African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 950 Paris Conference
"Your Highness, the Spanish government has revealed to us its intention to negotiate with the United States. They have completely lost the confidence to continue fighting. This war is about to end." Hermann reported to Ernst the intelligence obtained by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In the Spanish-American War, Spain was originally the passive party, and after the colonial navy was completely wiped out, it was completely defeated.

East Africa and France, which had stood on Spain's side before the war, became Spain's first choice of mediators.

"For this kind of thing, we just need to follow France. I think France can get the best conditions for Spain."

This is indeed the case. If there had not been French mediation in the past, Spain would have lost even more miserably.

However, Ernst was in a good mood overall. Although Spain was defeated, it also taught the United States a lesson. Even the bottom line of a great power like Spain could cause trouble for the United States, not to mention naval powers like Britain and France, which showed no signs of decline. Even the navies of the two countries still had a lot of room for improvement.

Although all countries now seem to be developing in the direction of a "big navy", in fact, none of them have squeezed out their final potential. To realize this potential, at least a world-class war is needed.

1898 11 Month 2 Day.

Paris France.

Hosted by France, diplomats from Spain and the United States gathered in Paris to put an end to the Spanish-American War. Lawrence, the East African ambassador to France, also attended the mediation meeting.

After the outbreak of the war, US-Spanish relations had completely reached a freezing point. With Spain's defeat, the hostility of the Spanish people towards the United States has now reached its limit, surpassing that of Britain.

A country like Spain, once a world hegemon, had many enemies, including Portugal, the Netherlands, Britain, etc., but there is no doubt that in Spanish history, Britain, which deprived Spain of its maritime hegemony, must be ranked first. Of course, this is a thing of the past few hundred years.

The impact of the Spanish-American War on Spain was no less than the destruction of the Invincible Armada. This time the Spanish Navy repeated the history of being basically wiped out.

If it weren't for the fact that Spain's domestic size was still barely acceptable, it would have been entirely possible for Spain to become a third-rate country like Portugal.

After the meeting started, the United States and the West accused each other of being the main responsible party for the war. The whole meeting place was filled with a strong smell of gunpowder. In fact, the post-war negotiations were also a war in a peaceful situation.

Soon after the two countries expressed their respective views, France began to persuade the two countries, which was nothing more than asking the two countries to make concessions. It’s good for you, him, and everyone.

When Lawrence spoke, the "fire of war" was ignited again. As a more staunch supporter of the West than France, Ambassador Lawrence said sarcastically: "Spain is the obvious victim in this war. Although the source of the conflict between the two countries is the Maine incident, there is no conclusion on the Maine incident. Perhaps it was a drama directed and performed by a third party. After all, Cuba's illegal armed forces have always received support and other assistance from third countries. This is the fundamental reason for Cuba's political instability."

"And in a region like Cuba, where the geopolitical ecology is already fragile, there is absolutely no need for Spain to come into conflict with the United States. So the Maine has been shrouded in conspiracy from the beginning, and the Spanish government has no need and no motive to tamper with the Maine."

From any perspective, Lawrence had to speak well of Spain. Of course, Lawrence's remarks directly aroused the dissatisfaction of American diplomats.

"Ambassador Lawrence, the Maine is a scar on the United States. Hundreds of American soldiers and a large number of American expatriates died there. We have already conducted a detailed investigation of the Maine and have already pointed out the reason. The Maine was caused by a mine fired by the Spanish."

Lawrence said bluntly: "Unilateral investigations are never convincing. After all, evidence can be forged. Moreover, it is obviously unreasonable that a torpedo caused the Maine to explode directly." "We emphasized in advance that the Spanish torpedo hit the Maine's ammunition depot, causing a larger explosion." The US side defended.

Lawrence: "The Spanish did not participate in the construction of the Maine, so how could they know so much about the hull structure of the Maine..."

The dispute between the two sides over the USS Maine is naturally unlikely to produce any results, but this is exactly what Lawrence wants to see. It doesn't matter what the United States does. What is important is to convince other countries that the United States is really the mastermind behind the incident, even if it is just a suspicion. His goal will be achieved.

"Okay, Ambassador Lawrence, please don't say anything without evidence. Presumption of innocence is the only way to ensure the fairness of this meeting," the Belgian diplomat advised.

The Frenchman interrupted Lawrence's speech at the right time: "This matter has been unclear from the beginning. Now our focus should return to the results of the war between the United States and Spain. As the defeated country, Spain must bear the consequences of the defeat, but this war mainly took place on Spanish territory, so no matter what excuse the war was started, the United States also did something wrong."

The French government immediately criticized the United States and Spain, and then said: "As the victor of this war, I wonder what result the United States wants?"

At this time, the US government had no intention of arguing with Lawrence, a bastard. It had to get its interests first: "As a victorious country, we demand that Spain withdraw from Cuba, the Philippines...several colonies, and compensate our country for the losses in this war..."

The United States suffered heavy losses in this war. Including the Maine, the United States lost four cruisers, five of which were seriously damaged, and other warships also suffered losses.

Of course, compared to the United States, Spain was even worse off. Its colonial navy was completely wiped out, and its local navy also suffered heavy losses in Cuba. After this war, Spain's naval strength would not be able to recover in the next few decades.

Therefore, it was natural that the Spaniards would not agree to the conditions of the US government. It was painful enough to cede land, and they were even more unacceptable to pay compensation.

Of course, the United States was not afraid of Spain’s refusal. After all, the Spanish navy had been destroyed. If the war continued, it would really reach Spain’s doorstep.

"The value of Cuba alone is enough to compensate for the losses of the United States, not to mention the reparations. The losses of the Spanish navy are much greater than those of the United States, so it should be the other way around, with the United States paying Spain for the losses." Lawrence jumped out again at this time.

Faced with Lawrence, this clown who jumped up and down, American diplomatic officials were speechless. Is Spain the real father of East Africa? Of course, the Spanish government is naturally grateful for East Africa's "righteous words".

However, Lawrence's words would not cause strong dissatisfaction among Americans. As he said, the value of Cuba alone, an important producer of sugar and tobacco in the world, was enough to make up for the losses of the United States.

And what Lawrence said shows that East Africa has no objection to the United States annexing Cuba! So American diplomatic officials chose to forgive Lawrence's improper remarks.

Of course, Cuba is Cuba and the Philippines is the Philippines. East Africa can acquiesce to the United States annexing Cuba, but cannot tolerate the United States annexing the Philippines easily. Therefore, the next issue of the ownership of the Philippines will be Lawrence's main battlefield.

"The Philippines should not have been the subject of discussion. After all, the Maine incident happened in Cuba, and the Philippines was caught in an unprovoked disaster. The U.S. Navy has been training in Hong Kong since June last year, and responded quickly to the Philippines after the war broke out. Therefore, the Philippine issue cannot be discussed together with the Caribbean region, and the sovereignty of the Philippines should continue to be dominated by Spain."

On the issue of the Philippines, Lawrence directly encouraged Spain not to make concessions. After all, being neighbors with Spain was far more reassuring than being neighbors with the United States. Moreover, it was somewhat inconsistent with international morality for the United States to use the Philippines as a battlefield. The fuse of the war was the USS Maine, and it was understandable that Cuba bore the main responsibility. Pulling the Philippines into the battlefield was, to some extent, an act of crossing the line.

(End of this chapter)