"In addition to the UK, another focus in Europe is the Mediterranean." Liao Hongpeng lit a cigarette, "We all know very well that the Mediterranean Sea is the inner lake of Europeans, and at the same time, it is also the soft belly of Europe. 'Whoever controls the Mediterranean controls Europe', a saying that has been passed down for thousands of years, is still not outdated. For us, control of the Mediterranean is even more important than that of the European continent. ”

"The Strait of Gibraltar?" Tan Renhao immediately put forward an important point.

"Yes, the Strait of Gibraltar, and Spain." Liao Hongpeng nodded with a smile, "We all know very well that hundreds of years ago, our last European legion was retreated from the fortress of Gibraltar, and since then, the empire has lost its influence in Europe. Until now, we had only controlled another choke point in the Mediterranean through Persia, and to really control the Mediterranean, we had to control the Strait of Gibraltar, which was the fortress of Gibraltar. ”

"It's a complicated issue." Tan Renhao touched his forehead.

The Gibraltar Fort is located on the northern side of the Strait of Gibraltar, facing the Mediterranean side. At first, it was just a peninsula jutting out into the sea, and it was not until the Tang Empire colonized Europe that the Imperial Navy built a fortress here that could hold the Strait of Gibraltar, which was later called the Gibraltar Fortress. And at that time, the fortress also had a nickname, "the throat of the West". The importance of the fortress of Gibraltar can be seen from this nickname. Whoever controls the fortress of Gibraltar chokes the Mediterranean to the Atlantic.

When the national independence movement broke out in Europe, and the empire had to gradually withdraw from Europe and abandon its European colonies, the fortress of Gibraltar was the last European colony that the empire abandoned. At the time of the retreat, the last European governors of the empire left the Europeans, to be precise, the bane of the conflict between Britain and Spain, and that was the question of sovereignty over the fortress of Gibraltar.

Geographically, the fortress of Gibraltar belonged to Spain. It was from the Spanish king that the Imperial Expeditionary Force seized the Tariq Peninsula (the peninsula where the fortress was located) and forced the Spanish king to sign a treaty ceding the peninsula to the Tang Empire. Therefore, fundamentally, the Don Empire, after deciding to withdraw from Europe and abandon its colonies in Europe, the fortress of Gibraltar should be returned to Spain. But in the end, the Don Empire did not return the fortress of Gibraltar to Spain. Rather, the jurisdiction of the fortress was transferred to England, which had the best relations with the Tang Empire at that time.

For the ownership of the fortress, Britain even fought a large-scale war with Spain, as a result of the defeat of Spain's "Invincible Armada", the British kept the fortress, and also obtained the hegemony of the European sea, from then on, Britain became the most powerful maritime country in Europe, with the most powerful navy in Europe. Spain, on the other hand, was in a state of collapse and was a semi-closed feudal kingdom until the outbreak of the First Global War. It was left far behind by the other European powers.

"Now. If we were to return to the fortress of Gibraltar, the main issue would not be a military issue, but a political one. Liao Hongpeng knocked twice on the coffee table. If Spain wants to withdraw from the war with dignity, then they will have to make overtures to us, and they will agree to return the fortress to the Reich and continue to fulfill the Treaty of Madrid. Britain is no exception, and if Britain wants to withdraw from the war with dignity, it must also give us some benefit, and return to the Cypriot land, which is the most basic. Therefore, it is not difficult for us to control the fortress, the trouble is. The Germans are bound to make a fuss about this issue, and they will not allow us to reach into their backyard. ”

"You are saying that Germany is ready to turn the Mediterranean into their backyard and become the second Roman Empire?" Tan Renhao was even more surprised, Germany's territory has not yet reached the Mediterranean.

