to deal with George.
“But the fact is that it was a mistake for the Strait Squadron to seize my ship, so I have to pay a price.”
George was fed up with the British’s ubiquitous pursuit and interception, and he must let him The British learned a lesson.
When it comes to issues related to Britain, the Grand Dukes of St. Petersburg always proceed from the overall interests, and finally come to the conclusion that the Russian Empire cannot compete with Britain, and have to give in again and again.
George knew where the British Empire's weaknesses lay.
The Royal Navy is indeed strong. The three major fleets of the Russian Empire together are not enough to defeat the British fleet.
But on land, Britain will become a soft-legged shrimp, and its weak nature will be fully exposed.
So George does not confront Britain in its areas of strength, but targets Britain's weaknesses.
Through the Malay Peninsula, George set the best example for all those who were dissatisfied with Britain.
Have you learned, if you want to resist British global hegemony, you have to do this!
"George, must you have used your own misbehavior to cause the British Empire and the Russian Empire to fall into a full-scale confrontation?"
Alfred was bluffing.
“Yes, that’s what I want to do! What do you want to do? Send battleships into the Baltic Sea to bombard St. Petersburg? Or directly launch a ground attack like Vladivostok? Please, hurry up, you guys. Come on, I can't wait."
George is very talkative.
The Russian Empire endured the ninth Russo-Turkish War.
The expansion of the Russian Empire in Central Asia was curbed by Britain, and the Russian Empire endured it again.
The incident on Juwen Island turned the Russian Empire into a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.
But have these concessions gained Britain mutual respect?
No!
In exchange, the British only got worse.
Why didn’t St. Petersburg restrain George?
Because the Tsar was more dissatisfied with Britain than George.
If George could break the British blockade of the Russian Empire, it would be a huge gain.
If not, St. Petersburg is the last safety rope to prevent the relationship between the Russian Empire and Britain from completely deteriorating.
(End of this chapter)