"The completion of the Longxing-class battleship is definitely a key point in history, and its completion officially opened the prelude to the era of dreadnoughts and officially launched a naval arms race on a global scale. In turn, it has changed the distribution of power and benefits around the world. —Mahan. Judging from Xu Jie, Mahan's words are a bit exaggerated, and it is nothing to say that it has opened a new era of the navy. But the redistribution of global power and benefits is an exaggeration. After all, the changes in Europe are the product of decades of subtle changes in national strength and strategy. Even without the dreadnought, the first battle will still start, and the world will still change because of this!

But the appearance of the Longxing class has made the situation in the Far East completely clear! In the face of the terrifyingly powerful Chinese navy, the Russians and the Dutch finally came together! Just one month after the Longxing-class was officially delivered to the Huaxia Navy, the Russian government and the Dutch government formally reached an alliance intention. Subsequently, various agreements within the framework of the two countries began to be negotiated intensively. A month and a half later, when a delegation of the Russian government was visiting France and passing through the Netherlands, the two sides held in-depth consultations in a villa outside Amsterdam on the cooperation between Russia and the Netherlands in the future war, as well as the mutual rights and obligations of each other.

It is said that Russia and the Netherlands are under tremendous pressure, and it should be easy for them to cooperate with each other. But in fact, the whole negotiation went on extremely difficult, and both sides had scruples and attempts! The idea of the Dutch was simple: to use the strength of the Russians to completely defeat the Chinese ocean-going fleet and ensure the safety of their colonies. But at the same time, the Dutch were aggressive. The Russians, who come out to mix up and fish less, are also full of fear. If the Huaxia fleet fails, then who will be the strongest fleet in the Far East? It won't be British, for the simple reason that it is. The British began to gradually concentrate their efforts on Europe, so it could only be the Russians, and the Russians, who had gained sea rights in the Far East, would they covet the Dutch colonies? The Dutch weren't sure, they didn't want to just drive a wolf away and a tiger come after them!

The Russians were more practical, and the Russians at this time may not have subjectively meant to clean up the Dutch after the defeat of Huaxi. Even after the war, it is not enough to have enough military strength. The reason is also very simple. It costs money to fight a war, and now the Russians are poor enough to be pants, borrowing money to develop the navy and prepare for battle. After this battlefield is fought, whether it wins or loses, Russia will not take a big action for several years! So the Russians' demand was very practical, that is, to let the Dutch share part of the cost and consumption of the Russian navy in the Far East. At the same time, the Dutch built forts and deep-water berths to encircle various ports such as Batavia and Surabaya. And, of course, the corresponding dockyard and repair equipment! This move is quite similar to the practice of later generations of US imperialists. The US imperialists fought Iraq, and Japan paid for it, but now it has become a fight between the Russians and the Chinese, and the Dutch pay for it!

And when the Russians told the Dutch about this idea, the Dutch envoy was so shocked that he even dropped the pen in his hand! His face was full of anger, surprise and unwillingness! "The Russians are really not a good thing! There is no worse ally in the world than this! The Dutch Foreign Minister said indignantly.

"What are you kidding to put the Netherlands, a third-rate country in Europe, in charge of the cost of a huge fleet in the far Far East and the corresponding infrastructure construction? Isn't this about draining the treasury and resources of the Dutch? If the Dutch East Indies were gone, the Dutch would lose at most a piece of colonial gains, and it would be if they agreed to the demands of the Russians. This is tantamount to giving away the wealth that the Netherlands has accumulated for decades! Maybe there's a famine to come! The damage is greater than the loss of the entire colony! Whoever promises is a fool! The Dutch Foreign Minister thought to himself and categorically rejected the demands of the Russians.

"Please take your country's attention. The great Russian Navy is helping your country defend itself against the enemy coming from the north. To do this, the Russian Navy needed to deploy all its main forces in the Far East, thousands of miles away. The cost and facilities should be borne by the other side, and it makes sense that we have protected your country and your country has paid for us. The Russian envoy's face did not change color and his heart did not beat. As a Russian, especially a Russian diplomat, being thick-skinned is an inevitable requirement!

"I need to remind the Russian representatives that we are equal partners, not vassals. We provide the Russian expeditionary fleet with ports to anchor, the docks for your ships to repair, and the batteries for encircling warships and the daily necessities needed for your army. But all of this is premised on the premise that your country needs to pay for this, and think about it, what would your country be facing without the help of the Kingdom of the Netherlands? The Dutch Foreign Minister paused and continued.

