Chapter 1058: Complex Russian Politics
Chapter 1038: Complex Russian Politics
For Franz, problems are never dealt with, as long as you leave it alone, it is not a problem.
The fact that France is in disarray is indeed big news for the media, but for the Holy Roman Empire, it’s actually not even a minor cold.
Since it was the Russians who caused the mess, it was better to let the Tsarist government set things right on its own. Anyway, it wasn’t like the Holy Roma had any troops stationed in France itself, so even if they fought to the death, the Vienna government wouldn’t be in a hurry.
The only trouble would probably be that international public opinion would be unfavorable. It’s just that times are different nowadays, as the boss of the European Union, the Vienna government’s lightning-resistant attributes have gotten a lot stronger.
It wasn’t like it was the Shinra army that was tossing out the mess now. Even if they were criticized by public opinion, at most they would accuse the Vienna government of “inaction”.
“Inaction” is not a sin, turn over the recent history to know, the Vienna government this kind of inaction policy, has continued for many years.
To the European governments, the head of the boss “action” is far more terrible than “inaction”. If the Vienna Government had to take charge of everything, it is estimated that the European Union would not be as stable as it is now.
Similarly, if the U.S. government were to suddenly stop doing anything, the world would only celebrate, not jump out and accuse the Americans of inaction.
There is only one main reason for being sprayed for inaction, and that is that you are usually involved in small, trivial matters, but when it comes to the critical moment, you shrink back and refuse to take responsibility.
The French mess is showing signs of expanding, but after all, it has not reached the point of being unmanageable. The Vienna government stayed out of the way for the time being, letting the Russians deal with it on their own is theoretically no fault.
Of course, this is not a problem, but only in the Holy Roman Empire itself, as well as no interest in the third party position.
In the center of the storm of the French, the Russians, will never think so.
Without the mediation of the government of Vienna, the French and Russian governments, in essence, have been forced into a corner.
Compromise?
If Carlos’ government dared to give in, the French public would dare to change their king.
It is already a great shame not to have the strength to fight the enemy; how can you prove that you stand with the French people if you don’t dare to be nonviolent and uncooperative?
The French government had no choice. The Tsarist government was embarrassed. Nicholas II, who had just succeeded to the throne, had not yet had time to adapt to the supreme power brought by the tsar, when he encountered this big trouble.
There was no point in pursuing right and wrong, and once the investigation was deepened, the end result would more than likely be a slap in the face.
According to the Russian Army Command in France, this was a French conspiracy, deliberately provoking conflict between the Russian army and the local population, which led to the situation getting out of control.
Whether others believed it or not, Nicholas II would not believe it anyway. The French conspiracy may have existed, but the main cause of the situation getting out of control was definitely not a small conspiracy.
There was no way out, the damned journalists recorded the atrocities of the Russian army, the photos have been in the newspaper, and you can’t wash them off even if you want to.
There was even a video mini-movie mailed to Nicholas II, accompanied by a letter with a sincere tone, hoping that Nicholas II would stop the atrocities of the Russian army.
The letters were just that, but Nicholas II had received a lot of similar letters. If all of them were gathered together, they could be packed into several train cars.
Without bragging, if he had lived in the twentieth century, Nicholas II would have been able to live a middle-class life by selling the waste paper from the letters he received every day.
Especially in recent times, almost all the well-known figures in Europe, sent him letters. The polite ones politely persuade, and the ones who don’t give face will just start cursing.
Fortunately, Nicholas II is not bad, if replaced by a careful tsar, may have to send people to kill these finger guys.
However, even the best culture can not withstand the impact of the “small movie”. If it weren’t for the distance, Nicholas II would have called the Commander in Paris in front of him and let him know what it means to have his ear to the ground.
I’ve seen stupid, but I’ve never seen so stupid. Being photographed by a journalist is barely understandable. But to be filmed on the spot for a documentary, that’s not understandable.
These days the camera is not a small toy, so big block and then aside shooting, the scene of the Russian soldiers actually did not go to stop, Nicholas II has been unable to use words to describe.
In short, these video materials, the tsarist government is quite unfavorable. Recently, after more than ten years of peace and quiet, it was not easy to squeeze into the circle of European civilization, and now it is going to be kicked out again.
The Russian Empire will not be able to get rid of the label of “barbarism” and “brutality” anytime soon. The international image, which had been built up during the time of Alexander III, had been destroyed in one fell swoop.
Thanks to the blurry video footage, it is impossible to identify the Russian soldiers and officers, otherwise Nicholas II would have sent these losers to God.
The situation has been rotten, to be held accountable that is also the future, the most important thing is still the aftermath.
The Allied headquarters, controlled by the Vienna government, directly ordered the Russian army in Paris to solve their own problems. Whether the Czarist government is willing or not, now can only be tough.
……
St. Petersburg.
In the Winter Palace, Nicholas II sat grimly above the first place and said indifferently, “What happened in France has seriously affected our international image.
In order to undo these unfavorable effects and safeguard the interests of the Russian Empire, we must now take decisive measures.
……”
Apparently, Nicholas II has missed the point so far. “International image”, once that shit is corrupted, it’s really bad.
It’s not impossible to salvage it, but it’s definitely not something that can be changed in a short period of time.
Instead of obsessing over the international image, it is better to think of ways to stabilize the situation in France. These benefits, is the real visible and tangible.
Pobedonoschaev reminded, “Your Majesty, the Allied Headquarters has authorized us to handle things in France with full authority.
