My Italy

"William, how long has it been since we last met?"

"It's been almost seven years, yes, seven years."

As the two navies talk about cooperation, the two monarchs are also talking, but they are talking about friendship. And we talked about it in the garden.

Carlo and William II were sitting on a bench like ordinary people, holding wine glasses and looking at the bonfire and the cooks busy at the grill.

"Carlo, I still remember the first time we met. Your remarks about the role of the navy attracted me at that time, and after talking with you, I felt that many of our ideas coincided with each other."

William II held a glass of red wine and sighed. "Later, I watched you become more and more proficient in using the navy. It was a good move to occupy the Borneo colony."

With that said, William raised his glass and gestured to Carlo.

"Thanks!"

Carlo retorted and took a sip.

"William, I'm a little confused as to why your country's navy is developing so slowly. I remember we talked at the time that there are fewer and fewer unclaimed lands in this world, and the lack of sufficient naval power will make it difficult for your country's influence to radiate out. , Germany also needs land under the sun."

Carlo's words made Kaiser Wilhelm look bitter. "Carlo, there is nothing we can do about this. You know, it is difficult to change the stubborn ideas in the country. Although I seem to be able to do everything now, I also need to consider the needs of the domestic people. In the past, our country had The need for overseas territory is not yet urgent, so the demand for the navy is not high. Although I very much recognize the role of the navy, I am only a monarch, not a god. Sometimes I really envy you, at least you don’t have to be so restrained.”

Okay, yes, William II was very envious of Carlo. Because Carlo used the navy to gamble all his moves, he bought Italy the Far East market and a rich colony in one fell swoop, and of course it also brought him sweet power.

Especially the colony called Borneo, it was the land under the sun that Germany dreamed of. The annual income of nearly 80 million marks coupled with its excellent location makes Germany greedy.

Annoyingly speaking, not one of Germany's colonies is currently losing money. Of course, this has a lot to do with the fact that German colonies are all in underdeveloped Africa, but it can also explain many problems.

"William, there's nothing I can do about it. It was just a coincidence. Everything was a matter of luck."

After listening to Carlo's defense, William II waved his hand. "My friend, I'm not jealous of your luck, I'm just lamenting myself. Sometimes I keep thinking about it. It might be a lot better if I wasn't so forward-looking and backward-looking."

"Maybe so."

William II looked at Carlo in front of him, and then whispered. "By the way, Carlo, I talked with Ferdinand, and he also very much agrees with the role of the navy."

Carlo didn't know how to answer William's words.

Looking at Carlo who was silent, William II said seriously. "Carlo, I think the relationship between your country and Austria-Hungary needs to be improved. You are all allies of our country, and the improvement of the relationship between your two countries is also very beneficial to you."

Carlo could see that William II was sincere in what he said, and he wanted Austria-Hungary and Italy to reach reconciliation.

Of course, Carlo hopes so too.

But reaching complete reconciliation with Austria-Hungary was never that easy. Even if Carlo himself married a Habsburg princess, it would not be easy to promote reconciliation between the two countries.

Because the two countries still have considerable disputes over territory, history, and even interests.

Although the two countries have currently shelved their disputes over the Tyrol region, everyone knows that if the issue of Tyrol's ownership cannot be resolved, sooner or later it will become the trigger for hostility between the two countries and even war.

As for history, the Habsburg family has ruled Italy for a long time, and its wealth plundering of Italy is not small. It has caused a lot of public dissatisfaction. It is difficult for Italians to have too much favorable impression of the Habsburg family.

In addition, in terms of interests, the main point of contact between the two countries is in the Balkans. In this region, the two countries have gradually shifted from cooperating against Russia to going their separate ways. Austria-Hungary even formed a tacit understanding with Russia from time to time, which made Italy extremely annoyed.

Of course, this situation is also related to the fact that Italy has gained too much benefits from the Balkans. In the Macedonia region, which all Balkan countries are concerned about, Italy supported Bulgaria to seize most of the northern Macedonia region. In addition, Italy itself also took over the entire Albanian region (Kosovo is included in the Albanian region).

