afterglow

Chapter 320 Joint Expeditionary Force;
London in November is not cold. The temperate maritime climate makes the city still over ten degrees, but the occasional showers can make people a little depressed.

But for thousands of years, the British have been accustomed to such a climate.

In the prime minister's residence in Downing Street, the most important cabinet members of the British Empire continued to discuss the current situation.

"From 1400 to this year, under the continuous industrial growth, Germany's iron ore imports have increased from 2000 million tons per year to about 800 million tons. Among these iron ores, more than [-] million tons are high-quality ores from Sweden. .”

"Look, these ores are generally mined in the Kiruna-Gallival area located in the Arctic Circle, and shipped to foreign countries via Luleå or Narvik. It should be noted that these two ports have specially built connected by railway.”

"In winter, from November to April of the following year, the port of Luleå will be frozen. During this period, exports can only be made through Narvik. Because of the pressure we gave, Norway's railway and shipping departments began to try Delay, non-cooperation (exports to Germany)."

"This has led to a sharp drop in the iron ore obtained by the Germans in the last three months, to less than 50 tons. In order to solve this situation, the Germans began to try to send their own merchant ships to Narvik instead of transportation. Last month There are 12 in total."

Foreign Secretary Frederick stated that he was the third Viscount Halifax, but suffered from congenital atrophy of the left arm, which was equivalent to a one-armed arm.

But even so, he still has an extraordinary resume and rich experience-a graduate of Oxford University, a member of the Conservative Party, served as the Minister of Education and the Minister of Agriculture, and later served as the Governor of India and Dudu.

"It is not effective enough to stop the shipment of iron ore from Luleå. All routes between Luleå and Narvik must be cut off at the same time." Prime Minister Nivelle said calmly, looking at the map.

Contrary to the historical impression, Neville was actually a militant, but his personal will must be compromised for the national policy—it just so happened that the national policy of Britain at that time was appeasement.

"So we still have to seriously consider the French proposal." The Foreign Secretary replied.

The Minister of National Defense Coordination, Lord Chatfield, glanced at the Prime Minister, and then said seriously: "Yes, for this reason, we need to seriously consider ways to control Scandinavia."

As he spoke, he pointed to the documents on the table, and introduced: "The Chiefs of Staff have envisioned two plans. The 'big plan' is to control the mine itself and cut off iron ore exports from the source; the 'small plan' is to lay out Mines, naval and air force patrols continue to prevent passage of merchant ships."

But the foreign minister was still worried. He mused: "The consequences of paramilitary actions in Norwegian territorial waters are hard to predict. Laying mines, patrolling, and landing will not be welcomed by either Norway or Sweden. In fact , which is more likely to spoil the overall situation."

"It's not necessary. The minister, the Swedes and the Norwegians don't want to get involved in the war, but if they have to make a choice, they will definitely not stand against us." The Prime Minister said confidently and firmly.

The Minister of National Defense Coordination nodded, "I agree, but it still needs careful study, and the Chiefs of Staff Committee should come up with a conclusion as soon as possible. I think the chaotic situation in Russia is the perfect reason for us to intervene."

The post of Defense Coordinating Minister is very new and has only been around for a few years. In 20 years, the British cabinet and politicians reviewed the shortcomings and omissions in the European War, and believed that the three services that make up the British Empire Army-the Army, the Royal Navy, and the Royal Air Force needed closer cooperation.

So the Chiefs of Staff Committee was formed, and about a decade later, in the 30s, the Prime Minister at the time created the post of Defense Coordinator.

The British hesitation made the French very dissatisfied. In the next three days, they urged them twice in a row.

As a result, a group of gentlemen who were Zhengmi Ziqi had to work overtime to discuss the relevant details, arguing endlessly.

Afterwards, the British introduced the overall planning of the large and small programs in detail in the memorandum submitted.

There is no doubt that the grand scheme has the full support of the French.Although it would seriously violate the neutrality of Norway and Sweden, the French did not care.

As a veteran power, France's strength is no less than that of Britain in many cases.

At this moment, the cabinet of the British Empire and the Foreign Office are in a constant war of words. The Foreign Office warns that the consequences of this move are unpredictable and will seriously damage the reputation of the United Kingdom.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs suggested continuing to exert diplomatic pressure only on Norway and Sweden, and refraining from aggressive actions.

