Start 1861: I just inherited the Dutch throne

Chapter 896 Japan is really a good calculator

On April 1881, 4, William IV read the telegram from Japan in Melbourne and sneered in his heart.Sitting in front of him were Deputy Prime Minister and Senate President Danetang, Foreign Minister Beit, Ambassador to Japan Morris and royal think tank Kantur.

Cantur said: "Pragmatically speaking, in terms of economic strength, what Japan and the Qing must solve is dialogue with neighboring countries and reciprocity in economic and trade cooperation. Only in this way can it be possible to maintain The development of great powers in East Asia and the Far East and their desired great power status”

“This year marks the third anniversary of the establishment of a semi-ally-level partnership between the Netherlands and the Qing Dynasty, and the 15th anniversary of the establishment of an alliance between the Netherlands and the Kingdom of Siam on the Southeast Asian peninsula. The Netherlands and the Kingdom of Siam have established a military alliance and a semi-alliance with the Qing Dynasty. Relations are also strengthening, especially in the five years after 1876 after the deterioration of relations between the Netherlands and Britain. The joint military exercises of the Netherlands and the Kingdom of Siam in the Bay of Bangkok and on land have become larger and longer each time. , undoubtedly took concrete actions to send clear messages to surrounding forces, such as Japan, and the colonizers France, Britain, Spain and other countries entrenched here.

Our military relations with the Qing Dynasty are also deepening. In their eastern waters, we have warships visiting the country's ports every month as part of a friendly visit to the other party.

Even, once every six months, there is military interaction with the other party.

The Qing Dynasty seems to want to take advantage of our feud with the United Kingdom. In the five-year "mid-term defense force preparation plan" from 1876 to 1880, the industry has reached the 3% GDP budget we estimated for the detachment to actively The most important reason for the implementation of the "Security Treaty between the Netherlands and the Qing Dynasty" was to respond to the threat of pursuing Japan's Goryeo Dynasty, especially Japan's response to wooing Britain to intervene in Japan's expansion of ambitions against Goryeo in the west and the Qing Dynasty in the northeast. , the Qing Dynasty expressed its dissatisfaction more and more strongly and increased its military deployment around the Koryo Peninsula."

William IV: "According to your statement, the situation faced by Japan is also very difficult, so it will win over the United Kingdom. Under our opposition, it will secretly approach us in an attempt to gain our support for them and the Qing Dynasty. got support from the West after the rift?”

Kantur nodded and said: "Yes, Japan has this interruption, but correspondingly, Japan actually has more internal plans.

First of all, from a macro level, the Netherlands dominates international economic and trade organizations and military organizations on both sides of the Pacific. The results demonstrate the Netherlands’ huge influence in the Pacific. It is not an exaggeration to say that the Netherlands is a hegemon, and it is not only in Asia and the Americas, but also in other countries. The group is also the target area for the Netherlands to establish international organizations. The Netherlands also has a circle of economic and political allies among its allies. This is what Japan fears most. After all, it was as powerful as the French Empire at the time and was also sanctioned by the Netherlands and its allies. France The empire's economy suffered heavy losses and was miserable.

So Japan is scared to death. You must know that Japan is worse than the French Empire. At that time, France at least consisted of Britain, Italy, Portugal, Belgium, etc. who did not listen to the Dutch trade partners. But in the Far East, think about it, the Qing Dynasty and Goryeo are now If they are at odds with Japan and fall out with the Netherlands, then Japan will be even more difficult to move forward economically and trade. The Kingdom of Siam will naturally stand with the Netherlands, and South America and the United States will also enter a period of economic decline or even isolation from Japan. Go to hell, only Western countries can continue to play with them, but the distance between Western countries and Japan is far away, and the volume of foreign trade economics is actually very small. A ship trip takes more than one or two months, and a year is Just five or six trips. "

"Besides, if Japan, the Pan-Pacific Partnership we established, turns against us, it will be completely isolated in Asia and become a lonely person in Asia. Just thinking about it will make Japan feel cold. So I speculate that Japan currently wants to have a showdown with us in the telegram, expressing its willingness to form an alliance with the United Kingdom on the surface, but secretly an alliance with us. If there is no accident, the subtext is that it will consider the intelligence with the United Kingdom. "Provide us with the information we need." Dutch Deputy Prime Minister Danetang sneered: "This Japan has a good plan. It used an alliance alliance that it proposed to the United Kingdom, and then used this alliance to make good relations with the Netherlands. The covenant he established became something out of nothing and became something of their value, creating an unprecedented good environment for Japan."

William IV was suddenly interested and asked: "Who is in charge of Japan's diplomatic design?"

Foreign Minister Beit also said with admiration: "It's a man named Ito Hirobumi. Speaking of which, he rose very quickly, and every time he would mix with the most powerful force in Japan at the time, waiting for the other force to collapse soon. At that time, he did not miss the opportunity to kick the opponent at the last moment, and took the opportunity to join another party and was reused. Therefore, he went to Europe as a student for two years of exchange and study in 1862. After experiencing European politics, he returned to China in 1864 and began to enter the political arena.

In just ten years in 1868, he became the right-hand man of Takasugi Shinsaku, Japan's largest power. From then on, he was out of control. He went through the eras of Japanese Prime Ministers such as Katsura Taro, Saigo Takamori, and Okuma Shigenobu. Finally, he was directly promoted last year. Overthrowing Okuma Shigenobu's power, he came to power directly. Okuma Shigenobu was finally appeased before he became the foreign minister of his cabinet government. However, the two changed this year. Okuma Shigenobu was powerful and succeeded in the election this year. To retaliate, Ito Hirobumi Became Okuma Shigenobu’s Foreign Minister”

Bait's explanation gave everyone a certain understanding of Ito Hirobumi, but William IV had the memory of his previous life, and he did know that this guy would be used by Ito Hirobumi when the Koryo Peninsula was colonized by Japan in the future. The assassination of the director of colonial Korea was successful.

But it must not be said that even William IV admitted that Ito Hirobumi was the most diplomatically capable among all the powerful figures in Japan.

Under his long-sleeved diplomacy, Japan has historically formed alliances with Britain and Germany, and is almost an ally with the United States. It also has a bad relationship with France. Even throughout the 19th and early 1868th centuries, Japan They all followed the foreign policy formulated by Ito Hirobumi to conduct international diplomatic relations and formulated Japan's own guidelines for external relations, which enabled Japan to benefit from the battle between Europe and the United States, and allowed Japan's national economic and military capabilities to improve. After the Meiji Restoration in [-], it gradually moved towards the status of a major power in Asia. It was precisely with the rise of Japan that the Qing Dynasty was replaced and became the most powerful country in Asia.

It can be said that the rise of Japan is more timely than the Meiji Restoration established by Emperor Meiji, but what played the biggest role in promoting it was the blessing of Ito Hirobumi's diplomatic environment.

Thinking of this, William IV said: "Japan's abacus is good, but we can just follow the plan and go back."

(End of this chapter)