Chapter 286: Another Deal (Bonus Chapter)
The sudden economic crisis further aggravated the difficulties of the precarious Ottoman government.
Although the Ottoman Empire was primarily an agrarian nation, the withdrawal of British and French capital dealt it a severe blow.
Faced with no other choice, the Ottoman government was forced to compromise, with the only issue being money.
Fuad negotiated hard: Count, your price is far too low! Nowhere else in the world is there such cheap land!
Johannes replied calmly, Relax, Mr. Fuad. Our offer is based on the international market price for large-scale land transactions.
Not long ago, we were negotiating with the Russians. They were considering selling Alaska, a land mass of 1.5 million square kilometers, and the Russian government was only asking for 4 million guilders. Our offer is already very sincere.
Indeed, the sale of Alaska had been proposed by the Russian foreign minister. However, the land wouldnt bring in much revenue, and there were concerns about possible British invasion.
But Nicholas I opposed the idea. The esteemed Tsar felt that selling land would tarnish his glorious image, so the matter was shelved.
This incident caused quite a stir internationally, and as a diplomat interested in international affairs, Fuad was naturally familiar with it.
Count, Alaska is just a big block of ice, hardly worth anything!
Johannes shook his head and said, Alaska still produces leather, the Bering Strait has abundant fishing resources, the southeastern and central-southern parts have a temperate climate and are rich in timber.
Moreover, theres also an inland basin. Weve sent people to survey it, and the Matanuska Valley area has fertile soil, perfect for agriculture.
Taking the Nordic region as a reference, this land can easily support tens of millions of people. In comparison, Libya is just sand.
Of the lands we seek to purchase, only a few islands have real value. If there are cost concerns, we can exclude Libya and calculate the price separately.
So were offering 20 million guilders for a total area of over 20,000 square kilometers of islands. This already breaks the world record for large land transactions.
Fuad couldnt believe it. To him, Alaska was just a block of ice, and in this era, there might not even be a population of more than ten thousand people living there.
But Johannes had found something of value. It wasnt just fabricated; it was information provided by the Russians themselves.
Even melon peddlers know how to boast about their wares, and the Russians were no exception. To get a good price, its natural to exaggerate a bit.
If there was nothing there, why would anyone pay? Even with so many resources, the Russians asked for only 4 million guilders, showing how worthless land was in that era.
Simply put, everyone wasnt lacking in resources now; only developed land was valuable. No matter how many resources there were, they were worthless until they were developed.
Who in their right mind would go to Alaska to fish, log, and farm? Besides the freezing temperatures, the cost of development there is also high.
The lands of Gods chosen nation were too fertile. After developing the American Great Plains, theres more food than can be eaten, and every year there are worries about a food surplus.
In this context, the land in Alaska naturally loses its value for agricultural development. Only idiots would invest in agriculture there.
In this era, not to mention the undeveloped coastal plains, the high cost of developing the inland basins means that only fools would go there to develop.
Otherwise, the Russians would have already organized immigration instead of fearing a British invasion!
Anyway, negotiations are all about bragging. Johannes, of course, doesnt mind putting Alaska in a better light, omitting the cost of land development, and downplaying the value of Libya, all to bring the price down.
Fuad argued, Count, no matter how you look at it, Libya has such a vast area. Even if the interior is all desert, there are still tens of thousands of square kilometers of fertile land along the coast.
There are still 500,000 to 600,000 people in the area, providing readily available labor. Your country can develop it directly, and its value is much higher than the barren and uninhabited Alaska. 8 million guilders is not much.
And then there are these islands. Their most important aspect is not their economic value, but their strategic value.
Cyprus is located at the junction of Asia, Europe, and Africa, with an extremely prominent strategic position. Crete is located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea and extends to the Aegean Sea
These islands are definitely not only about economic value. Factoring their strategic value, they are worth at least 35 million guilders.
Johannes replied with a smile, Mr. Fuad, that price is too high. We dont need the so-called human resources at all. How about this: well trade you all the people on those lands to you.
Since you consider strategic value important, well only take Crete and Cyprus, and we dont want the other islands.
With this arrangement, everyone can accept it. Ill raise the price again. How about 30 million guilders? That price is definitely not low!
The price of 30 million guilders is not low. If the Austrian government didnt use the so-called debt offset, Fuad would have agreed directly.
Johannes never intended to spend much money from the beginning. He was going to use the bonds he bought at a bargain price to pay for the land, so a slightly higher price was acceptable.
Fuad revealed his bottom line directly: Count, we can make another concession. We can clear the bilateral debts, and your country can pay an additional 10 million guilders as payment for the land purchase. How about that?
If payment were to be made in gold or silver, the Austrian government would never agree. But if it could be settled in goods, there wouldnt be much of a problem.
With the onset of the economic crisis, Austria had a large surplus of products, making this a good choice for disposing of them.
After pondering for a moment, Johannes replied, If your country can repatriate the people on these lands, then we have a deal. We can use the goods your country desperately needs as payment, and cash can be used to make up for any shortfall.
After a moment of silence, Fuad gave his answer: The cost of immigration, all paid for by your country!
There was no way around it. First, the Balkan Peninsula was lost, then civil war broke out. The Ottoman Empires population was at its lowest point in the last century, with less than 13 million people.
