The Rise Of Australasia

On June 12, 1936, the German and French armies engaged in a rather brutal siege at Charleroi.

To keep the German Army at bay beyond the borders, the French government really went all out. They coordinated with the 100,000 troops supported by the British, the 100,000 mobilized by the Belgians within their own country, and their own 400,000 troops, intending to hold the line from Charleroi to Kortrijk.

The good news was, the British-French-Belgian force, numbering 600,000, successfully halted the German Army north of Kortrijk to Charleroi.

But the bad news was, all the Belgian urban cities to the north, including the original capital, Brussels, and another major city, Antwerp, had all fallen into the hands of the Germans.

At present, the territory controlled by the Belgian government was less than one-fifth of its original size, and the 100,000 troops they managed to sustain were about the limit for Belgium.

Although there was brave resistance from many Belgians in areas occupied by Germany, hoping for these Belgian civilians to defeat German rule was less realistic than praying for victory on the frontline.

The current situation in Europe was clearly in favor of Germany and Italy. However, the problem was, if they could not defeat France or Austria quickly, with British and Australasian reinforcements arriving on the European Continent continuously, the German and Italian military would eventually be exhausted.

Besides banking on the Island Nation entering the war, the Germans also began reaching out to their other ally in Western Europe, Spain, which had completed an ideological transformation and established a new government.

The location of Spain was indeed important. France was already fighting on two fronts, attacking Italy in the south and defending against Germany in the north.

If Spain were to join the war, the French Army would have to divert a part of its forces to guard against the Spanish military.

The most likely scenario for France to redeploy troops would be to withdraw some from the forces attacking Italy in the south, to prepare for Spain.

This would relieve pressure on Italy and, incidentally, allow Italy to commit its army to the campaign against Austria.

More importantly, Spain is located at the western exit of the Mediterranean, and its significance is unquestionable.

Once Spain joined the Axis Powers, the Germans would be able to quickly seize Gibraltar through Spain, opening the Mediterranean passage to the Atlantic Ocean for the Axis Powers.

In doing so, Germany and Italy would be able to receive supplies through the Mediterranean and Atlantic, narrowing the gap between themselves and colonial superpowers like Britain and France.

For Germany and Italy, if any one of Spain or the Island Nation joins the war, they would greatly expand their advantage.

If both countries were willing to join the war, then the scales of victory would steadily tilt in their favor.

While Europe was in the throes of war, Arthur was in Oceania, also patiently waiting for the Island Nation's response.

For the Axis Powers and the Island Nation, it is indeed a good opportunity to defeat their competitors.

If this opportunity is missed, it will become much more difficult to beat countries like Britain-France-Australasia.

Moreover, the Island Nation has always been a country adept at gambling with its national fate; Arthur believed that they could not resist the temptation to defeat Australasia and were destined to join the war.

What was the reason? After the downfall of the United States, the Island Nation no longer had a major import and export partner.

The Island Nation was in dire need of mineral resources and petroleum, which Australasia had in abundance, but Australasia prohibited exports to the Island Nation.

Although the Island Nation could obtain a small portion of supplies from even more distant regions, the freight cost and time taken would be higher, which was why the progress of the Island Nation's industry had stalled.

If the Island Nation wished to change this situation, they had to engage in a war with Australasia. The victor would have access to more resources, including the mineral supplies and petroleum that the Island Nation desperately needed.

As expected, Arthur did not have to wait long.

On June 17, 1936, in Hawaii.

A fleet led by six aircraft carriers was slowly advancing towards Hawaii. For the sake of secrecy, except for necessary communications, the radios on all warships remained silent most of the time.

This fleet not only had six powerful aircraft carriers but also two battleships, three cruisers, nine destroyers, and three submarines.

Clearly, such a powerful naval assembly was a super luxurious fleet that could not be matched by Non-Great Power Countries.

At 6 p.m., this fleet finally reached the ocean area a hundred kilometers off Hawaii and continued to approach Hawaii at a very low speed.

At midnight, the fleet was already very close to the Harbor of Hawaii. To avoid radar detection, following the order of Rear Admiral Chūichi Nagumo, the fleet officially held its position 60 kilometers off Hawaii.

The three submarines began their descent, sinking to a sufficient depth before continuing their slow approach towards the Harbor of Hawaii.

Around 2 a.m., planes from the six aircraft carriers also took flight. One after another, the airplanes soared into the sky, reaching high speed in the nearby airspace before racing towards Hawaii.

Around 2:36 a.m., at the Naval Base in Hawaii.

"Andrick, do you think those Islanders will declare war on us?" Henry, somewhat bored, asked his comrade-in-arms and fellow radar operator, Andrick.