The Rise Of Australasia

Chapter 924: Chapter 689: Top Secret Meeting (2/4)

On June 3, 1928, the British Empire’s Prime Minister’s residence at Downing Street No. 10 in London.

In the residence representing the power center of the British Empire, a discussion concerning the United Kingdom’s greatest rival, the United States, was unfolding.

Everyone attending this meeting was a high-ranking official of the British Empire, and even a representative of King George V had joined the deliberations.

The sole purpose of this meeting was to deliberate whether to take advantage of the economic crisis to eliminate the United Kingdom’s biggest competitor, the United States.

In ordinary times, this might have been seen as a mad and unachievable idea.

But the economic crisis had left the United States riddled with weaknesses, and its internal contradictions alone were enough to cause the nation’s collapse.

...

If Britain were to take action, the best outcome for the United States would likely be division, and at worst, it might be jointly annexed by multiple countries.

However, to annihilate the United States meant that Britain would have to pay a heavy price, something which Prime Minister Baldwin of the more moderate Conservative Party was reluctant to see.

For this reason, there was fierce conversation and argument within the British Cabinet, with the Conservatives and the radicals quarreling incessantly.

Even beyond the Cabinet, from the British Royal Family and the government, down to the ordinary citizens of London, there were divisions between those advocating for war and those for peace.

Human thought is ever-changing; it is impossible for people to agree on everything. And within the British Government, the two largest factions were the Conservative Party and the radicals, represented respectively by Prime Minister Baldwin and the Minister of Finance, Winston Schmidt.

It is worth mentioning that King George V, seeing the benefits of targeting the United States (gaining the countries of Central America), currently tended politically towards the radicals and endorsed the method of waging war against the United States.

This left Prime Minister Baldwin in a more passive position, for to the British Empire at this time, the United States was just a rich yet weak nation, nowhere near as powerful as Germany.

Indeed, because the United States had been marginally involved in World War I, to the British people of today, the United States was merely richer than it had been a hundred years earlier, with little else having changed.

Britain used to be the sovereign state of the United States, which caused many British to look down on America more so, subconsciously regarding it as a nouveau riche, without the depth of European nations, not to mention even slightly inferior to countries such as Australasia.

Inside the residence’s meeting room, Prime Minister Baldwin’s expression was solemn as he turned his gaze to the others and asked in a serious tone, “Gentlemen, are we really prepared to start a war during this economic crisis? If we enter into a war of attrition, will our finances be able to withstand it?”

Although the British people generally looked down on the United States, this did not mean that the American power was so weak that it could be bullied at will.

Just looking at the industrial data of the United States revealed that it had grown into the world’s largest industrial nation, surpassing the British Empire with its vast colony of India.

Even if hit by an economic crisis, if the United States were to resist with full force, they would be able to hold out without too much difficulty for a while.

Especially as the United States defended its native land, the logistical pressure of the British Empire waging a transoceanic war would be overwhelmingly great.

While it was very difficult for the Americans to achieve a victory in war, delaying for a few years was entirely possible, which was Prime Minister Baldwin’s greatest concern.

Remember, the economic crisis had affected the Americans deeply, but Britain’s losses in the economic crisis weren’t much better off.

If not for transferring the brunt of the crisis to Germany, Britain might not even be in a position to discuss waging war against the United States, as Britain’s own internal chaos would be no less than America’s.

Hearing Prime Minister Baldwin’s question, all the officials turned their eyes toward the Minister of Finance, Winston Schmidt.

Aside from Schmidt being the most radical figure within the British Government, he also oversaw the Finance Department, and only he knew whether Britain’s finances could support the entire war. @@novelbin@@

“If we were to take action against the Americans alone, the problem of military expenditure is indeed difficult to solve,” the Minister of Finance Winston Schmidt said with a smile: “But gentlemen, we can ally with the entire World Alliance, and at the very least, we have the support from Australasia.

As for the military expenses, we can issue government bonds to gain support from some consortiums.

I believe the interests of the United States will satisfy these consortiums, and we too could gain tremendous benefits from it, using the American market to offset our losses in the economic crisis.”

There are gains for every expenditure, and this is why Schmidt was not worried about the finances. The vast American market was enough to draw Britain away from the economic crisis and was also sufficient to feed the consortiums with ambitious appetites.

I am sure that if we revealed our plans for combat against the United States, many consortiums would take an interest, eager to share in the spoils and squeeze the Americans dry.