"Why can't it be? The key issues are Italy and Spain. Liao Hongpeng sneered, "I can guarantee that the Germans are dreaming of establishing a second Roman Empire and becoming the ruler of Europe." Now that France has been defeated, Russia is about to be defeated. And it will definitely be divided. Two of Germany's biggest ground opponents were knocked down. And if Germany wants to become the hegemon of Europe, it must control southern Europe and control the Mediterranean. This required gains from Italy and Spain, and Germany would have had little access to the Mediterranean Sea by controlling France alone. ”

"And the North African battlefield."

"Yes, there is also the North African battlefield, at least now the Germans have recognized the importance of the North African battlefield, otherwise they would not have sent Rommel to Alexandria with the Afrika Korps to report, but it was a little too late. Even if we could tolerate German action in North Africa, the Persian Empire would not allow the Germans to meddle in North African affairs, which was the traditional sphere of influence of the Persian Empire, and which the Persian Empire had to ensure in this war. ”

Tan Renhao nodded slightly, this is the truth. The Persian Empire ruled North Africa for hundreds of years, and even fought all the way through North Africa to the Pyrenees, which led to the millions of Persians in Spain. Later, the Persian Empire suffered several civil wars, and its national strength collapsed, and its colonies in North Africa were plundered by Europeans. This is also the fundamental reason why the Persian Empire has always been allied with the Tang Empire, without the support of the Tang Empire, it is impossible for Persia to retake its colonies in North Africa.

"Well, the Germans are unlikely to gain much in North Africa, so they must control Italy and Spain and gain hegemony in the Mediterranean."

"Well, what about Italy vs. Spain?" Tan Renhao continued to ask.

"Spain has decided to withdraw from the war, its secret envoys have arrived in the imperial capital, probably last month, and the Spanish king has sent envoys to Berlin and Tehran, and the negotiations are going on separately." Liao Hongpeng leaned back on the sofa, "As far as I can hear, Germany actively welcomes Spain's voluntary surrender, but does not agree to Spain's transfer of the Gibraltar fortress to us. And you should know that if we don't get the forts, then we won't sign the surrender agreement, and Spain won't be able to withdraw from the war. At the beginning, the Germans had defeated us on the Japanese issue, and now it is time for us to make the Germans suffer. ”

"Political struggle."

"There is no doubt that this is a political struggle, and an international political struggle. It was the Germans who actively demanded that 'unconditional surrender' be included in the general program of the Allies, and now they should have tasted the bitterness. ”

"So will the Germans make concessions?" Tan Renhao still doesn't have much interest in political struggle.

"It's not clear. But as long as we take a tough attitude, Germany will have little choice, and at least for now it needs the assistance we provide. Liao Hanxiang took out another cigarette, "In addition, the Persian Empire is on our side when it comes to dealing with the issue of Spain and the fortress of Gibraltar. As long as we controlled the fortresses, we would be able to stop the Germans from moving south into North Africa, and the Persian Empire would be happy to have a buffer zone between them and the Germans. And did not want to confront Germany directly after the war. ”

Tan Renhao nodded slightly. "In this way, as long as the Persian Empire tightens the rope of oil a little, the Germans will have to submit."

"Absolutely right, if the Germans do not give in, they will probably not be able to hold out for even half a year, and can only watch us win and accept the fact of becoming a second-rate country after the war." Liao Hongpeng hesitated slightly, "This is also one of the main reasons why Germany is eager to attack Britain, if the British government surrenders to Germany." Then we are going to take back the fortress of Gibraltar. Not only will you have to hurry, but you will also encounter more trouble. ”

"It seems that the Germans are still shrewd enough in their calculations." Tan Renhao sighed. "However, as long as we do not agree, the British government will not be able to sign a peace treaty with us, and when the time comes, we will be able to go and seize the fortress of Gibraltar."

"It's just an ideal scenario, think about it, if Spain surrenders and Britain declares its surrender, will it take more time for the Germans to get to the Gibraltar fortress from France, or will it take more time for us to go from the South Atlantic to the Gibraltar fortress? As long as the Germans took control of the fortress of Gibraltar. Can we still attack? ”

Tan Renhao smiled bitterly, this is also a fact, as long as the German army controls the fortress of Gibraltar, the Reich can only acquiesce to this fait accompli, and can only resolve the dispute through political and diplomatic means, unless the Reich is willing to immediately fight a third global war with Germany, otherwise, the Reich will not turn against Germany on this small issue.

