Mediterranean Hegemony Road

After reading the content of the covenant, Alexander III was also very pleased with Paul Shuvalov, and said with a smile: "Count Paul, you have done a good job of negotiating with Bulgaria this time! We only paid a small price, and Bulgaria is firmly tied to the Russian carriage and a nail has been put in the Balkans!"

Obviously, Alexander III's aura is very strong, at least Paul Shuvalov is fighting in front of him, especially after Germany tore up the reinsurance treaty.

Don't think that being afraid of flattery is the patent of the Big Apple, and Westerners are equally reluctant to give in. Paul Shuvalov hurriedly said: "This is all your wise and marvelous skills, Your Majesty the Tsar, leading Russia to prosperity and making Bulgarians yearn for it; and the shrewdness and ability of Crown Prince Nicholas, I just do my part. , not worth mentioning!"

Alexander III seemed to be accustomed to these, but smiled without refuting.

After Count Paul finished speaking, he said, "Well, don't talk about these flattering words! There will be a meeting about Bulgaria later, you should stay and attend!"

Count Paul immediately made a grateful expression, this time sincere. Since the breakdown of German-Russian relations, he has been sidelined and never attended high-level meetings.

This time the tsar kept him for the meeting, which is clearly a good sign that he has a chance to return to the center of power.

...

In Gatchina, the palace on the outskirts of St. Petersburg, a meeting about the fate of Bulgaria was held.

Without cumbersome etiquette, Alexander III went straight to the point and said: "I want to conclude the treaty with Bulgaria, you all know it! Today's call for you to come here is to determine for a long time in the future, we will Bulgarian foreign policy!"

(Remarks: Not the main characters in the back are called official positions. There are too many foreigners with the same name, and the author will be dizzy. For example, the then Russian foreign minister: Nikolai Gilles, who has the same name as Nicholas II, like this There are a lot more!)

As soon as Alexander III finished speaking, the Minister of Finance said: "Your Majesty, since we have decided to move our strategic focus to the east, it is enough to maintain enough influence in the Balkans, and there is no need to invest too much energy!"

"But it's only time-consuming. Europe is the center of the world. We will come back in the future. We cannot relax our penetration into the Balkans!" The Minister of War immediately objected.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer shook his head, and then asked: "But our energy is not limitless, right? The empire's finances cannot support us fighting on two fronts at the same time. The Trans-Siberian Railway has just started construction, which has taken up a lot of our funds!"

"The European contraction in the short term is to devote more energy to the east. After the completion of the Imperial Russia plan, it will not be too late to return to Europe. By then, our national strength will be stronger, and the Balkans will not be able to stop the pace of the empire!"

...

Then all the major dignitaries of the Russian Empire got involved and began to chat with each other. Count Paul stood aside and said nothing.

The fire at the city gate affected Chiyu, and seeing the constant noise below, Alexander III noticed Paul Shuvalov, who was on the sidelines.

Now Alexander III, he has not been very interested in politics since the beginning, and the more he hears everyone's talk, the more he has deviated from today's topic. "Cough cough" coughed, and then said: "Okay, everyone, be quiet! Count Paul has just returned from Sofia and is very familiar with the situation there. Let's listen to his opinion first!"

Paul Shuvalov was taken aback and shouted that it was not good. Now he speaks at this time, isn't this standing in line!

The Russian Empire is now mainly divided into: Eastern and European factions, and neutral factions. Oh, it's not over yet.

The Eastward faction is further divided into: the Far East faction, which advocates expansion to the Far East; the Indian faction, which advocates entering Afghanistan and then expanding to India; and the Central Asian faction, which advocates Ottoman expansion to Central Asia.

The European faction also has factions, the Balkan faction that advocates expansion to the Balkans; the Nordic faction that advocates expansion to northern Europe; and even the radical faction that advocates expansion to Austria-Hungary.

It's messy and varied. Of course, there is not so much chaos at the top of the government, mainly the Far Eastern and Balkan factions, and there are not so many brainless ideas.

Having suffered setbacks in expansion in Europe, the Russian Empire now has the upper hand of the Far Eastern faction, who has the support of Crown Prince Nicholas.

Hearing Alexander III's question, Paul Shuvalov immediately said: "Your Majesty, from what I have seen, most Bulgarians are pro-Russian at present, which shows that our long-term infiltration in the Balkans has been successful!"

"And in recent years, Bulgaria's economy has developed rapidly, but it has poor resources and lacks labor. Now Bulgaria is moving closer to the empire, and this is the main factor. If we continue to export resources and labor to them, decades later We can take control of Bulgaria economically."

Paul Shuvalov was still very cautious, but returned to the issue of Alexander III, limited to Bulgaria, did not make a clear statement on the Balkan issue, and at the same time showed a tendency to lean towards the Far East.

As soon as Count Paul finished speaking, Alexander III showed a strong interest. He didn't like war very much, and economic control of cultural influence was just what Alexander III wanted.

Seeing the performance of Alexander III, everyone knew the current affairs and chose to shut up, and no one chose to challenge the authority of the Tsar.

"So how long do you think it will take us to take control of Bulgaria?" asked Alexander III, looking at Paul Shuvalov

Paul Shuvalov thought for a while, then said: "Your Majesty, if all goes well, Bulgaria will be fully pro-Russian in 20 years, and in 30 years, we can even turn it into an imperial banner without a fight. A grand duchy!"

Sure enough, after listening to Paul Shuvalov's words, Alexander III showed a satisfied smile.

Is twenty years a long time? Of course, that's enough time for a new generation to grow up! If it can take a generation to integrate a country, it is too short.

Why did the Russian Empire export Slavic culture to the Balkans? Isn't it just to assimilate the Balkan countries in culture!

Now Bulgaria takes the initiative to ask for immigration, isn't it just right? Sitting has ignored that the Russian Empire is not a nation, and even the main nation is less than half. Immigrants are also the majority of other ethnic groups, and the ethnic minorities who have been oppressed for a long time have how much affection they have towards the Russian Empire?

"Well, if you have no other opinions, then I will approve this treaty! The future empire's strategy for Bulgaria is to win over politically and infiltrate economically and culturally!" Alexander III asked in a positive tone

Of course, no one will object to this issue. The Eastward faction naturally supports it. The "Russian and Bulgarian Alliance" is still promoted by Crown Prince Nicholas, which is in line with their priority oriental strategy; the European faction has no reason to object, which does not affect them. strategy; neutrals continue to play soy sauce.

After Alexander III approved the "Russian-Bulgarian Alliance", the Russian government was very efficient. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Bulgarian ambassador to Russia announced the news on Christmas Eve.