I'm playing whack-a-mole in Siberia

Chapter 456 Pulling down Hokkaido to feed the fish
George would not accept the surrender of any Japanese soldier if he could.

The day after the Russian army recaptured Dalini, Dashanyan was desperate and led the Japanese army in Kwantung to surrender to the Russian army.

Dashanyan probably didn't know that the British army had moved north, otherwise Dashanyan would definitely be able to hold on for a while longer.

However, there is no point in persisting anymore. Under the continuous attacks of the Kwantung Russian Army, the remaining strength of the Kwantung Japanese Army is only 14. All weapons, ammunition, food and medicine have been exhausted. Even if they eat grass roots and bark, the Kwantung Japanese Army will definitely It won’t last until spring.

George did not hesitate and ordered the Siberian fleet to move to Nagasaki the day after the Japanese surrender in Kwantung.

Peter was a step late. When the Siberian Fleet arrived at Nagasaki, the British warships had already entered Nagasaki and had a confrontation with the Siberian Fleet off the coast of Nagasaki.

Peter sent a message to George asking if Nagasaki could be bombarded.

George ordered the Siberian fleet to temporarily withdraw to Pusan.

George was very pleased that Peter did not make his own decisions and was a mature general.

"George, I have telegrams here from London and Washington, Paris, and St. Petersburg—negotiate!"

When Witte was Prime Minister, he was somewhat weak and rarely imposed the death penalty directly.

Through the Russo-Japanese War, Vladimir completely lost power and Alexei was almost ignored.

So if George continues to fight, he will achieve great success.

George was able to defeat both of them, and tying Alexeyev and Kuropatkin together was not as good as one of George's toes.

Milyutin could not conceal his joy. If George had not turned the tide, the Russian Empire would have completely become a laughing stock of the international community.

George finally understood now that Britain did not want to intervene with force, but to prevent George from invading Japan.

Then let’s talk.

It is certainly a good thing to hear frequent good news from the Far East, but these good news are a slap in the face of Nicholas. The better the Russian army in the Far East fights, the more it proves the incompetence of St. Petersburg.

Fortunately now, although St. Petersburg was disgraced and was picked up by the Far Eastern Military District, and rounded off, the glory still belongs to the Russian Empire.

Nikolai was completely disappointed with the navy and did not give Alexei a chance to explain the second plan.

When St. Petersburg took the lead, the whole country could not defeat Japan, a small country.

In July last year, William II took advantage of the tsarist government's plight due to domestic chaos and the defeat in the war with Japan to once again propose an alliance between Germany and Russia.

George suddenly realized that this might be what Nicholas wanted.

After Alexei's naval reconstruction plan was rejected, he submitted a second naval reconstruction plan, which was still rejected.

But what George is curious about is that Britain and the United States are worried about investment, so they can mediate.

At the same time that the Japanese troops in Kwantung surrendered, former Black Sea Fleet Lieutenant Commander Peter Schmidt and other rebel leaders were sentenced to death. This was a major signal that St. Petersburg was beginning to change.

Why is Paris joining in the fun?
This has to start with the anti-British alliance signed by Nicholas and William II.

This means to save some face for the eldest brother-in-law in London and not to completely beat Japan to death.

George could understand Nicholas's mood.

The defeat in the Russo-Japanese War was also a good thing for St. Petersburg. At least it no longer had to invest in the navy and could focus on upgrading army equipment.

So Nicholas and Wilhelm II signed an anti-British alliance treaty on the Finnish island of Bjork.

Nicholas did not even consult with anyone before signing the treaty, so the Russian Empire fell into passivity.

After the Ninth Russo-Turkish War, the relationship between the Russian Empire and Germany began to deteriorate. After the Alliance of Three Emperors disintegrated, the Russian Empire sought an alliance with France to jointly fight against the German-Austrian Alliance. The marriage of Nicholas and Alex gave Wilhelm II the opportunity to repair their relationship.

The Anglo-Japanese alliance was the direct cause of the anti-British alliance.

However, the anti-British alliance was not a good thing for the Russian Empire. It meant the breakdown of the Russian-French alliance and intensified the conflict with Britain.

The key point is where the relationship between Germany and Austria-Hungary lies. They are not suitable allies.

The anti-British alliance was opposed by almost everyone, and Nicholas had to write to William II that the treaty should not enter into force until France agreed.

George didn't know how to evaluate Nikolai's saucy operation.

The anti-British alliance was not formed, and it also offended France, causing cracks in the Russo-French alliance.

This is probably why France lends money to Japan.

Although he agreed to negotiate, George had no intention of letting Dashan Yan go, so he asked Brusinov to send Dashan Yan to Siping, hoping to have a face-to-face communication with Dashan Yan.

Dashanyan did not give George a chance to humiliate him in person, and committed suicide by taking poison before leaving.

Also committing suicide at the same time were Kuroki Weizhen, Nozu Michinuki, and Okubo Gon, who had escaped from the Russian encirclement in the Far East many times.

The 14 Japanese troops were very honest. After laying down their weapons, they allowed themselves to be manipulated by the Kwantung Russian troops and did not resist at all.

The situation of the Japanese army was also very bad. Many of them were extremely weak and could not stand firmly.

Brusinov allowed the surrendered Japanese troops to participate in the reconstruction of Fortress Arthur, and hundreds of thousands of free laborers were used in vain.

Of course, before that, these captives still need to supplement some nutrition before they can bear the heavy workload.

To George's displeasure, British Foreign Secretary Gray suggested that the negotiations should be held in London.

George didn't have time to go to London, so he asked Gray to come to Vladivostok and talk.

Gray has dealt with George for so long and knows his character.

On March 3, negotiations officially began.

The person participating in the negotiations on behalf of the Far Eastern Military District was Mikhail.

Representing Japan in the negotiations was Japanese Foreign Minister Hisutaro Komura.

Presiding over the negotiations on behalf of Britain were British Foreign Secretary Gray and Commander of the U.S. Asiatic Fleet, George Dewey.

Mikhail's demands were to abdicate, restructure, station troops, pay compensation, and cede all territory except the four mainland islands to the Russian Empire.

Komura Jutaro firmly disagreed, and Gray and Dewey also persuaded Mikhail to lower his conditions.

Not only the Japanese, but also the British and Americans don't agree with such conditions.

"If we don't agree, let's continue fighting. Whatever the Russian Empire cannot get at the negotiation table, Grand Yuriev will get it back from the battlefield!"

Mikhail is extremely arrogant. Everyone thinks that negotiation is a continuation of war. For Mikhail, war is the prerequisite for negotiation.

Komura Jutaro's conditions were to imitate the "Treaty of Portsmouth", to cease the war along the line of actual control between the two sides, with no cession of territory, no indemnities, and no abdication or restructuring.

Mikhail didn't talk nonsense, so the next day, the Russian army launched an attack on the participating Japanese troops on Sakhalin Island. All 6000 Japanese troops were wiped out. The Russian army collected all the corpses of the Japanese troops and used fishing boats to pull down the Hokkaido fisheries to feed the fish.

Now it's the Japanese's turn to struggle.

Can we still eat fish from Hokkaido fisheries in the future?
(End of this chapter)