It can be said that Italy's actions directly disturbed the situation in the Balkans.

Bulgaria's greatly increased strength has attracted the fear of the Balkan countries, but considering Italy behind it, they dare not move yet. Greece saw that the Ottomans were defeated in front of Italy and Bulgaria, so they wanted to try their skills, but they were beaten violently. If the British had not stopped them, the Ottomans could have beaten Athens in one go.

As for Serbia, it is even more difficult. Since Bulgaria and Italy occupy Albania and northern Macedonia, its southward expansion route to take revenge on the Ottomans has been blocked. It is surrounded by European countries who want to use the Ottoman pagan country to attack itself. break.

For this reason, Serbia's diplomatic environment has deteriorated abnormally. It is surrounded by the ambitious Austro-Hungarian Empire in the northeast and west (Bosnia and Herzegovina has been annexed by Austria-Hungary), and Italy, Montenegro and Bulgaria are in the south. Of course, there is also a small border with Romania. .

Among Serbia's current neighbors, except for Montenegro, they all need to implement defensive policies, so Serbia is in urgent need of thighs.

Fortunately, Serbia is lucky enough to have two thighs to hug. The first is Russia, its traditional ally. As a country that helped it become independent, Serbia has always been regarded by Serbia as its strongest ally to ensure its security. Especially after Bulgaria seized most of Macedonia after becoming friendly with Italy, more diplomatic help came from Russia.

The other thigh is the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Yes, you read that right, it is the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In the final analysis, the most important thing between countries is interests, and it is also interests that promote the rapid development of relations between the two countries. Italy's disruption in the Balkans caused losses to Austria-Hungary's interests. Although Austria-Hungary also benefited from it (the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina), Austria-Hungary's influence in the Balkans was essentially taken away by Italy.

There is a saying that goes well, if you make little money out of it, you will suffer a loss, let alone this. Therefore, the relationship between Austria-Hungary and Italy was also damaged due to the Balkans.

Of course, for Italy, its territory in the Balkans must not be given up. Kosovo's coal and non-ferrous metal mines are the cornerstone of Italian industrialization, and no one can make it give up.

In view of the increasingly bad relations between Italy and Austria-Hungary, the Kaiser, as an ally of the two countries, wanted to help both parties.

Of course, from another aspect, Germany does this for its own interests. If ten years ago Germany positioned Italy as a pawn to contain France, then now, Germany positions Italy as a pawn to contain France and an important ally for Germany's expansion in the world.

In the final analysis, it is only when Italy's strength has grown that it can gain the attention of all countries, including its allies.

"William, if you have time, you can call Ferdinand and let's get together."

Carlo's words made William II smile. Both of them understood what they meant. Italy was willing to talk to Austria-Hungary.

"Then when we have some free time, let's come to Germany and try our pork knuckles and dark beer."

"no problem."

"The meat is roasted. Come and have a taste, Carlo."

"Okay, let me try it."

The pleasant conversation between the two monarchs also represented the negotiations between the two navies.

“Happy to work with!”

“Happy to work with!”

Major General Tirpitz and General Yagier took a group photo with the cooperation letter signed by each of them in their hands.

The cooperation letter stipulates a five-year cooperation plan between the Italian and German navies. In this plan, Italy and Germany cooperate in 8 major categories and 29 sub-categories, including artillery, ammunition, boilers, ship power, warship design, and radio communications.

The cooperation is mainly about the complementary advantages of the two navies and their efforts to strengthen their own navies.

It is also worth mentioning that the cooperation plan does not stipulate that it is only between the two countries, which was specifically requested by Germany. Obviously, this left a door open for Austria-Hungary, and Italy knew it well.

However, with the development of the Italian Navy in recent years, Italy does not believe that the Austro-Hungarian Navy, which has been out of date in recent years, can still pose a threat to itself. This is the self-confidence of a powerful navy. The Italian Navy has finally developed this self-confidence over the years.