Chapter 352: Diplomatic Turmoil
In St. Petersburg, the oblivious Russian government has finally realized whats happening. Theres no doubt that someone was out to get them.
Having won the Near East War and seized Constantinople, the Russian Empire appeared unstoppable, but in reality, it also incurred the utmost hatred.
As the defeated powers, Britain and France were unwilling to accept their failure and constantly sought revenge. Meanwhile, other European countries, as bystanders, fear that the growing power of Russia could threaten their own security.
Under these circumstances, with everyone inadvertently or intentionally pushing, the current situation has arisen. With each party contributing, even inadvertently, the Polish independence movement has gained momentum.
In the Winter Palace
Alexander II roared: These bastards, when did the great Russian Empire allow them to interfere!
The foreign interference from various countries has ignited the wrath of His Majesty the Tsar. It has always been them interfering in others internal affairs, but when did others dare to interfere in theirs?
As for whether the Polish issue counts as Russias internal affairs, is there even a need to consider it? As long as its occupied by Russia, its Russian territory, and whether the outside world recognizes it or not is irrelevant.
No one dares to provoke the enraged Tsar, and everyone tacitly watches as Alexander II vents his anger.
Has the army for suppressing the rebellion set out? I want all these traitors hanged! Alexander II said through gritted teeth.
Upon hearing Alexander IIs inquiry, everyone knew that the Tsar had regained his composure.
The Minister of War, Dmitry Milyutin, replied, A hundred thousand troops for suppressing the rebellion have already set out from the Baltic Sea and will enter the Polish region to quell the rebellion the day after tomorrow.
The Polish independence activists were not taken seriously by everyone. If the Russian Empire were that fragile, it would have been torn apart long ago.
Alexander II continued, What do the Austrians say? Have they provided a reasonable explanation?
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alexander Gorchakov, replied, The Austrian government claims to be unaware of these matters. They believe its the handiwork of Britain and France, intentionally sowing discord between the two countries.
They provided some information on the insurgents, many of whom are not permanent residents of Austria but have entered Austria in recent years. There are also records of their service in the armies of Britain and France.
Undoubtedly, most of this information is fabricated. To absolve themselves of responsibility, the Austrian government didnt mind letting Britain and France take the blame, as it was difficult to ascertain the truth in this era.
This answer is undoubtedly difficult for the Russian government to accept, but they have no choice but to accept it. Among the great powers, Austria is the only one left supporting them. They cant turn allies into enemies over such trivial matters, can they?
Alexander II asked in a displeased tone, And what about Prussia? Are Britain and France trying to sow discord between Prussia and Russia as well?
Despite being pro-Prussia, his stance can change at any moment in the face of national interests.
The Foreign Minister Gorchakov replied, No, the Prussian government states that these are spontaneous actions by the people, having nothing to do with them.
To prevent such situations from occurring again in the future, the Prussian government has announced it is stripping these people of their citizenship, leaving them for us to deal with as we see fit.
This explanation is even more nonsensical than the one from the Austrian government. The Prussian government is also helpless. The level of support they have provided to the Polish independence organization is even greater, so much so that they cannot even cover it up.
Austro-Russian relations have been quite good in recent decades. The Austrian government could be thick-skinned and just pin the blame on the English and French. But Prussia cannot do the same. The relationship between the two countries was already poor to begin with, with no need for further provocation.
Moreover, Prussia is preparing to attack Denmark next. Even if it mends relations with the Russian government now, it would be of no use.
After pondering for a moment, Alexander II connected the dots. Essentially, it boils down to the fact that European countries dont want to see Russia complete its reforms and become even stronger.
Realizing the truth, Alexander II calmed down.
No matter how the outside world reacts, the Polish rebellion must be suppressed. The Foreign Ministry must work hard. Looking around, the entire European continent has become an enemy of Russia. Where are our allies?
We cannot rely solely on Austria. When one day our interests clash, or when the Austrian government feels this alliance can no longer benefit them, it will be too late to find a solution then!
The Russian Empire needs new allies to change its passiveness in diplomacy.
Yes, Your Majesty, Foreign Minister Gorchakov replied with a bitter smile.
Its not that they havent been working hard, but Russia simply cannot find suitable allies now. Geopolitics has determined that the countries of the European continent naturally stand in opposition to them. Unless the Russian government gives up its European strategy and vows never to expand in the European region again, such conflicts are inevitable.
No European country wants to see the Russian Empire continue to grow stronger. A powerful Russia threatens everyones existence.
The deterioration of Russo-Prussian relations is not just because of the Danish issue, but more so because the Russian government wants to expand in Europe. Franz merely punctured through this thin layer of paper.
Feeling that its own security is threatened, the Kingdom of Prussia has no choice but to lean towards Britain and France. The growth of anti-Russian sentiment is because the Sword of Damocles of Russo-Austrian partition hangs over the Kingdom of Prussia.
The impasse in Europe provided favorable conditions for closer ties between the United States and Russia. In the autumn of 1864, the Russian government dispatched a naval fleet to visit the United States.
This may not be the best choice, but it is the only choice for Russia and the United States. Two isolated parties choosing to huddle together for warmth is only natural.
Franzs butterfly effect merely delayed the closening of ties between the United States and Russia by two years.
The Russian government intends to use the federal government to divert the attention of the European powers, easing their diplomatic pressures on the European continent; while the federal government hopes to gain Russias support to offset some of the pressure from the great powers.