Once the civil war ended, the labor shortage would become an urgent reality. Although the number of people in the countries to be traded was not large, it was still a supplement for them.
Johannes replied, Agreed!
An agreement between the two parties didnt mean the matter was over. Britain and France couldn't stand idly by while Austria occupied many islands in the Aegean. Next, Johannes would have to continue to negotiate with British and French representatives.
Especially with the British, Johannes still has to take the island of Corfu from them. Without taking this gateway, the Austrian government would have trouble sleeping at night.
By comparison, the French are relatively easy to deal with, as there was a prior agreement between the two sides. Selling them a few islands to serve as military bases and sharing the benefits of the Aegean Sea would settle the matter.
After all, while the Aegean didnt have much else, it did have a lot of islands, numbering between 5,000 and 6,000, hundreds of which were suitable for human habitation. The Austrian government did not intend to occupy the entire region from the start anyway.
The British representative Nigel said with dissatisfaction: Count, isnt it going too far for your country to trade territory belonging to the Ottoman Empire with us!
No, weve already made a deal with the Ottoman Empire. Weve paid 45 million guilders to buy their many islands in the Aegean Sea and the region of Libya.
Now well swap Austrias islands in the Aegean for the Ionian Islands. Heres a map of the Aegean. As you can see, the red dots represent Austrias islands, while the rest belong to Greece and the Ottoman Empire.
Johannes deliberately omitted mention of Cyprus. By this time, the British had already begun colonizing Cyprus, albeit through private organizations not directly affiliated with the British government.
Nigel didnt pay attention to this little detail. During this period, Cyprus had no significant strategic value. Before the advent of the airplane, the strategic value of this island was minimal.
By comparison, the dozens of islands in the Aegean were of greater strategic value. Once the Russians broke out of the Dardanelles, this chain of islands would become a blockade line.
So as not to provoke the Ottoman Empire too much and risk driving the Sultanate government into desperation, their nearby islands are not included in the transaction.
Now, in negotiations with the British, the Austrian government doesnt have many valuable islands to offer. Instead, they focused more on the issue of India.
From 1857 to the present, the Indian rebellion has not only not been suppressed, but has become worse. The British government has no intention of delaying any longer.
Of course, the Russians are to be blamed for this. Without the selfless help of the Russian government, the Indians wouldnt have been able to make such a big wave.
Its hard to say what role the Austrian government played. On the surface, Austria didnt do anything. At most, they provided a relatively small loan to the Russians.
This was a symbol of friendship between the two allied nations, definitely not financial support for the Indian rebellion. Whatever the Russians did with the money had nothing to do with the Austrian government.
Nigel had no time to drag things out any longer. Now that Austria was supporting the Indian rebels with a million guilders worth of arms and ammunition, even ten million pounds might not be enough to suppress them.
There were just too many Indians. Just stirring up a batch with the help of Russian advisors was enough to cause them tremendous trouble.
For this agreement to be implemented, your country must immediately cease support for the Indian rebels, including financial support to the Russian government.
Johannes innocently replied, Youre overthinking this. The Austrian government is an advocate of peace, how could we possibly support Indian rebels?
As for helping the Russians, thats even more absurd. The Austrian governments finances are not exactly overflowing; we dont have the capacity for such generosity.
Underhand dealings do occur, but openly admitting them is out of the question. All nations are involved in such activities. Isnt it true that the British are smuggling arms into Nigeria to support native kingdoms and cause trouble for Austria?
Anyway, without evidence, everyone can just obstruct each other without consequences. Thats how high the moral standards are among the great powers. As long as they dont openly stab each other in the back, anything goes.
After hearing Johannes hidden message, Nigel realized that if the deal went through, everything would be fine. But if not, the other side stirring up trouble might be inevitable.
That would be ideal. As long as your country promises to help us suppress the Indian rebellion, this land deal can be easily negotiated.
Johannes assured him cooperatively, Rest assured, colonies are also part of a nations sovereignty. The Austrian government strongly supports your governments efforts to uphold national sovereignty and opposes any outside interference.
This is international politics everything revolves around interests. In West Africa and the Mediterranean, the British and Austrian nations came to an understanding. The British tacitly accepted Austrias expansion, so naturally, the Austrian government had to give up its activities in the Indian region.
On March 12, 1858, the New Holy Roman Empire signed the Mediterranean Land Transaction Treaty with the Ottoman Empire. The Austrian government contributed 45.868 million guilders to purchase over 300 islands, including Libya, Crete, and Cyprus.
Of the total, 35.868 million guilders were offset by debts and late fees, and the remaining 10 million was paid in goods. Cash payments were out of the question, but gathering 10 million guilders worth of goods was relatively easy.
The next day, Johannes signed separate treaties with Britain and France, namely the Aegean Islands Transaction Treaty and the Territorial Exchange Treaty.
The long-awaited Mediterranean conflict was resolved, with the three nations Britain, France, and Austria defining their respective spheres of influence in the Mediterranean. North Africa was formally incorporated into French territory.
Clearly, John Bull had made significant concessions this time, giving up a significant portion of Britains interests in the Mediterranean in exchange for the support of France and Austria in the Indian question.
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