Chapter 299: Seeing Another Deal
Chapter 289: Seeing the Deal Again
The sudden economic crisis has made the stormy Sudanese government even more difficult.
Despite the fact that the Ottoman Empire was still an agricultural country, the British and French capitals drew back their funds, which still dealt them a heavy blow.
The Sultanate was forced to make concessions, and the only problem was money.
Amplitude Ade struggled to fight, “Your Excellency the Count, your offer is too low, there is no land this cheap in the whole world!”
Johannes said unhurriedly, “Your Excellency, don’t be in a hurry, our offer is in reference to the price of the international market’s large variety of land transactions.
Not long ago we also negotiated with the Russians, they were interested in selling Alaska, more than a million and a half square kilometers of land, the Czar’s government only quoted four million divine guilders, our offer is already very sincere.”
Yes, the Russian Foreign Minister was offering to sell Alaska. There was no money to be made from this land at all, and instead there was the fear of the British hitting it.
But it was opposed by Nicholas I. The great Tsarina felt that selling the land would tarnish his honorable image, and the matter was put on hold.
This matter in the international arena also boisterous, as a concern for international affairs of diplomats, Banner Ade naturally will not be unfamiliar.
“Your Excellency the Count, Alaska is just a big ice cube, it’s not worth anything at all!”
Johannes shook his head and said, “Alaska at least produces leather, the Bering Strait is rich in fisheries, and the southeastern and south-central parts of the country have a temperate climate and are rich in timber.
And, there is also an inland basin, which we have sent people to examine, and the Matanuska Valley area has fertile land that is perfect for agricultural production.
With reference to the Nordic region, this area of land would have no problem feeding a population of tens of millions. In contrast, the Libyan region is all sand.
The land we are going to buy, the really valuable area is just a few islands, if your country is worried that the price is too low, we can kick out the Libyan region and account for it separately.
So for a total of more than 20,000 square kilometers of island area, we’ll offer 20 million divine guilders, which has already broken the world record for the price of a Grand Synthesis land deal.”
Amplitude Ade was dumbfounded, Alaska was an ice cube in his mind, and the population living on it in this day and age didn’t even necessarily exceed ten thousand.
As a result, Johannes actually found something so valuable, these are not made up, completely Russian provided information.
The Russians are certainly no exception, and it is only natural to exaggerate a little in order to get a good price.
If you have nothing, why would you sell it? Even with so many resources, the Russians’ offer was still only 4 million guilders, so you know how worthless land is in this era.
To put it bluntly, there is no lack of resources now, only the developed land is worth money. Any more resources are worthless until they are developed.
Who in their right mind would go to Alaska to fish, log, and farm? Even if you freeze to the ground, the point is that local land development costs are still high.
The land in the Chosen Land is so fertile that after developing the Great Plains region of the United States, there’s more food than you can eat, and you have to worry about food stagnation year after year.
In this context, the land in Alaska naturally lost its value for agricultural development, and only idiots would go over to invest in agriculture.
This era, not to mention, the coastal plains have not been developed, inland basin development costs are so high that only fools will run over to develop.
Otherwise, the Russians would have already organized emigration, where there is still a need to worry about being robbed by the British?
Anyway, the negotiation is bragging, Johannes naturally do not mind to Alaska portrayed better, omitted the cost of land development, but also depreciated the value of Libya, through which to pressure the price.
Amplitude Ader argued: “His Excellency the Count, the Libyan region, no matter what, there is such a large area, even if the inland is all desert, but the coastal area is still tens of thousands of square kilometers of fertile land.
The local population of more than 500,000 to 600,000 people, there is a ready-made labor force, your country can directly develop, the value can be much higher than the deserted Alaska, 8 million guilders is really not high.
And then there are the islands, which are most important not for their economic value, but for their strategic value.
Cyprus is the junction of Asia, Europe and Africa, the strategic location is very prominent; Crete and in the core of the Mediterranean Sea, but also radiates to the Aegean Sea ……
These islands are definitely not purely economic value, and after adding the strategic value, they need at least 35 million Shenduan.”
Johannes replied smilingly, “Your Excellency, this price is too high, the so-called human resources, we don’t need them at all. How about this, the population on the land we traded is all yours.
Since you consider the strategic value important, we don’t want the other islands except Crete and Cyprus.
So down to the point where everyone can accept it, I’ll raise the price again, how about thirty million divine guilders? That’s not a low price!”
The price of thirty million guilders was indeed not low, if the Vienna government didn’t use the so-called debt offset, Banner Ade would have just agreed to it.
Obviously, to the end, Johannes is not prepared to pay out much money, take the bonds acquired at a cabbage price as a land purchase, the price is a little higher is also acceptable.
Banner Ade directly showed the bottom card and said, “Your Excellency the Count, we can once again make concessions, the debt of the two countries is canceled, and your country will pay another 10 million guilders to buy the land, how?”
If the payment of gold and silver, this price Vienna government will not agree in any case, if you can offset in kind, then the problem is not big.
The economic crisis broke out, Austria has a large amount of surplus products backlog, can be disposed of is also a good choice.
Johannes replied after calculating once, “If your country can repatriate the people on these lands, then it’s a deal. We can pay the bill with your country’s much-needed supplies and compensate for the shortfall in cash.”
After a few moments of effortless silence, Amplitude gave his answer, “The cost of emigration, all of which will be borne by your country!”