"Actually, the Gibraltar fortress is only a minor issue. Until our navy can be killed by sea, or won victory in North Africa, the Reich will not make concessions to Spain, Spain will not be able to surrender, and the Germans will not be able to go overland to the fortress of Gibraltar. And if Germany wants to kill Britain, it must seize sea supremacy, and it needs our fleet. Therefore, in any case, the probability that we will eventually get the fortress of Gibraltar is quite high. Liao Hongpeng said the crux of the problem, and then jumped to the next question, "Relatively speaking, the problem in Italy is more complicated. Now the Italian army has basically stopped taking the initiative to attack, and in southern Europe, North Africa, and the Mediterranean, the Italian army has not taken the initiative to provoke for months. Italy is also considering the issue of surrender. ”

"Germany won't send troops to occupy Italy, will it?"

"It's not clear, maybe it will, maybe it won't, it's mainly a matter of what way Italy chooses to surrender. In any case, it was impossible for Italy to withdraw from the war quickly. The situation in Europe is complicated, Germany wants to be the boss, Britain is not willing to be reduced to a third-rate country after the war, Russia does not want to be divided, even France does not want to be the little brother of Germany, Italy, Spain These countries will not easily give up their national interests. Of course, we have invested so many resources and troops in the European battlefield, and naturally we do not want to pay in vain without gaining anything. It can be said that how to solve the European problem is directly related to how the war ends. ”

"And the post-war world pattern." Tan Renhao took a long breath, "It seems that we are also at odds with Germany, and I am afraid that the moment we declare victory, we will be at odds with Germany." ”

"The problem is not so serious, but we all have to admit that after the war, we will have a new adversary." Liao Hongpeng shrugged his shoulders, "I have been in Europe for a year, and I am relatively clear about the complex situation in Europe. Fundamentally, all Europeans understand that a divided Europe will always be a second-rate country, and it will not be able to become a first-class power like us, or even at the level of the United States. But in the same way, every country in Europe wants to be the boss, and it wants to be the new core. Compared to us, the national situation in Europe is more complex, and the national situation is more complex. Even if Germany defeats all its European opponents this time, it will only defeat Britain and France in the form of defeat, and it will not be possible to fundamentally conquer other nations, and it will be impossible for other nations to unite around the Germanic nations, and Germany will not be able to complete the important task of unifying Europe. ”

"It's a great thing for us. One United States is enough for us, and if there is a unified Europe, it will be even more enough for us. ”

Liao Hongpeng laughed. "Renhao, when you say this, you look like a politician."

Tan Renhao was stunned for a moment, and then laughed. "I'm not a politician, I'm just a soldier. I can still understand this kind of simple truth. ”

"Everybody understands that, so we can't unify Europe." Liao Hongpeng threw away his cigarette butt, "In the past, we used Germany to contain Britain and France for hundreds of years, but now, Germany has become our new henchman, so we have to use Britain and France to contain Germany." As the saying goes, there are no eternal friends and enemies, only eternal interests. If the empire wants to become the world hegemon again and become the most powerful country, it will have to turn its former enemies into friends. ”

"That's something the prime minister should be thinking about, not something we should be thinking about."

"Of course, we're just chatting. Don't worry about it, under this overall situation, Jiang Zhongmin can't afford to turn the storm in the Atlantic, our primary enemy is the United States, not Germany, and before that, the focus will be on your side. ”

Tan Renhao glanced at his brother-in-law in surprise, and then laughed, speaking of which, Liao Hongpeng was asking him not to worry about the affairs of his competitors, and before that, Tan Renhao really didn't expect Jiang Zhongmin to do anything in the Atlantic.