"Your country's navy will not be able to sail far, and in the absence of a base, the result of a rash voyage will be sunk by the Chinese navy that is waiting for work! And then any Russian plan to regain access to the Far East will come to naught, and the Far East, as well as Hokkaido, will eventually be lost! As for the threat of the Huaxia Republic to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It's not that we don't have any other way, the British won't allow the Huaxia Republic to expand unscrupulously in the South Seas, we can also win over the Americans, as long as we don't help Russia, the Huaxia Republic won't do anything to us in a short time, we still have time to plan, and if we form an alliance with your country, the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Huaxia Republic will be undying enemies! We are taking a big risk! The Dutch Foreign Minister said solemnly, the meaning is very clear, we do not accept Russia's request!

"We help your country to fight the war, and we still want us to pay for it all? What's wrong with this world? Admit that the Russian Navy needed Dutch military ports in the Far East. But the unavoidable problem is that Russia is the only one in this world who is willing to fight alongside the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In the Far East, only the Russian Navy could compete with the mighty Chinese fleet. Without our help, it was only a matter of time before the Dutch flag at the head of Batavia would have fallen. The Russian envoy continued.

"That's why we provide your country with a military port, and we put the rebuilt Dutch fleet into the Far East. We will put two seven-province fast battleships into battle. THESE ARE TWO FAST BATTLESHIPS EQUIPPED WITH STEAM TURBINES, WITH 8 274MM HEAVY GUNS AND BATTLESHIP-LEVEL PROTECTION, AND THE PERFORMANCE IS MORE ADVANCED THAN THE FAST BATTLESHIPS ORDERED BY YOUR COUNTRY IN THE UNITED STATES AND FRANCE! If my information is not wrong, there are no such advanced warships in your country's warships, although we only have two, but the role of them is irreplaceable, especially for the fast fleet! The Dutch Foreign Minister said.

"And how much coal, spare parts, and supplies your fleet needs, and your country should be well aware that the Dutch East Indies are not Europe, and that it is difficult for us to raise so many resources in that barren land, and that even in the Netherlands we cannot provide vital parts or supplies such as large ship bearings or main gun shells. Even coal and foodstuffs, which were readily available in Europe, were scarce in the Far East. We are responsible for preparing various consumables for tens of thousands of troops. Moreover, it is a long-term supply, and the Netherlands does not have such huge financial resources, and if your country has to insist on such an impudent demand, we would rather choose not to act! The Dutch Foreign Minister said angrily.

The weight of this last sentence is too heavy, to put it bluntly, either you withdraw your demand, or we will break up in two, and you can watch it yourself. For a Dutch who has become a sunset empire, the loss of a colony is of course very painful, but the Netherlands cannot take out the most sloppy family in the treasury for a colony!

"Dockyards and batteries can be used forever after they are built, especially dockyards, which are extremely valuable in peacetime and wartime. Therefore, this part of the funds should be borne by your country. As for the consumables of the Russian fleet after the start of the war, such as coal, oil, and grain and some household goods, the Russian Empire can pay for them, but your country must be responsible for their procurement and transportation. The Russian Government was responsible for the procurement of ammunition and some supplies and spare parts that could only be transported from Europe, but the Dutch fleet was responsible for the transportation, and it should be emphasized that the Dutch Government was responsible for the cost of transporting these supplies, whether or not they were Dutch ships. The Russian envoy pondered for a moment, and came up with the Russians' worst plan.

If the Dutch were not willing to bear the cost of providing the port, the Russians would rather think of other ways than cooperate with the Dutch, such as discussing with the French the matter of leasing Cam Ranh Bay for a short time. But this choice is definitely not the best policy! Even if the French were willing to offer this port in South Vietnam, the distance between the Russian Navy and the Chinese fleet would be too close! Moreover, having lost the support of two Dutch fast battleships, Makanov and other veterans of the Russian Navy did not think that the Russian fleet could bargain for anything in the face of the Chinese Navy's full blow!

"We agree in principle with this allocation of obligations, but we need to seriously consider the details of our shipyards and related machinery factories, such as the size and equipment of our shipyards and related machinery factories, and whether your country can help us raise enough loans. There is also the specific issue of the army stationing, and now the situation in our colonies in the Far East is not optimistic, especially after the Chinese have received the support of the Chinese Republic, the activities are very rampant, and we do not have enough troops to control the key areas! The Dutch Foreign Minister nodded.

"These are all detailed issues, let the people below discuss them, General Makanov still needs to study with your country on specific combat cooperation issues. After all, this is the fleets of two countries fighting. The Russian envoy said.

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