There was no way, first losing the Balkan Peninsula, then the civil war broke out, and now the population of the Ottoman Empire had dropped to its lowest point in a hundred years, with a total population of less than 13 million.
Once the civil war was over, the lack of labor would become a pressing reality. The population on the trade lands was now small, but it was a supplement to them.
Johannes replied, “Yes!”
……
The two reached an agreement, does not mean that things are finished, Britain and France can not watch Austria occupy the many islands in the Aegean Sea, the next Johannes and the British and French representatives to continue to tug of war.
Especially with the British, John Bull still has the island of Kofu in his hands, not to take this gateway, the Vienna government can not sleep well.
In contrast to the French, it is still good to deal with, the two sides have agreed in advance. Sold a few islands to them as a military base, we share the benefits of the Aegean Sea, things are even done.
Anyway, the Aegean Sea is not much else, is a lot of islands, there are five or six thousand, suitable for human survival are hundreds of Vienna government was not prepared to occupy this place at the beginning.
……
British representative Nigel said with dissatisfaction, “Your Excellency the Count, your country is taking the Ottoman Empire’s land and trading territories with us, it’s too much!”
“No, we have already reached an agreement with the Ottoman Empire. We contributed forty-five million divine guilders to purchase their many islands in the Aegean Sea and the Libyan region.
Now we are exchanging Austria’s islands in the Aegean Sea for the Ionian Islands, this is a map of the Aegean Sea, Your Excellency can take a look at it, the ones dotted in red are Austria’s islands, and the rest are Greek and Ottoman islands.”
Johannes deliberately left out Cyprus, which the British had already begun colonizing during this period, but of course this was a civil organization and had nothing to do with the government in London.
Nigel didn’t pay attention to this little detail either, Cyprus didn’t have much strategic value in this era, the island had little strategic value until the advent of airplanes.
In contrast, the dozen or so islands in the Aegean have a higher strategic value, and once the Russians have broken out of the Dardanelles, this is the island chain blockade.
In order not to unduly irritate the Ottoman Empire, lest the Sultan’s government be pushed into a corner, their offshore islands, were not part of the deal.
Now trading with the British, the Vienna government took out not many valuable islands, more still take the Indian issue.
From 1857 to now, the Indian rebellion has not only not been extinguished, but also become more serious, the government in London has no idea to continue to delay.
This was naturally due to the Russians, and without the disinterested aid of the Czarist government the Indians could not have made such a big wave.
It is hard to say what role the Vienna government played in this, in short, explicitly Austria is nothing to do, at most, it is to provide the Russians with a small amount of loans.
It was a friendly symbol of the alliance between the two countries, definitely not money to support the Indian rebellion. What the Russians did with the money would have nothing to do with the Vienna government.
Nigel didn’t have time to keep running out of time, now that Austria was supporting the Indians with a million shields of arms and ammunition, they wouldn’t necessarily be able to suppress it by spending ten million pounds.
India’s people are too many, just encourage a group of up, with the help of the Russian instructors, are able to give them a heavenly trouble.
“For this deal to be struck it can be, your country must immediately give up its support for the Indian insurgents, including financial assistance to the Tsarist government.”
Johannes replied with an innocent face, “Your Excellency is overly concerned, the Vienna government is peace-loving, how could it possibly support the Indian rebels?
As for the question of supporting the Russians, that is even more nonsense, the Vienna government is not financially rich either, it is not so capable.”
Secretly engage in small actions can be, openly that is absolutely can not be recognized, countries are so do. Now the British are not also smuggling arms into Nigeria to support the indigenous kingdoms to cause trouble for Austria?
Anyway, there is no evidence, we pull each other’s hind legs, also pulled. The great powers have such a high sense of propriety, not to stab each other in the face, then everything is good to say.
Nigel listened to Johannes’s voice, that is to say that everything is good to talk about, can not talk about then make trouble, is also inevitable.
“Then it’s best, as long as your country promises to support us in suppressing the Indian insurgency, then this land deal case will be negotiable.”
Johannes very cooperatively assured, “Your Excellency please rest assured, colonies are also part of a country’s sovereignty.
The Vienna government strongly supports your government’s approach to safeguarding national sovereignty and opposes all outside interference.”
This is international politics, everything speaks by interests. In West Africa, the Mediterranean Britain and Austria reached a tacit agreement, the British acquiesced to the Austrian expansion, the Vienna government naturally had to give up its actions in the Indian region.
March 12, 1858, the new Holy Roman Empire and the Ottoman Empire signed the Mediterranean Land Trade Treaty, the Vienna government contributed 45,868,000 guilders to buy Libya, and more than three hundred islands, including Crete and Cyprus.
Among them, 35,868,000 shillings were all offset by debts and late payments, and the remaining 10 million shillings were paid in kind. Cash was not to be thought of, but it was not difficult at all to get together 10 million shillings of supplies.
On the following day, Johannes signed the Aegean Island Exchange Treaty and the Territory Replacement Treaty with Britain and France respectively.
The much-anticipated Mediterranean conflict was resolved, Britain, France and Austria once again clear is in the Mediterranean sphere of influence, North Africa was formally included in the French sphere of influence.
Obviously, John Bull this time out of blood, giving up a large number of interests in the Mediterranean Sea, in exchange for the French and Austrian support on the issue of India.
(End of chapter)