KEO.PLUS

Nonetheless, the next morning witnessed as usual the commencement of a new day of negotiation.

Clearly, on this second day, the German officials and William II had abandoned their previous insistence on the German alliance, choosing not to persevere with the establishment of a German alliance, but instead introducing a new topic – a non-aggression treaty between Germany and Russia, also known as the German-Russian Neutrality Treaty.

William II’s proposed conditions for supporting Russia had not changed; Germany was still willing to provide Russia with an unconditional aid of one hundred million Marks, coupled with a low-interest loan amounting to five hundred million Marks.

If Russia needed more financial support, Germany could also mobilize domestic banks to raise at least one billion marks to help Russia better recover its domestic production.

Summing it all up, these resources amounted to a whopping sixteen billion Marks. What did sixteen billion Marks represent?

Based on the recent exchange rate of one pound equalling twenty marks, sixteen billion Marks equated to eighty million pounds – an unquestionably significant contribution to the current financial situation in Russia.

Simultaneously, Germany was also willing to support Russia’s Far East policy and maintain perpetual peace along its eastern borders, namely where it bordered the Russian Empire.

Germany would not participate in any actions against Russia and would maintain a neutral state of peace with the Russian Empire for the duration of the validity of the neutrality treaty.

While on the surface it may seem like William II was more interested in buying-off his guilt with money, receiving no support from Russia and merely maintaining a neutral peace, it was not the case in reality.

With the Franco-Russian Alliance losing Russia’s support, Germany’s only real enemy would be the Anglo-French Agreement.

However, on the European continent, Germany’s true enemies were reduced to one, their previous vanquished foe, France.

Without the Russian Empire holding them back on the Eastern Front, the German Empire would absolutely defeat France, even with the support of the British Empire.

This was the Germans’ confidence in their own country – this confidence could be attributed to the change brought about by their winning of the Franco-Prussian war.

The seat of the hegemon of the European continent had now rotated to Germany, as for France – well, they were nothing more than a previously defeated subordinate.

While France had already executed a treaty with Britain and the two nations would jointly confront Germany,

Germany was not truly terrified of Britain on land – given the strength of the British Army, it’s debatable whether they could even defeat the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

The shift in Germany’s stance bemused Nicholas II and the Russian officials; however, this was good news for Russia.

While Russia would not have to break the Franco-Russian Alliance Treaty, it could still receive support and aid from Germany.

Although the maintenance of peace with Germany did break the Franc-Russian alliance treaty, Nicholas II had no intentions of getting involved in the European situation at the moment.

At present, the Russian government aimed to restore stability within the country and suppress the numerous domestic rebellions and strikes.

By implementing the Far East policy to expand into East Asia, the Russian Empire can likewise be made more powerful.

Facing adversaries such as island nations would be far more preferable than facing a powerful adversary such as Germany.

Germany’s change in mood speeded up the negotiations for a new treaty. As an onlooker, Arthur personally witnessed the swift conclusion of this unprecedented German-Russian neutraility treaty, which was promptly endorsed by the signatures of William II and Nicholas II under a tripartite witness.

On August 4, 1905, only two days after negotiations commenced, the new German-Russian Neutrality Treaty was smoothly ratified and officially went into effect, with a validity period of ten years.

This German-Russian Neutrality Treaty stipulates that Germany and Russia should maintain peace between their nations and remain as neutral as possible in wars involving the other party.

If a war breaks out between France, Russia’s ally, and Germany, unless Germany initiates a declaration of war, Russia should continue to maintain a state of neutrality until the end of the validity period of this treaty.

This dictates that if France is the first to declare war against Germany, Russia cannot participate in the German-French war, unless the validity period of this neutrality treaty has ended.

Although this treaty somewhat violates the original intent of the Franco-Russian alliance, it certainly serves as the external support that the Russian Empire currently urgently needs.

The treaty brought at least ten years of peace to the German-Russian border, not only providing Russia with a decade of respite but also allowing Germany to concentrate on combating its archenemy, France, without worrying about fighting on two fronts for ten years.

With the treaty formally signed, Nicholas II and William II’s moods noticeably improved.

Together with Arthur, the three of them began several days of vacation at the government’s expense.

Without the need to discuss state affairs, all three of them were noticeably more relaxed.

Of course, Arthur was always in high spirits, after all, Australia, in any case, is a benefactor, and the situation in Europe temporarily has no connection to Australia.

In these few days, the three of them spoke the most about domestic politics.

Despite their differing modes of centralizing power, Arthur, William II, and Nicholas II, as some of the world’s few remaining absolute monarchs, each wield considerable power within their respective countries.

In their conversations, the private lives of European nobility, specifically their mistresses and lovers, unavoidably came up.

Nicholas II and William II were both very surprised when they found out that Arthur not only had no engagements but also had no mistresses or lovers in Australia.

These two terms are very common among male European nobility, and an older noble with fewer mistresses or lovers may even be misunderstood by his peers.

As the Duke of Australia and New Zealand, the absolute power Arthur wields in Australia incites much envy in both William II and Nicholas II.

Although they possess significant authority, their power is restricted by other forces within their countries.

They can only act in a way that does not violate the interests of their nation’s classes.

However, Arthur is different. There are no dominant classes in Australia at present; Arthur is the highest ruling class.

Furthermore, the feelings toward Arthur are quite favourable in both Australia and New Zealand, providing even more possibility for his absolute rule.

It must be said, the unattached Arthur is certainly catching the eyes of both William II and Nicholas II.

Australia’s development prospects are still vast, it will certainly become at least a secondary European-level nation.

Especially given Australia’s unique geographical location, and its rich domestic mineral resources. In the absence of domestic worries, Australia can extend its reach to Asia and even Africa and the Americas, influencing the colonies of various powers in Africa and Asia.

Neither of them said anything, but from their actions, they appear to have certain plans.

On August 8, 1905, after spending several days relaxing and sightseeing, the negotiations officially concluded.

William II returned to Germany aboard a warship to discuss Germany’s next policies with his officials.

Arthur, on the other hand, went on to Russia with Nicholas II. Russia was the final stop of his European tour, and it was time to reach the last stop.

The current capital of the Russian Empire is Saint Petersburg, formerly Moscow.

The city was named after Peter the Great, one of the greatest monarchs in Russian history.

During the Russia and Germany war, however, since Petersburg originates from the German language, it was renamed Petrograd.

It was later renamed Leningrad to commemorate Lenin, but after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, it was renamed back to Saint Petersburg by a vote.

Owing to the enjoyable discussions on Biyuek Island, Arthur and Nicholas II became more familiar with each other.

Moreover, on Biyuek Island, the cooperation between Australia and Russia in the Far East had already essentially concluded, so Arthur’s main reason for coming to Russia was to strengthen relations, not to discuss national cooperation.

Nicholas II had the same intention, thus he held a grand welcome banquet for Arthur, attended by many Russian nobles.