1850 American Gold Tycoon.

Chapter 721 Diplomatic Negotiations

After the Battle of Omaha, the reconstruction of Omaha was carried out in an orderly manner.

Early urban planning in the central frontier region was quite random and chaotic.

Taking advantage of the fact that most of Omaha's urban area had been destroyed by war, an urban planning team from the West Coast began to replan and build this young central frontier city.

"I used to wonder what kind of nation could build such miraculous projects as the Great Wall and the Grand Canal, until I saw that they cleared the ruins of Omaha in just one week."

Napoleon III and his entourage stood on a small mound on the outskirts of Omaha, looking at the workers inside and outside Omaha who were working as hard as ants building a nest, and couldn't help but sigh.

These workers are so efficient that if it were in France, it would take at least two weeks or even longer to clear the same area of ​​rubble with the same number of people.

"Maybe it's because Liang Yao promised these workers the land of Omaha? These workers are so motivated?" Fu Lei muttered.

"Omaha is a big city in the central frontier region. If the West can develop the Great Plains as well as the West Coast, the land here will surely appreciate in value."

"Your Majesty, do you want to cooperate with Liang Yao to build a canal?"

Tromeran's reaction was several beats faster than Fauré's, and he quickly heard the hidden meaning in Napoleon III's few words.

"Since the end of the war in Crimea, frictions between us and the British have increased over the issue of overseas colonies," said Napoleon III.

"The reason why the British have always been able to outstrip us in the competition for overseas colonies is simply because their powerful fleet controls almost all important shipping nodes around the world."

This is what Tromeran felt most deeply.

In his early years, when he was the commander of the Pacific Fleet, his fleet did not even have a decent overseas home port.

Their own fleet had to be in British ports and they had to pay the British to maintain it.

Although the British had many overseas colonies, none of them were in the South Asian subcontinent controlled by the East India Company.

The most important colonies are Gibraltar, Cape Town and Singapore, which are the maritime choke points that cannot be bypassed.

Every year, the money earned by the British port companies from French ships passing through the Cape of Good Hope and the Strait of Gibraltar has already exceeded hundreds of millions of gold francs.

"If our French ships do not want to rely on the British and achieve freedom of navigation, we must find a way to open up new routes of our own." Tro silently agreed, but soon sighed.

"But the Age of Exploration has been over for more than 300 years, and all the routes with commercial value have long been developed. It is too difficult to open up a route that belongs to France."

The idea is certainly nice, but except for the shipping routes between the North and South Poles, the shipping routes in other regions have already been developed very maturely, and the important node ports along the routes are all owned by owners.

"So we have to find another way." Napoleon III said thoughtfully, "The benefits of the ocean cannot all belong to the British. We should also get a share of it."

The overall situation in the Central Great Plains region has been determined, and diplomatic negotiations with France have entered the main topic.

On the Omaha battlefield, the Western Army has proved its worth with its excellent performance.

Napoleon III decided to cancel his original itinerary and no longer go to the south.

However, Napoleon III did not reveal this to the American Republic until the end of the negotiations.

"30% of the shares is our limit. I cannot accept anything beyond 30%." Los Angeles Mayor Wen-yao Deng had a heated debate with the French diplomatic team over the equity distribution of Los Angeles Petrochemical.

One of the French alliance conditions is to hold 50% of the shares of Los Angeles Petrochemical. It is obvious that the French side wants to obtain controlling rights of Los Angeles Petrochemical.

The French side has too big an appetite, and it is naturally impossible for the American Republic to accept such harsh demands.

After the British East India Company and Umbrella Corporation went to war in Australia, the gold mining revenues obtained by the American Republic authorities in Australia were less than 20% of the pre-war level.

Los Angeles Petrochemical has become the largest and most stable source of finance for the American Republic.

If one more share is given to the French, the Los Angeles City Government and the Central American Republic will naturally get one less profit.

It is an indisputable fact that the overseas interests of the American Republic have been eroded by Britain, Tsarist Russia, and the Netherlands since the Civil War. Recently, there have even been rumors that Britain has begun negotiations with the Qing Dynasty to reoccupy Hong Kong Island.

Fortunately, the rule of the American Republic in the Americas remains quite stable.

"As long as your country shows greater sincerity, we are willing to provide all possible assistance to your Umbrella Corporation in the war in Australia, including diplomatic assistance and indirect military assistance," Tromeran said.

“Our ships can not only deliver supplies to Umbrella’s mines in Australia, but can also help you transport the gold stranded in Australia.

As far as I know, your country's relations with the British East India Company and the Dutch East India Company are very bad. We are the only friendly country in the region that can provide assistance to your country. "

Indirectly provide military assistance to the Umbrella Corporation of the American Republic in order to obtain more shares of Los Angeles Petrochemical.

It was just something that Napoleon III had already given his approval before the negotiations.

"Our country is currently the only country that has mastered a complete set of mature technologies for oil exploration, mining, and refining." Deng Wenyao has no intention of giving up his shares in Los Angeles Petrochemical.

"The commercial value of these technologies cannot be measured by the shares of Los Angeles Petrochemical. If your country insists on asking for more shares, then we can only provide you with part of the technology, not a complete set of technology."

The Frenchman's behavior of wanting both the hen and the eggs made Deng Wenyao feel very uncomfortable.

"If this negotiation is successful, our two countries will be allies. Not only will the French market be completely open to your country, but our tariffs on your country can also be renegotiated to allow your country to enjoy most-favored-nation treatment," Le Goff said.

"Our country can also provide protection for your country's overseas interests and conduct military cooperation in the Far East and Southeast Asia. Please carefully consider the issue of Los Angeles Petrochemical's shares."

Le Goff offered two tempting bargaining chips: the French market and tariffs.

In 1860, with the signing of the Treaty of Cobden-Chevalier, France began its transition from protectionism to free trade.

France has mutually reduced some tariffs with the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, the German Customs Union, Italy, the United States, etc. However, in order to protect its own industries and agriculture, France still maintains relatively high tariff barriers for some key products.

For most industrial products and some agricultural products, France's tariff rates are approximately in the range of 20% to 30%.

For raw materials and some consumer goods, the tariff rates are only in the single digits.

In general, France's tariff policy during this period tended to implement conditional free trade.

France's average tariff of 15% was much lower than that of the highly protectionist Northern Confederation (35%).

But compared with the UK (5%), which practices free trade, it is much higher.

Even the average tariff of the neighboring German Customs Union is significantly lower than that of France, at only 8%.

The products exported by the American Republic to France are mainly industrial products, and the tariffs on petrochemical products are also levied in accordance with the tariffs on industrial products.

The tariff rate on cotton cloth exported by France to the American Republics was the same as that on British cotton cloth, which was 36%. The tariff rate on machine tools and petrochemical products was the same, which was 31%.

In order to protect the silk industry in the Lyon area, France maintained tariffs on silk and porcelain at 25-30%, making it difficult for merchants in the American Republic who traded silk and porcelain from the Qing Dynasty to survive.

When the American Republic was first established, France's tariff policy towards the American Republic was inherited from the United States of America, that is, the Northern Confederation.

The United States of America implements a highly protectionist trade policy, so the tariffs imposed by the French on the United States will naturally not be very friendly.

If the tariff issue can be renegotiated, the American Republic may even enjoy the same most-favored-nation treatment as the Belgian, Dutch and German Customs Unions.

It is a huge boon to the exports of the American Republic.

After all, France is the third largest trading nation in the American Republic, after the Northern Confederation and Britain.

(End of this chapter)