The Rise Of Australasia

Chapter 608 - 465: Compensation to Repay the Loan, Britain and Australia Renew the Alliance_2

Subsequently, President Wilson and Prime Minister Kent had a lengthy negotiation, finally settling on a figure: Australasia would use the 615 million pounds of Germany’s war reparations to repay all debts owed to the United States.

Prime Minister Kent also specifically mentioned that following the formal exchange, Australasia would not be responsible for any post-war work.

How much compensation the United States would ultimately receive depended on how much Germany would pay.

However, with the backing of Britain and France, and the scale of 615 million pounds, President Wilson was confident that the United States would not lose out and was thus very willing to sign the treaty.

After negotiating with the United States, Prime Minister Kent met with British Prime Minister Raul George, discussing the issue of renewed cooperation between Britain and Australia after the war.

The renewed cooperation between Britain and Australia, or the Anglo-Australian Re-alliance Treaty, was an agreement between Britain and Australasia to deal with the rise of the United States during the pre-war and war periods.

The previous Anglo-Australian Treaty mainly targeted Germany, and its clauses broadly involved aid to Europe and the Indian Ocean Region.

Now, Prime Ministers Kent and Raul George were discussing a new treaty mainly targeting the Pacific region and the United States, to share some of Britain’s burden.

Australasia’s aircraft and tanks had exhibited excellent combat performance during the war, and their design and technological superiority had even surpassed that of British and French planes and tanks.

Raul George was very interested in Australasia’s aviation and tank technology, and even mentioned specifically in the new treaty that Britain and Australasia should strengthen the exchange of military technology.

Prime Minister Kent had no objections to strengthening the exchange of military technology since obsolete military technologies of Australasia would require the largesse of Britain to purchase.

At least for the time being, Australasia still needed allies like Britain to better focus on its development.

One of the stipulations that Prime Minister Kent paid particular attention to was a new immigration treaty between Britain and Australasia.

As a result of the war, the number of British immigrants to Australasia had been decreasing, even falling below 50,000 in the whole year of 1917.

This was not good news for Australasia, whose main ethnic group were still people of British descent, and their population proportion accounted for less than 60%.

Russian immigrants were also acceptable to Australasia, but would require English language training for a period, which would increase the cost of immigration.

Raul George readily agreed to Prime Minister Kent’s immigration request, but stated that due to the war’s impact, the British Government could not guarantee that there would be enough people moving to Australasia every year.

In other words, the immigration channel for the British had been opened to Australasia, but the number of immigrants actually attracted would depend on the efforts of the Australasian Government.

The British were interested in Australasia’s tank and aircraft technology, and likewise, Australasia coveted Britain’s naval shipbuilding technology.

Prime Minister Kent proposed strengthening the exchange of naval shipbuilding technology, especially the construction of main battleships, such as the aircraft carriers that had taken shape in various countries.

Cooperation in naval shipbuilding with the British would be of great benefit to Australasia, as the British were the first to build dreadnought, super dreadnought, and even aircraft carrier ships.

Particularly in this era, American military power had not yet significantly risen, and British shipbuilding technology still remained the unrivaled number one in the world, and would be so for at least the next two or three decades.

Overall, Prime Ministers Raul George and Kent were both very satisfied with the new alliance treaty, which met the needs of both parties, and their faces were filled with satisfied smiles.

Before signing the treaty, Prime Minister Kent also put forward his own final demand, which was the exchange of colonies in the Middle East with the British Empire.

The scope of the exchange was along the Persian Gulf coast. Currently, the British Empire controlled Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen, while Australasia controlled the Sutton Persian Gulf coast, Qatar, and Bahrain.

Although Kuwait seemed more suitable for development and had a larger population at present, Arthur was more aware that the UAE, now the Truce Nations, possessed more abundant petroleum resources.

Compared to Kuwait, which was close to Iraq and had limited resources to offer, the Truce Nations with their vast territory and more petroleum resources were what Arthur really wanted.

If Kuwait was used to exchange for the UAE, Britain would gain control of the entire Mesopotamian Plain, expanding the development potential of the Iraqi region.

Australasia would also achieve Arthur’s goal of occupying more oil-rich regions along the Persian Gulf, securing more petroleum reserves for Australasia.

It is no exaggeration to say that the Middle East accounts for more than 60% of the world’s petroleum, with the Persian Gulf coast accounting for more than 60% of the Middle East’s petroleum.

After hearing Prime Minister Kent’s request, Raul George did not immediately agree or refuse. Instead, he raised his doubts: "Kuwait has more plain areas and a larger population, why do you want to exchange it for the Truce Nations?"

The Truce Nations had no other advantage compared to Kuwait, except for their proximity to the Hormuz Strait, which would help control the Persian Gulf more effectively.

However, the issue was that Prime Minister Raul did not believe that Australasia’s goal was to control the Persian Gulf, as the countries and forces along the Persian Gulf coast were only Britain, Australasia, and Iran.

To put it plainly, there were only two powerful nations, Britain and Australasia, who were also allies. Australasia would not be foolish enough to forcefully control the Persian Gulf coast in broad daylight.

As a result, Australasia’s request to change colonies became somewhat intriguing. Prime Minister Raul did not dare to make a decision without knowing Australasia’s real purpose.

Of course, such an important matter as changing colonies was not something that Prime Minister Raul George could decide on his own.

At the very least, it must be approved by the British government and both Houses of Parliament, and on the surface, it must also be approved by King George V of Britain.

"Although the Kuwait colony has greater development potential, at present, Australasia does not have the energy to develop this region. As you know, Prime Minister George, His Majesty Arthur is considering relocating the capital, and the construction and development of the new capital are far more important than the development of the colonies.

Precisely for this reason, we want a more stable colony with fewer people, and the Truce Nations would be very suitable." Prime Minister Kent calmly explained.

"At the same time, to demonstrate our sincerity as allies, we are also willing to let your country control the entire Mesopotamian Plain and dominate the situation in the Middle East. Rest assured, our goal has never been the Hormuz Strait. Your country can still retain some islands in the Hormuz Strait, and the entire Persian Gulf belongs to Australasia and the British Empire."

Upon hearing Prime Minister Kent’s explanation, Prime Minister Raul George nodded and said, "This is indeed beneficial to both of our countries. As you know, it is not up to me alone to decide. Rest assured, I will do my best to obtain His Majesty’s consent to promote the exchange of colonies."

As a qualified politician, Raul George still gave face to King George V when dealing with foreign affairs.

Although most people knew that George V had little power in Britain, Raul George still said that he would strive for George V’s consent, rather than that of the government and parliament.

"Of course, Prime Minister George. Regardless of whether the exchange of colonies is successful or not, it will not affect the good relations between Australasia and Britain. We are everlasting allies." Prime Minister Kent nodded, as a matter of course, and said with a smile.

The two prime ministers of the kingdoms raised their wine glasses amidst laughter, gently touched them, and drank them all in one gulp.

For politicians of this level, the fate of colonies spanning hundreds of thousands of square kilometers and with populations of hundreds of thousands can be determined with just a word or two.