Chapter 2153 The Decision of the British II

Being soft also depends on costs and benefits. At this time, what can the British gain from being soft on the United States? The first thing to be sure is that Britain cannot completely submit like France. France is helpless, the situation of the British is much better. Pure commercial interests will not allow the Americans to help Britain at the risk of offending Germany. As for the war? As the defeated side, Britain really doesn't want to fight anymore, so the British can only say that they can't help the military assistance that the Americans urgently need. Not to mention that the two countries had a grudge before, and the Americans who had been fooled once still distrusted the British to surrender. This is why Roosevelt finally vetoed the opinions of Taft and others. The British compromise was tasteless, of little use, and the side effects or costs were too high!

"So is there any way we can get out of the immediate predicament?" George V asked.

"We will stick to our bottom line in the negotiation. If the negotiation fails, the two sides will continue to fight. However, the Germans may not be willing to drag the war for too long. They are likely to lock in a fleet battle. The battle situation, and our plan is to win or gain a certain advantage in the decisive battle, and then use the advantage on the battlefield to negotiate with the Germans. Although Germany is a continental country, the fleet is not indispensable to them, but this battle Afterwards, Germany will also become a world empire, and it will fight with the Americans in the Pacific Ocean. From this perspective, they must also cherish the fleet." Prime Minister Asquith said.

Does this plan look familiar? That's right, it's very similar to the idea of ​​the French at the beginning, and they all belong to the kind of people who resist a wave before admitting cowardice. In fact, from ancient times to the present, there have been too many losers who pinned their hopes on the idea of ​​a decent ending through victory in a battle before failure.

In fact, if the environment did not prevent Germany from destroying Britain, Britain would be at the end of its rope. The decisive battle at sea is an additional problem. If Germany wins well, it will naturally end the war quickly and save costs. But if the fight is not good, doesn't Germany still have submarines? In theory, there were no insurmountable obstacles for the Germans to realize their colonies and reparations program. Looking through the fog, Germany has already won. The Germans, Americans, French, and Japanese are all very aware of this point, and the British may also be aware of it, but they just don’t want to admit it!

"Then leave everything to the Royal Navy. I hope that this time, the officers and men of the Royal Navy can inherit the glory of their forefathers and allow the British Empire to survive the crisis. May St. George bless the British Empire." George V said with a sigh.

Ultimately, the negotiators were led by Foreign Secretary Balfour and War Secretary Lloyd George. The bottom line of the British is very simple. They are willing to hand over the Rhodesia region in British southern Africa, but refuse to hand over South Africa. Nigeria can consider transferring it, and Sudan can also consider transferring it, but the British control of Egypt must continue. As for the Central African region, it is a place that can be discarded. Generally speaking, some concessions have been made compared with the previous plan of the United Kingdom. At least the British agreed to give up the copper mines and non-ferrous metals of the later Zambia, and were willing to not give up Nigeria’s oil and natural gas, but for South Africa’s gold and Diamonds, and the Suez Canal, the British don't want to let go.

As for compensation, the British, who are essentially a mixture of merchants and pirates, keep their wallets tight. Not to mention 2 billion pounds, the British don't even want to pay compensation. "At most, the compensation we can give to the Germans will not exceed the French compensation in the Franco-Prussian War." George V said that the French paid 5 billion francs in compensation during the Franco-Prussian War, which is 200 million pounds in pounds. And the British do not intend to compensate more than 200 million pounds!

"Although there is a sentence that is not good to mention now, we always have to make some preparations.

What if we lose the future decisive battle at sea? At the end of the meeting, Lord Balfour suddenly raised a question that made everyone feel chills.

"Then there is no need to discuss this issue. If the navy loses, then the fate of the British Empire is beyond our control. This depends entirely on the attitudes of the United States and Germany." Chamberlain said. "However, I believe that even if the large fleet is unfavorable in the battle, it will not completely lose the war. The most likely outcome is a loss-losing outcome. In this case, we can still fight for it."

"If this is the case, the British Empire only needs to keep Canada, the Dominion of Australia and India. The Mediterranean and Africa are no longer what we can keep. The empire will fall from the pinnacle of the world, and then be reduced to a second-rate country. In In the future, our survival and development will depend more on diplomacy and allies than on the national power and force of the empire." George V answered simply! It is a coincidence that George V's bottom line is relatively consistent with the requirements of the Germans, and the biggest difference is probably the war reparations, right?

"So what about the relationship between us and Japan? In fact, after the Russo-Japanese War, Japan's role in the empire was not obvious, and during the war, Japan gave us very limited help. Willing to assume the obligations of an ally." Chamberlain said indignantly.

"In the future, the empire will definitely not be able to rely on its strength to guarantee the interests of the Far East, so we need a spokesperson. An ally to help us maintain the interests of the empire in the Far East. The Japanese existed as merchants in this war, so in the future we will also You can put a price on everything in the Pacific War. Believe me, Japan and Britain are also very lonely. We are like people who have been abandoned by the world. For a long time to come, we can only hug each other for warmth. said Prime Minister Asquith.

The improvement of relations between major powers cannot be achieved overnight. Since shaking hands with the Americans is far away, the current allies are somewhat precious. What's more, the British are still counting on making a lot of money from the Japanese during the war. As for whether the British will be retaliated against for doing this? There will be some, but the British know very well that in the future game in the Far East, every major country has its own calculations and helplessness, and many things may be turned a blind eye to them!

And just when the British were worried about their own destiny, in the far east, Japan, which had been in chaos during the Great War, was also worried about its future destiny. You must know that this time it is not only the empire that never sets, if With bad luck, the so-called Land of the Rising Sun might be doomed too!

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