Chapter 862: Declaring No War
Chapter 845: Declare but not war
The chaotic news reports, while mobilizing the patriotic sentiments of the people, also affected the British government.
The first to be affected is the Ministry of Police, looking at the crowd outside that wants the government to release the truth, the Minister of Police, James Murder, is in a daze.
After reacting, James Meld immediately ordered: “Quickly send people out to explain that the assassination of Walters occurred in the Afghan region and is not within the management of the Ministry of Police.
If you want to know the truth about the assassination case, let them go to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to inquire.”
The police department, even if it is more bullish, that is only responsible for the local law and order problem, the assassination case that happened abroad and they do not have a penny’s worth of relationship, James Meld does not want to bear this undeserved disaster.
……
The Police were reluctant to get involved, as was the Foreign Office. Unlucky for Sir George, he was blocked just as he was leaving the house.
A note taker opened his mouth and inquired, “Honorable Sir George, we need to know the truth of the matter, we can’t let the blood of heroes go in vain.”
There was no problem, overnight Walters was portrayed as a heroic figure by the media, still insisting on defending Britain’s interests under the enemy’s coercion.
The assassination, it seems, had nothing to do with bullying, but that was not a problem, and the editors of the entertainment news section added to it long before the shortest possible time.
If the time is not too short, it is estimated that these guys can still brainstorm a female protagonist and add a romantic love story.
The question was asked by a reporter from the London Daily News, which, as a current news outlet, was relatively impartial, just not adding a brain-dead storyline.
In the face of a group of reporters, in order to maintain their good image, Foreign Secretary George had to stand out stiffly.
“This gentleman, the truth of the incident is still under investigation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not received the relevant information, in fact, we have not established diplomatic relations in Afghanistan, there is no diplomatic embassy there.
This time, Walters’ visit to Afghanistan was commissioned by the Viceroy of India, and you can go to the Colonial Office for specific details.
We will pay close attention to the progress of the case, and when there is a result, we will make an announcement.”
Even though George was telling the truth, that Britain and Afghanistan had not established diplomatic relations, that Walters was not an employee of the Foreign Office, and that the Foreign Office could do nothing but pay attention, this answer did not satisfy the journalists, it was too official.
One reporter questioned, “Sir, don’t you think that’s pushing it?
The Ministry of Police says it can’t do anything about it because the assassination took place outside the country, so the Ministry of Police has no right to ask questions and leaves it to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
We believe this explanation, after all, the Police Department’s remit is only on the mainland, which is clearly stipulated in the law.
Now you are saying that on the pretext that there is no diplomatic relations and that the Viceroy of India commissioned us to go to the Colonial Office to find out the truth, which seems to make sense.
Then do you know that when we passed by the Colonial Office just now we already went to ask, and an official said that foreign-related incidents are under the responsibility of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Then who should be responsible for this assassination case? The people want to know the truth, and who should give the answer?”
The Walters assassination case was so involved that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Colonization, and the Ministry of Police could all intervene, and all had reasons to push back.
Now blocked by reporters, apart from cursing his colleagues for being black-hearted, Sir George could only recognize his own bad luck.
After a little thought, Sir George replied seriously: “Sir, the question you raised is very valuable.
But we must also consider the special nature of the Walters assassination case, Britain is a country of law and order, and there is a clear definition of the powers and functions of each department.
Before this, we had no experience in dealing with similar incidents. Now that we have encountered the problem, it is inevitable that we are a bit flustered.
The case took place 10,000 miles away in Central Asia, none of us knows the details, and in fact up to now the government has only received one telegram from India.
Please give us a little time to send someone to intervene in the investigation. If you are concerned about anyone shirking their responsibilities, I will propose that the departments join together to form an investigative mission.”
……
It took a lot of words for Sir George to get rid of the reporters. As for a joint inquiry, it was a joke.
By the time the mission is formed and departs from the UK to Central Asia, it will be two months from now at the earliest.
After such a long time, what else is there to investigate? The culprits behind the scenes have long since disposed of their heads and tails, turning it into a headless case.
……
Based on the principle that it is better to suffer alone than to suffer in a crowd, Sir George did not choose to bear the pressure alone, but decisively chose to share it with the crowd.
“The assassination of Walters was done by a religious extremist organization on the surface, whether there is a black hand in the dark, we all know nothing.
There are too many suspected targets, theoretically, the Russians are the most suspected, and the assassination of Walters can cut off the possibility of Afghanistan falling to us.
However, such extreme measures are likely to lead to the outbreak of war, and now that the Russians have a whiplash on the Afghan region, it’s not in their interest to start a war.
Next is Austria, whose minister to Persia visited Afghanistan not long ago, with the main purpose of brokering a Russian-Afghan alliance.