After all, there are many Black people in the United States, and if the Caucasian population cannot be exploited, surely these Black people can, right?

For Europe, rife with racism, even Black people recognized as citizens of the United States were only targets to be exploited at will by these Caucasians.

“As long as we can defeat the Americans swiftly, all the expenses of the war can be shouldered by the American people.

“Given the current size of the American army, if we act swiftly, it is almost impossible for this to turn into a prolonged war.”

“Our navy combined with that of Australasia could easily crush the United States navy.”

“Once we land in America, the American army will no longer be able to stop our offensive, we could even celebrate the victory of this war at the White House before Christmas arrives,” seeing that people were tempted, Winston Schmidt continued to entice them.

“You must realize it is already June, which means it is only half a year until Christmas.”

“Preparations for war will require at least a month, plus the time it will take to travel from the United Kingdom to the United States, leaving us at most only three months to fight.”

“This means Schmidt is confident in resolving the entire United States within three months, a duration of war that is not unbearable for Britain at present.”

“Seeing that no one responded, Prime Minister Baldwin said, ‘Since there is no consensus, why don’t we vote now to decide whether to go to war with the United States?'”

“Hearing Prime Minister Baldwin say this, Schmidt quickly suggested, ‘I think it would be better to refer this matter to Parliament and let them decide whether to wage war against the United States.”

“On such a serious matter, I believe we should also consider the opinions of our citizens, which is a crucial factor in whether we can win the war.”

“Schmidt is no fool; after all, Baldwin is the government’s top leader, and it is unlikely that most Cabinet officers would openly oppose Baldwin’s proposal.”

“This means that if a vote is taken on the spot with Prime Minister Baldwin presiding, it is highly probable that the decision not to go to war with the United States would prevail.”

“This is the complete opposite of Schmidt’s plan and is not something the Faction of War Advocates, led by Schmidt, wants to see.”

“Referring the matter to Parliament, however, is a different story altogether. The composition of Parliament is very complex, and voting is much more uncertain.”

“More importantly, some seats in Parliament are controlled by bankers and capitalists who harbor even less good will toward the United States.”

“Although America’s involvement in World War I was minor, it still managed to shed some of the European debt after the war and essentially broke free from European control.”

“The biggest losers were the British capitalists. Especially as the UK and the US gradually became adversaries, British capitalists suffered significant losses in the United States, causing quite a few capitalists to despise America.”

“As for the common MPs, there is even less to say. Remember, it has only been a few years since the American Influenza, which killed tens of millions worldwide, ended, and the world’s people still remember the harm it caused them.”

“Many MPs lost relatives to that flu, and with such an opportunity to kick someone while they’re down, would these MPs pass it up?”

“Across the whole of Britain, too many have died because of the flu. Even if an MP’s relatives did not die from that flu, they’re likely not to oppose war with the United States.”

“For the British people harbor hatred toward the United States, faced with the perpetrators who caused the death of their loved ones, which British person would not be impulsive?”

“Hearing Schmidt say this, Prime Minister Baldwin’s expression darkened, but he found no words to object.”

“After all, referring the matter to Parliament for a vote appears to be the fairest decision. What reason does Prime Minister Baldwin have to refute?”

“Plus, the situation is indeed tricky, and one misstep could trigger the rage of the entire British Empire.”

“Prime Minister Baldwin still dreams of re-election and naturally would not want his reputation soiled.”

“With Prime Minister Baldwin’s silence, it amounted to an acquiescence to Schmidt’s plan to submit the question to a parliamentary vote.”

“The Cabinet members felt mixed emotions about this, because a decision by Parliament to vote meant a much higher probability of war with the United States than an internal Cabinet vote.”

“Seeing the royal representative present without any comment, Prime Minister Baldwin understood that King George V also supported the war.”

“Under such circumstances, he could no longer prevent the government’s actions unless there was an immense power disparity between the United States and the United Kingdom that could make the outcome of the war fail.”

“But is that likely? Even without the support of other nations, the current United States would not be a match for the British.”

“Not to mention that a large number of countries will very likely participate in this war, which practically guarantees success.”

“However, to ensure success, Prime Minister Baldwin still declared the meeting to be absolutely confidential and prohibited disclosure.”

“To increase efficiency and prevent the Americans from getting fully prepared, thus causing unnecessary casualties, right after the meeting ended, under Prime Minister Baldwin’s orders, British Envoys stationed in various countries have already been in contact with Australasia, Greece, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Romania, and other nations.”