Chapter 140: Lure the Fish Into the Trap

It is said that it is to maintain domestic stability and protect the interests of expatriates, but in fact everyone can see that the island country's expansion of its military is to strengthen its power projection in East Asia and safeguard its strategic interests in East Asia and even the Far East.

This can be seen from the size of the island country's active military and the number of reserve soldiers. The current active military strength of the island country has reached more than 300,000, and the number of troops that can be used for operations outside the country exceeds 200,000.

This is not simply to defend the country. The number of 200,000 combat troops alone exceeds the number of Russian troops in the Far East, not to mention that the island country has nearly two million reserve soldiers as reserves.

The purpose of having such a large-scale army is definitely not simple, not to mention that the island country is still working hard to strengthen the weapons and equipment of the army and the number of warships in the navy.

"All German-made weapons in Australia are personally taught by German experts and come from the powerful technology of German military factories. If it were not too troublesome to change weapons and equipment without authorization and cause more serious logistical problems, perhaps Australia's standard equipment would also be All will be replaced with German-made equipment. You are very lucky, we have the export rights of all German-made weapons and equipment, and we are also happy to sell German-made weapons to the island countries," Arthur said with a smile.

Selling arms to gain a share of the arms market is what Australia urgently needs. No matter what the island country's purpose is for wanting these weapons, it will not affect Australia's export of these weapons and equipment.

"Thank you so much, Your Highness the Duke. We are very much looking forward to signing an arms import and export treaty with your country and formulating a large number of arms import plans to your country's military factories." Yuzawa Koichiro said with a look of anticipation.

Arthur nodded and continued: "I heard that your country attaches great importance to its navy and has established a very powerful naval force in just a few decades. This speed of development is really enviable. Australia's current navy The power is only limited to medium-sized warships, and large battleships are only ideas for the future. "

After hearing Arthur's slightly envious words, Yuzawa Koichiro's face couldn't help but feel proud.

I have to say that the island country is still full of miracles. As an Asian indigenous country that was forcibly opened by the United States, it was able to wake up in an instant and carry out reforms within a few decades, transforming the island country from a backward indigenous country into a quasi-industrial country that has basically realized Westernization. It is glorious. Something that simply cannot be done by imagination.

No matter how bad this country's track record is, this miracle of rapid development cannot but be admired.

The island country was also the only country in the 19th century that rapidly reformed from a backward indigenous colonial country to an industrial country and even became a great power.

In a large Eastern country next door, there were reforms, but they ultimately failed.

This is also the pride of all island countries. They have been able to rely on their originally backward culture and technology to become one of the major countries after decades of changes. This has greatly strengthened the national cohesion and popular support of the island countries.

"Thank you for the compliment, Your Highness the Duke. I believe Australia will definitely have many battleships in the future and develop a more powerful navy." No matter how proud he was, Yuzawa Koichiro did not forget to answer Arthur's words respectfully.

"Mr. Yuzawa Koichiro." Arthur pretended to look around, and then looked at Yuzawa Koichiro with a hint of meaning, and asked: "I wonder if your country has any plans to purchase battleships?"

"Battleship?" Yuzawa Koichiro's heart skipped a beat. He looked at Arthur in surprise and asked quickly: "Your Highness, what do you mean?"

"Hahaha, it's exactly what you thought, Mr. Yuzawa Koichiro." Arthur smiled and nodded, explaining: "Thanks to the assistance of the German Empire, Australia has obtained one of the most advanced battleships in Germany. After more than a year of teaching by German experts, Australian shipyards have mastered the ability to independently manufacture this battleship. With Germany's permission, Australia also has the right to sell this warship. "

After hearing Arthur's explanation, Yuzawa Koichiro's eyes became a little fiery and his breathing became a little heavy.

There is no way, the battleships of this era are too important for countries that value the navy, and can even directly determine the combat effectiveness of the navy.

Whether it has battleships and the number of battleships it has can also be seen as a standard for measuring the true strength of a country's navy.

The island country has battleships, and there are quite a few of them. But this does not mean that the island country does not want to have more battleships.

Because the UK is mired in an arms race, in order to maintain a lead in the number of warships compared to other countries, many British shipyards have to serve their own country and naturally receive less foreign business.

Coupled with Britain's long-standing check and balance mentality, it does not want island countries to have too strong a naval force in East Asia. This is the real reason why the number of island country battleships is limited.

Except for the British Empire, the shipbuilding capabilities of several other European powers are not as good as the British Empire. Needless to say, the German Empire currently does not have a good relationship with the island country in order to win over the Tsarist Empire.

Apart from the German Empire and the Russian Empire, the only countries in Europe that can export battleships to island countries are France and Italy.

However, as an island country in East Asia that has a direct conflict with the Russian Empire, it is naturally impossible for France to offend the Russian Empire for the sake of the island country.

Although Italy is also a powerful country, its navy and army are not strong, and its position in Europe is also very embarrassing.

And the performance of the battleships manufactured by Italy is far inferior to that of the British Empire and the German series, so it is naturally not within the consideration of the island country.

The only country outside Europe that can export warships to the island country is the United States. But the current military industry of the United States is not even as good as that of Italy. The current advantages of the United States are only developed industry and prosperous economy. In other words, it is just stupid people with a lot of money.

The impression that the United States now gives to European countries is that it is a local rich man with developed industry and a lot of money, and its influence in the military is actually not high.

The islanders are also unwilling to spend a lot of money to buy battleships, and their combat effectiveness is greatly reduced compared to battleships of other countries. This is why the number of main battleships in the island country is not large at present.

Yukiochiro Yuzawa was very excited when he heard Arthur say that Australia had the independent production technology of the German main battleship Brunswick-class battleship and could export it to the island country.

He felt that he had seen an opportunity for the island nation's navy to continue to expand, and with the financial support of the United Kingdom and the United States, this seemed to be a good opportunity.

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