However, the cabinet ministers have reached an agreement and are determined to continue the implementation of the big plan.

On the morning of November 11, the sky in London was gloomy, and it seemed that it was going to rain again.

Foreign Minister Frederick summoned the Norwegian ambassador to the UK and chatted with him very kindly for a while.

However, the ambassador knew that the other party must be ulterior motives, so he acted a little cramped and nervous.

After the chat, the Foreign Secretary expressed the British Empire's vigilance against the recent German breach of contract and the concern of the German navy's violation of Norwegian territorial waters.

He said solemnly: "The current situation is very bad. The British government is forced to take effective measures to sanction Germany. One of them is to prevent (German) warships and merchant ships from passing through Norwegian territorial waters."

Immediately afterwards, he emphasized a more gunpowder-flavored sentence-if necessary, the Royal Navy will be able to carry out combat missions in Norwegian territorial waters.

The words of the British Foreign Secretary shocked the Norwegian ambassador, and his calmness as an envoy was almost washed away by the torrent of words at this moment.

Although Frederick has always been quite kind, and there is no threat or warning tone, it still makes the ambassador feel like he has fallen into an ice cave.

After returning to the embassy, ​​the ambassador immediately sent an urgent telegram back to the capital Oslo.

He said worriedly to the others beside him: "I am afraid it will be difficult for us to stay out of it. The most terrifying situation has happened. The war is approaching."

The military attache of the embassy also sighed: "This is indeed the worst case scenario. The Germans will definitely regard the actions of the British as a military provocation. Their war machine is about to be launched, and the war will spread to Norway."

There is a negative and pessimistic atmosphere in the embassy, ​​and everyone is worried.

They are all very helpless, which is also the tragedy of a small country-it is extremely difficult to stay out of the matter and be alone.

Over the next two days, the Norwegian government had heated discussions about the "notice" given by the British side.

Their final consensus is that they still have to do everything possible to try to prevent the actions of the British, but if there is no effect and there is no other choice, then they must not stand on the side of the Germans and start all-out preparations and mobilization at the same time.

The reply given by the Norwegian side afterwards seemed a bit "cowardly"-the government did not come forward, but the King of Norway sent a letter to King George VI of the United Kingdom, and the content of the letter was obviously agreed by the Norwegian government.

"...It is frustrating and worrying that the Norwegian territorial waters have become the combat area of ​​the British Royal Navy. I hope His Majesty the King will try to stop such actions. Otherwise, the Kingdom of Norway will be forced to be involved in the war, which will greatly affect the sovereignty and people's lives. threaten……"

Guys, what do you Norwegians mean?
Norway's "unconventional" response made the British cabinet very speechless-if you agree, you agree, if you don't agree, you don't agree, and you dare not answer directly?
Not to mention, although as the benchmark of constitutional monarchy, the main powers of the British king have been deprived and transferred to the prime minister and parliament, but there are still many remaining powers.

For example... directly appointing the prime minister, or even directly dissolving the parliament.

It's just that any sane king would not exercise these powers under normal circumstances, because such a move would undoubtedly lead to a constitutional crisis, questioning the existence of the king and the royal family, or just play it off.

It's not appropriate to put a good mascot, you have to toss it, right?Then what do you want the king to do?
So George VI could do nothing about it. He just replied with a few words of relief and promised that if something unexpected happened, the armed forces of the British Empire would protect Norway from threats.

The Norwegian side is so reluctant, and Sweden is the same, and the two small Nordic countries are very passive.

In order to force them to make concessions, the British Foreign Office greeted the Netherlands, Denmark, and Belgium, asking them to send requests to Norway and Sweden, and put pressure on various parties like this.

Of course, this is just the best effort. Even if Norway and Switzerland still disagree at the last minute, the British and French will not be used to them.

Especially the military generals, all excited, gearing up for a big fight.

Chief of Staff General Edmund told his subordinates: "This plan will disrupt the preparations of the Germans. An attitude that favors the country must be maintained.”

As time goes by, the action plan to interfere and control the Scandinavian region is steadily advancing.

As of November 11, the Chiefs of Staff Committee has planned and completed three action plans, which are complementary and will be implemented simultaneously.