It is a bit too much of a coincidence that the assassination case broke out just after the Austrian minister left. The problem is that the planning of the assassination did not benefit Austria.
Once war breaks out, Austria will be powerless to prevent us from occupying the Afghan region, and its only value will probably be the ability to interrupt the arms race.
Analyzing only this aspect, the French are again more suspicious than Austria. After all, the French government has the weakest financial resources and is under the most pressure.
Of course, other countries are also no less suspect. In order to provoke confrontation between the big powers, many countries have the motive to do the dirty work.
It is not excluded that there is no black hand behind the scenes, that is, the handiwork of Afghanistan’s indigenous religious extremist organizations, after all, Walters has suffered a number of assassinations in front.
We have too little information in hand to pin down the identity of the enemy. The people want the truth, but the investigation simply cannot proceed.
The anti-British sentiment in Afghanistan is serious, if we send people there to investigate, I am afraid that even the safety of the members of the investigation mission cannot be guaranteed.
We can’t let the Afghan government investigate and give us an answer in the end, can we?”
Sir George has revealed all the possibilities, not for the purpose of tracking down the real culprit, but more for everyone to choose the “real culprit”.
Britain’s interests are paramount, and whoever is the murderer is the most favorable to Britain, and whoever is behind the murder is behind the murder.
Colonial Minister Primrose sneered: “Sir, we simply do not have a choice, right?”
Choice questions were right, except they were choice questions whose answers had already been announced.
It wasn’t like picking any enemy and being able to gain the approval of the people. A bunch of journalists chasing after the government for the truth, no one would believe it if there wasn’t a push from the opposition party behind it.
The only ones that really carry enough weight to be convincing are Russia, France and Austria, and a weak Afghanistan.
The Royal Navy can’t get to shore, and if they put the blame on one of the major powers, they’re just going to have to pull the rug out from under them, and there’s no way they’re going to be able to give the domestic public the account they want.
For Gladstone’s cabinet, that’s just asking for trouble.
Sir Astley Cooper Key, the Secretary of the Navy, warned, “This is a plot by the enemy to provoke a war in Central Asia and undermine our plans to bring down Fao.”
It was inevitable that the Secretary of the Navy would oppose it; once war broke out, the government had less money to invest in the arms race.
The end result was likely to be a compromise with France and Austria to end this arms race.
Chancellor of the Exchequer, Hiuiji Childers: “It’s not scary to jeopardize the arms race, the trouble is that if we want to stop, France and Austria may not agree.
If a second war breaks out in Afghanistan, the French and Austrians will not want to be left alone and will continue the arms race while encouraging the Russians to confront us in Central Asia.
Our pressure will be great!”
More than being under pressure, it is clearly being exhausted. Both sides were important, and if either end went wrong, Britain’s supremacy would be shaken.
Foreign Secretary George: “There are no ifs, this is bound to happen. Whether the French will support the Russian minister’s expansion in Central Asia is uncertain, but Austria certainly will.
If possible, the Foreign Office would like to see a pause in this arms race before a second Afghan war breaks out.”
Astley Cooper Key, the Minister of the Navy, hastened to object, “That’s impossible! We can stop, France and Austria will not.
If Your Excellency doesn’t want to see the name of the world’s number one naval power change hands after the war is over, don’t make such jokes.”
International competition is always “kill you while you’re sick”, there is no such thing as mercy.
Do not say that the French Austrian Navy exceeded Britain, even if it was only equal, it was enough to shake their position as the hegemony of the sea.
In the final analysis, now have the ability to compete for the hegemony of the sea is three countries, any two start a fight will be cheaper to the fishermen on the sidelines.
Once the Royal Navy has lost its absolute dominance, it will only have a deterrent effect, and it is simply impossible to provoke a lose-lose war.
In fact, since ten years ago, the deterrent effect of the Royal Navy has been declining. Facing the catching up French and Austrian navies, the British government did not have much to offer.
Seeing the quarrel escalating, Prime Minister Gladstone waved his hand to stop it, “Hold it, this is not the time to quarrel. The situation may seem unfavorable to us, but in reality it is not that bad.
The Afghan region was originally ours to take, and this assassination case only advanced the time to do it, and did not affect our established strategy.
As for the naval arms race, unless the French and Austrians go off together, we will definitely continue to follow up on it.
People are worried about nothing more than financial problems, but that is not without a solution.
Waging war is to seek justice for Britain, and it’s up to us to decide when to do it and exactly how far to go.
We can even declare war on the Afghans first to give the people at home a chance to explain that we don’t need to send troops for the time being, and then launch an attack when we are ready for war.”
……
(End of chapter)