In fact, the Germans took the risk of attacking the HRE Empire because they were cornered. The economic crisis that spread around the world directly led to the brink of collapse of the German economy, and the closure of a large number of factories and the huge increase in unemployed workers were nothing. The proliferation of (star)ism and the social unrest caused by the lack of materials are fundamental.

Germany's population has grown exponentially in recent decades, but its own agricultural production has not been very good. Germany has always relied on grain production from the Polish plains and on grain imports from Russia to meet its needs.

However, with the outbreak of the financial crisis, the German Polish region, which was considered a colony by the Germans, was drained on a large scale. Naturally, it will arouse the desire to make trouble in the first place. Standing the anger of the Poles. The situation in the Polish plain is unstable, and Russia has begun to raise the prices of agricultural and mineral products in response to the economic crisis. As a direct result, Germany, which lacked liquidity, was in a desperate situation.

Around Germany, to the north is the desolate Scana of Inavia, to the west is mighty France, and to the east is the vast expanse of Russia. The only one who can talk about it is the rotten but resourceful HRE Empire in the south.

The territory of the HRE Empire has a large number of Germanic peoples, vast grain-producing areas, rich mineral resources, and even considerable industrial strength. These are things that the Germans desperately need. The annexation of the HRE Empire allowed Germany to ease the tension in the food supply and eliminate full rationing of bread and butter. stabilized the turbulent social situation. And the happiest thing for the Germans was that they got the oil fields of the HRE Empire.

It has a chain of oil fields in southern Germany and northern Austria. The proven recoverable reserves in this mining area are about 100 million tons. Although the geology is complex, the cost of mining is also very high. But for an extremely oil-poor Germany, it was already a gift from God.

During the Second Industrial Revolution, oil gradually replaced coal as the most important raw material. With the development of science and technology, more and more important oil is even called the blood of industry. Aircraft, ships, and internal combustion engines of automobiles in various countries all need to be powered by oil. In this context, the importance of oil becomes even more prominent.

Most of the oil that has been discovered in this world is used by the United States. The Ming and Russia are in control. Da Ming has in his hands the oil fields of the South Sea, Iran, and even Venezuela, which are hugely produced. The United States also has huge oil reserves, and even the United States is the world's largest oil exporter. Russian oil production in the Baku region has been supplying all of Europe.

Other countries that produce no oil, or whose production is negligible, are resigned to exploitation by oil-producing countries to buy oil with precious foreign exchange. The money is okay to say. But if you don't have oil in your hand, you are stuck in the neck, and no country can accept this kind of thing. Therefore, the competition for oil has become one of the important triggers for war.

The largest oil producer in this era is the United States. The United States produces more than 200 million tons of oil every year. That's enough to keep the rest of the world in the dust. Of course, it's not that Daming can't do it, Daming is just unwilling to develop it when it's enough. In the eyes of the Saga consortium, it is far faster to make money by speculating in the stock market than to make money by doing business. And this is one of the fundamental reasons for the outbreak of the economic depression.

Most of the oil produced in the United States is exported except for its own use, and the countries of the Americas and Europe are its major customers. The United States was able to earn huge sums of money just by selling oil, which could be used to expand armaments and invest in industry. The United States is also the only country that can keep up with the pace of the Ming Dynasty's frenzied military expansion in numbers. For example, countries such as Britain, France, and Germany may be able to grit their teeth at the beginning, but their fiscal system will be finished if it drags on for a few years.

And if it were a country like Japan, a battleship would consume three percent of GDP. There is no eligibility to participate in the game at all. So they can only gamble on the fortunes of the country.

In modern time and space, there are always many people who say that the Japanese have no brains, that they do not hoard warships or good pilots, and that they are finally overwhelmed by the sea of people employed by the Americans. However, in reality, it is not that the Japanese do not have the brains to do it, but that their national strength simply cannot support this expansion.

The main source of oil in Daming is the aromatic oil producing areas in the South Seas. The oil reserves in the South Seas are extremely high and easy to exploit. The annual oil production here can reach as much as 10 million tons. In addition, the oil fields developed by Daming in Iran are also extremely high, with an annual output of nearly 10 million tons.

In this era when there is no awareness of the protection of mineral resources, the local oil output of Daming is also as high as nearly 20 million tons. The Ming also transported large quantities of oil from Venezuela, his only stronghold on the American Highway, every year. These yields were enough to meet the needs of the Ming Dynasty in peacetime.

However, if it comes into a time of war. Then the Ming Dynasty seems to have enough oil resources to supply a crisis. Nanyang is known as the back garden of the Ming Dynasty, which seems to be safe, but there is a hidden danger that most people ignore.

If the Japanese, who are very close to the South Seas, turn against the water, the whole of the South Seas will be in crisis in an instant. Although the Japanese were not strong overall, they were able to assemble a large military force in the early stages of the war by all-out their armaments, especially since they had a strong navy.