As a matter of urgency, the first thing we must do is to stabilize the situation in Paris. The matter of recalling the commander in France and pursuing those responsible can wait until the situation has been stabilized.”
(Pobedonostsev: Personal Tutor and Counselor to Nicholas II, Head of the General Directorate of Orthodox Christian Affairs)
There was no way around it, the Allies authorized the Russian forces in Paris to handle the situation with full authority, which appeared to be a great deal of trust, but in reality, it was a way for the Tsarist government to clean up its own mess.
It was the Russian army in France that caused the trouble, and now that the situation was out of control, the Tsarist government could not absolve itself of the blame, and it could not even try to shirk it.
And the aftermath must be done beautifully. Otherwise, the other allied countries, which had suffered an unmitigated disaster, would come to look for trouble.
It’s not a matter of fear, the key is that we are all in the same pot of food, but also need to cooperate with each other. If the relationship is really bad, the situation of the Russian army in France will be even worse.
To put it mildly, if the French were to go on a rampage, the Russian army in France would not be able to hold its ground with its limited strength.
Due to the distance, even if the Russian Empire wants to reinforce, there is no time to do so, and they can only rely on the strength of their allies.
Perhaps the strength of a single country is limited, but the dozen or so countries together, the comprehensive strength of the Russian Empire is not too far away.
Finance Minister Sergei Witte: ”The Director is right, the current situation no longer allows us to delay.
The Vienna government is now making it clear that it does not want to intervene. The French government has gone on strike again, and from now on we will have to finance everything we spend in France ourselves.
The longer we delay, the more the Reich will lose.
In order to solve the problem as quickly as possible, I propose to send a delegation to Paris immediately to investigate the causes of the incident and to harmonize relations with the French government.
In any case, the French government must be pacified first. Only when they come out to work will social order be restored as soon as possible.”
It was not that Sergei Witte was opposed to violent repression, but mainly that the situation in France was now too complicated to be solved by violence.
Trying to solve the people who created the problem, it seems that the Russian army in France and the power is not enough. Considering the financial pressure, the tsarist government could not send a million or eight hundred thousand Russian troops to play the great purge.
Since violence was not an option, reasoning was the only way. In any case, France is a defeated country, the beginning of the short three points.
Foreign Minister Mikhailovich: “I’m afraid that’s hard to do. The French government is on strike in protest, and its main purpose is to want us to withdraw our troops from Paris.
However, this is precisely the least likely concession we can make. How can we guarantee our war reparations without the garrison?
What will safeguard the interests of the Empire in France?
Even if we don’t care about any of this, we must consider the positions of the countries of the Anti-French Alliance. The Empire unilaterally compromising with the French will only place the Empire in a very awkward position.”
It’s impossible not to object, and the Foreign Ministry’s capacity is limited. Trying to convince the French with a three-inch tongue is simply an impossible task.
The bottom line of the Tsarist government was placed here in plain sight, and the biggest concession was nothing more than this: not to collect the taxes in person next time, and then there would be no more then.
The responsible person, that is also internal processing, the final result is nothing more than a fine of three glasses of wine.
The reason why the person in question was punished was also not the atrocities of the Russian army; rather, it was the failure to do a good job of blocking the news while looting and killing, which put the tsarist government in a passive position.
On the question of the atrocities of the Russian army, the Czarist government could not admit it by saying anything now. Even if the evidence is more than sufficient, the tsarist government can only carry on with its dead weight to the end.
The French could not be satisfied with such a result in any case.
If they want to solve the problem by diplomatic means, they should at least throw a few scapegoats out, so that the French can vent their grievances.
Obviously, this kind of offense to the military is impossible for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to do.
Neither want to offend colleagues, but also not willing to bear the consequences of the failure of the negotiations, Mihajlovic naturally want to say the ugly words in front, so that the future problems can be shifted responsibility.
Civilian group position is not unified, the military, not to mention. In addition to forceful suppression, or forceful suppression, in any case, take responsibility is impossible.
The interests of the empire were important, but personal status and future were more important. Anyone in the position of Minister of War would first defend the interests of his own little brother.
……
For Nicholas II, who had a soft ear, the endless disputes at the top of the government were the greatest torture. It was too difficult for the Tsar to make a choice between the two points of view.
Perhaps impatient to hear, or perhaps thought of something, Nicholas II interrupted the discussion.
“Well, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will first negotiate with the French. If they recognize the time and accept our goodwill, that’s all; if the French reject our goodwill, use bayonets to make them sober up.”
The two-pronged approach of diplomacy + military, working together to solve the problem, was exactly as depicted in the book, and didn’t seem to have any faults.
As for how effective it was, that would have to be used to know. Anyway, Nicholas II was now very satisfied, synthesizing everyone’s opinions and taking care of every aspect.
The only trouble is the specific implementers, again need to headache. The great Tsar did not give a clear answer to the question of whether the Foreign Ministry or the military should take the lead.
Although he knew it was a problem, the people present tacitly chose to avoid it.
The question of who should take the lead was not only related to the aftermath of the incident, but also to the ranking of the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the government’s power structure.
The Czar’s direct designation is just a matter of a minister, not affecting the balance of power.
However, if someone else pokes through the windowpaper, it will be the tabletop of the secret political struggle, and there is no more room for maneuver.
In politics, this was undoubtedly a big taboo. The people present were all smart people who knew what could and could not be done.
(End of chapter)