The first program is in northern Norway; the second program is in southern Norway; the third program is in southern Sweden.

The Chiefs of Staff Committee discussed the action plan with representatives of the Army, Navy and Air Force, and submitted an assessment report, emphasizing that the benefits of the operation are enormous, but the risks are also high.

But they couldn't make up their minds about one situation—what if the Norwegian or Swedish troops dared to resist?
While the odds are slim, it cannot be overlooked with careful planning.

In this regard, the cabinet's reply is to fight back decisively, to disintegrate its resistance as quickly as possible, and there is no need to show mercy.

Even though the actions and progress of the British side have been counted relatively fast, the anxious French still think it is too slow. They feel that these indecisive guys will only make mistakes.

So the French government gave the embassy an order to let them publicize the matter in London openly, so as to accelerate the progress of the British side.

As a result, the matter was quickly spread in London, and everyone in the streets and alleys knew about it, which made the gentlemen of the Union Jack very upset.

On the last day of November, Britain and France formally established an Intervention Committee, and immediately agreed to form a joint expeditionary force.

This expeditionary force was nominally deployed in Scandinavia and landed in the Baltic region at any time to help Tsarist Russia stabilize the situation and prevent the Germans from abandoning the treaty from making drastic moves.But in fact, its core mission is to control Sweden's iron mines and occupy Norway's coast.

At the same time, the expeditionary force must complete preparations by January 1 at the latest.

On the same day that the Intervention Committee was established, the military action plan was basically completed, and the three complementary plans were all named after British port cities.

About four divisions were deployed along the port towns of Narvik and Luleå, and their task was to defend the port towns from the Germans.

In addition, it is planned to establish a line of defense starting from Bergen (the port city in western Norway), passing through Oslo, and extending eastward to Stockholm, the capital of Sweden.

A total of 13 troops will be invested in the operation, of which about [-] are British troops, and the rest are French troops. They will be under the command of the British side and will be deployed to Scandinavia with the support of the Royal Navy and Air Force.

During this period, the Ming court has also been paying attention to the actions of Britain and France, constantly speculating and analyzing their intentions.

The Metropolitan Governor's Office and the Ministry of War believe that since Britain and France have not made a decision to send troops to Norway and Switzerland until now, they will not be in place until at least January next year. Before that, they should only talk to the German Society.

Zhou Changfeng returned with his army at the end of the month. Perhaps because of the cold weather this year, the sea cucumber pier was frozen early. The fleet full of thousands of officers and soldiers had to go south to North Korea, where they disembarked and transited back home.

"...Destroying the oil field is really impossible to prevent, we can only talk about human affairs."

"Indeed, to put it bluntly, it will be useless for us to be in a hurry. The court might as well think more about how to repair it faster."

Going to Kuye Island for drills in the winter, the whole brigade was somewhat resentful, especially the non-combat attrition of thousands of people was really complaining.

Even if the cold protection measures have been taken in place, it is difficult not to catch a cold when jumping into the icy sea water when the temperature hovers around zero degrees, and then continues to land on the beach wet.

The exercise itself went smoothly, and the generals and officials who watched the actions of the land battle were very satisfied.

Many people praised Zhou for his ability to manage the army and lead the army effectively, but it is hard to say whether it is the truth or flattery.

On the first day of December, early in the morning.

In the mist, the military column slowly drove across the Yellow River Bridge.

Not long after waking up, Zhou Changfeng felt a little unwell and drowsy, so he complained casually, "Oh, I feel dizzy, something is wrong."

At this time, Yao Liangchuan, who was full of sorrow, walked into this compartment and was about to submit the patient report. Seeing his flushed face and lack of energy, he frowned and said, "Your face is wrong, so red? I'm afraid you have a fever."

When I checked my temperature later, it turned out that the reading of the mercury thermometer was close to 39 degrees.

All of a sudden, the people in the carriage were busy. Those who boiled hot water, greeted the military doctor, and fetched blankets made such a noise that it could be said that they were flying like chickens and dogs.

Thinking that the woman who made such a bad plan should still be in the warm room, Zhou Changfeng, who was extremely depressed, couldn't help complaining: "It's really, doing this in the cold weather, it's just playing the piano!"

　The map of Europe has been released, and there are easter egg chapters and comments in the comment area.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)