Compared to the strength of the Ming Navy, which is scattered all over the world. Once the Japanese navy turns against the water, it will be enough to turn the entire South China Sea and the coastal area of the Ming Dynasty upside down. At that time, the oil and rubber from the South Seas could not be brought back.

In the same way, once a war breaks out, it will inevitably be a full-scale war on a global scale. Don't think about Venezuelan oil, Iranian oil can be transported by land, and the cost is enough to drive people crazy. In this case. If the war drags on into a long-term war of attrition, it will be very difficult for the Ming Dynasty, which has almost no strategic reserves, to explode its local oil production capacity in a short period of time, and may even affect the direction of the entire war.

Faced with this situation, Zhang Cheng could only buy land and drill wells in several important oil-producing areas in the mainland in the name of the company to increase oil production. This kind of practice, which was ridiculed in times of economic depression, turned into an unrivalled income in the wake of war. At the same time, it will alleviate the huge crisis.

As time goes by, countries are desperately expanding their military capabilities and stockpiling supplies. They are also testing each other, getting closer to each other and preparing to huddle. Alliances have become the most frequent topic of conversation in foreign affairs for a period of time.

The vassal system of the Ming Dynasty ensured that the Ming Dynasty had a group of younger brothers waving their flags and shouting. However, for the time being, Japan seems to be the only one that can really come in handy. But Shousuke-sama wasn't worried about it.

Crack down on a group, win over a group, and divide a group. This is the basic means of power-house diplomacy, but Zhang Yue's recent diplomatic moves do not mean to follow this method at all. He's just going to be tough and tough, threatening and intimidating. There is no serious search for allies, and there is no idea of finding a peaceful path. Zhang Cheng really couldn't understand his foreign policy.

Coming from a complex diplomatic environment in modern time and space, Zhang Cheng does not understand the pride and self-confidence of a world empire that has ruled the world for hundreds of years and has defeated almost all enemies.

The previous two global wars ended with the final victory of the Ming Dynasty, and after each war, the Ming Dynasty received rich benefits. This made Da Ming overconfident in his abilities. At the same time, the prestige accumulated by the Ming Dynasty for hundreds of years has also made countries worried, and compromise and submission naturally make the Ming not see potential opponents in the eyes.

If you want to find allies, you naturally have to find a powerful country.

Needless to say, the United States has no bargaining chips that can give people at all. The Americans have always stayed in the resource-rich Americas, immersed themselves in development, and cultivated their internal strength. What they are waiting for is the opportunity to start a full-scale war with the Ming Dynasty, and what they are waiting for is the opportunity to go out of the Americas and become the world hegemon in the footsteps of the Ming Dynasty, of course, it is impossible to be the little brother of the Ming Dynasty.

The relationship between the Ming Dynasty and Russia is just two words, territory. Since expeditions from both sides met in the Siberian wilderness hundreds of years ago, the war between the two sides has been going on intermittently for hundreds of years. It's not large, but it's quite tragic.

The Ming Dynasty, which included the entire east of the Ural Mountains and the steppes of Central Asia, wanted to win over Russia, so he had to give up his territory. It's something that no one dares to nod their heads in. This is not a dispensable colony, this is the true native of the Ming Dynasty, and it is the location of the Western Regions Protectorate!

In the Son of Heaven guarding the country, the king died in the Ming Dynasty. Even the emperor did not dare to mention a word of ceding land.

As for the countries of Europe, they need a market for dumped industrial goods, they need cheap raw materials. And these are the core interests of the Ming Dynasty, and the Ming Dynasty of consortium politics will never give up its own interests. Even if it's just a colonial issue, you can talk about it, but if it's about interests, then there's nothing to say.

Looking around the world, the powerful world empire can't find a weighty helper. Fortunately, Da Ming's body is big enough, his physique is strong enough, and even his face is fierce enough. The people of the Ming Dynasty are full of confidence that the Ming Dynasty can definitely knock all the enemies to the ground like the previous two global wars!

Time flew by, and in 1937, the second phase of the expansion of the Panama Canal, which had lasted for ten years, was officially completed.

The Americans' powerful navy on the East Coast finally had a shortcut that could shorten the trip to the Pacific Ocean. The large warships, which were too wide and had too deep draft, could finally pass through the Panama Canal.

The main shipbuilding bases of the Americans are concentrated on the East Coast. Before the opening of the Panama Canal, American warships had to make a detour to the Drake Passage, thousands of miles away, to get to the Pacific Ocean. Whether it's time, oil or mechanical wear, and fatigue is a huge problem. Until the opening of the Panama Canal.

When the Americans officially transferred a large number of warships from the West Coast to the San Diego Naval Base. Home portThe world's strongest fleet at Pearl Harbor on the island of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands, the Pacific Fleet of the Ming Empire has finally ushered in its strongest opponent! (To be continued......)

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