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By the end of 1864, at a crucial moment when the outcome of the American Civil War was about to be determined, the Russians stood by the side of the Union, injecting some morale into the federal government which had relocated its capital to New York.
On the American West Coast, development was still in its early stages during this era. Even the renowned California of later years was just beginning to emerge and was far behind the various states on the East Coast.
After the outbreak of the American Civil War, the main strength of the federal governments navy was concentrated on the East Coast. This was not favoritism by the Lincoln administration but rather a result of practical circumstances.
During this era, the shipbuilding industry in the United States was concentrated on the East Coast, while the shipbuilding industry on the West Coast lagged behind and did not have the capability to build warships.
Following the outbreak of the Civil War, the federal navy was never sufficiently equipped. The conflict zones of both the North and the South were on the East Coast, and due to the intervention of foreign powers, the Federal Navy was unable to gain an advantage. Consequently, the federal government could not send naval vessels to reinforce the West Coast.
Of course, the navy of the Confederate government also did not appear on the West Coast. The enemies faced by the coastal states in the West were privateer fleets, in other words, legally sanctioned pirates.
After the outbreak of the Civil War, both the North and the South issued letters of marque to privateers to attack the maritime transportation of the opposing side.
Due to the limited number of islands on the Pacific West Coast, pirates lacked supply points. Relatively speaking, the American West Coast was still peaceful.
Apart from occasional attacks by temporary pirate gangs, most of the time they were far from the threat of war. However, a few months ago, the situation changed when pirate activities suddenly increased on the West Coast.
The rampant pirates once occupied the Channel Islands several tens of miles off the coast of California, frequently raiding coastal ports, causing great suffering to the states along the West Coast.
It was well known that the main base of the pirates was in the Mexican Empire. The two countries had long-standing enmity, so it was no surprise that the Mexican government was causing trouble for them at this time.
Eliminating the pirates was out of the question. The federal government was already struggling amid the Civil War; if they started another war, they would surely be overwhelmed.
No matter how weak Mexico was, it was not something that several states on the West Coast could handle. Besides diplomatic protests, there was little the federal government could do.
Against this backdrop, the Russian Far East Fleet visited San Francisco during its tour, conveniently eliminating a pirate ship. The Russian fleet was immediately welcomed enthusiastically by the Californian populace, who had suffered grievously under the pirate threat.
Vice Admiral Popov, who was originally there to foster relations, after a few drinks, became so flattered that he lost his bearings and made a promise to combat the pirates.
Though he didnt mean it, they were taken to heart by the listeners.
Those attending the banquet were not just Americans. Envoys from various countries stationed in California were also present. Although everyone was suspected of taking sides in the Civil War, the Americans still had to observe diplomatic etiquette.
After the banquet, the British representative appeared at the Austrian consulate in California.
Carter, dont you think the Russians are being too arrogant? With just those few broken ships of theirs, they still want to fight against the pirates. I think the pirates will beat them instead! The British representative Rhodes probed.
The Russian Far East Fleet originally didnt have many ships to begin with, much less just the portion that made this visit. Getting defeated by pirates would be no surprise. After all, these were no ordinary pirates.
If someone were to investigate, they would find that these pirates hailed from the regions of Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean. Their appearance on the West Coast was definitely orchestrated by someone.
The main reason for such a situation is, of course, profit. Even pirates need to sell their loot, so there are naturally vested interests involved.
Many may think piracy, a seemingly effortless endeavor, is a highly profitable industry. However, the real profit lies in controlling the distribution channels.
For the same goods, when sold on the black market, the price is only 30-40% of the market price at most. The biggest profits are always reaped not by the pirates, but by the black market channels behind the scenes.
Opening such a channel in Mexico is obviously not that simple. Without a group of protectors, they would likely have been wiped out by naval forces from various countries long ago.
Without a doubt, Rhodes was involved in this. The Russians aiming to combat piracy are essentially cutting off their source of income.
His probing of Austrias stance was merely out of concern that the Austrian naval forces in Central America might back up the Russians. He couldnt eliminate the Russians with one hand, only to invite even bigger troubles with the other.
Austrian representative Carter cooperatively responded, Theres no way around it. Perhaps the Russians have always been this arrogant. Maybe theyre even hoping to make a fortune by fighting against pirates.
You see, in recent months, the loot plundered by the pirates amounts to tens of millions of dollars. Even if only one-tenth of it remains, thats still a huge sum.
He might as well spell it out money solves everything. As long as the interests are taken care of, even if the entire Russian fleet is destroyed, it doesnt matter.
Russia and Austria may be allies, but that doesnt mean there are no conflicts of interest between them. Take the current situation, for example, Austria supports the Confederacy, while the Russians support the Union, putting them on opposite sides.
In such a situation, to avoid affecting the relationship between the two countries, both sides naturally need to avoid each other. Apart from the courtesy of exchanging greetings, Carter and the Russian representative have had no further contact.
This also indicated their respective stances. On American issues, Russia cannot expect to receive help from Austria.
The British targeting the Russian fleet is not as simple as it appears on the surface. Privately speaking, its because personal interests are hurt; publicly, its about knocking the Russians down a peg.
For a visiting naval fleet to be defeated by pirates while trying to suppress them if such a thing were to happen, the Russian government would be mocked for at least twenty years to come.
The diplomatic support Russia provides to the Union government by aligning with them will also be completely lost as a result.
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