African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 1588 Developing the Mediterranean Market

In the short term, the secularization of the Ottoman Empire did indeed enhance its national power and affect the regional balance, but East Africa is not too worried about this.

The only way for the Ottoman Empire to move south into the Indian Ocean was through the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf, just as the Austro-Hungarian Empire was previously confined to the Adriatic Sea. Even if the Ottoman Empire had the same national strength as the United States, let alone its current decline, the East African Navy was confident that it could be contained within the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea.

In the long run, the secularization of the Ottoman Empire also suppressed the influence of the Arab world. After all, the Ottoman Empire was indeed the leading Arab state at that time. In fact, not only the Ottoman Empire, but also East Africa was promoting the modernization process in Oman and northern Iran.

……

Darfur, 1935.

By the end of last year, the North African Railway in East Africa had been fully completed, and six new military airports had been built in Darfur.

During the same period, three military airfields were also built in South Germany in East Africa, targeting the direction of North Africa.

With these nine airports forming a network, East Africa can ensure that, in wartime, it can deploy its air force to bomb key targets, including important towns and military installations in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, and Algeria.

These actions by East Africa demonstrate its emphasis on the North African region.

In Jiaofu Town.

Major General Cheng An of the East African National Defence Force also arrived at the final stop of this inspection, checking the military facilities and garrison situation in the town of Jawf.

He was giving a speech to Lieutenant Kars and other officers stationed in the town of Joff.

“My journey started in Wanja, and I traveled by rail to reach Jawf. Now that the southern end of the North African Railway is open, the construction of important towns in Darfur, such as Jawf, will be accelerated.”

"It is expected that the North African railway will be fully operational in the second half of this year and will become an important trade route between the empire and Italy."

In 1934, the construction of the North African Railway accelerated significantly, mainly due to the joint efforts of East Africa and Italy. In Italian Libya, only 600 kilometers remained to connect the port of Benghazi with the northernmost point of Darfur by railway.

Major General Cheng An said, "Jauf Town is a major military town at the northernmost tip of the Empire, serving as the logistics and command center for the entire northern Darfur region."

"At the same time, it is also related to the future safety of the North African railway, so the facilities in Jawf must be maintained regularly and be ready for any eventuality."

“You did a good job overall when I visited Jiaofu this time, but there were also quite a few problems, especially some outposts under Jiaofu town, where discipline was lax due to a lack of supervision.”

"This is obviously not acceptable, so you must conduct regular inspections of the military outposts under your command. Of course, in addition to strict requirements, you must also try your best to reflect the material and spiritual needs of soldiers in hardship areas."

Lieutenant Carl listened to the major general's criticism with a serious expression. He said, "General, we did have some oversights in the past, but that was mainly due to insufficient conditions. Now that the North African railway is open, our difficulties in terms of supplies and transportation have been greatly improved. We will definitely strengthen the training and supervision of rank-and-file soldiers and pay attention to the living conditions of our soldiers."

As the only town in northern Darfur, Jawf governs a vast area of ​​hundreds of thousands of square kilometers, most of which is desert and Gobi, with only a few oases having development value.

Therefore, it is naturally very difficult for Jiaofu Town to monitor the situation of the outposts and military strongholds below.

Major General Cheng An said, "That's good. In the future, the railway line in North Africa will inevitably become a busy trade route, and transportation and supplies will be greatly improved. If you still can't do your job well, I will hold you accountable."

"The situation in Europe is becoming increasingly chaotic. As you have probably heard, the Austro-Hungarian Empire has experienced severe turmoil, and in addition to Yugoslavia, Dalmatia has also gained independence."

"In addition, Germany also took the opportunity to strengthen its control over Austria-Hungary. If nothing unexpected happens, the two countries will eventually merge into one."

"The changes in Europe have a profound impact on the world order. The Empire will now inevitably strengthen its cooperation with Italy, while also paying close attention to the development of the situation in North Africa."

It is not surprising that East Africa is strengthening its cooperation with Italy, given that the construction of the North African railway indicates that the two countries will further advance in economic and trade relations.

Of course, East Africa now attaches even greater importance to Italy, which is also influenced by the changes in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

The Austro-Hungarian Empire was once the most important hub for trade between East Africa and Europe. However, now that the Austro-Hungarian Empire is controlled by Germany, it is clear that Germany will not cede more benefits to East Africa as it did in the past. On the contrary, it will affect the export of East African industrial products to the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

In terms of industry, both East Africa and Germany are highly developed industrial countries. Previously, under the rule of the Habsburg Empire, Austria-Hungary had the advantage of dominating both ends of the world, and East Africa still had the opportunity to compete fairly with Germany.

Now, East Africa's industrial exports to Austria-Hungary will inevitably be suppressed by German companies, especially in relatively high-end industrial markets such as automobiles, power equipment, and home appliances. East Africa faces strong competition from Germany in Central and Eastern Europe.

Not only will the unified domestic market of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire be affected, but also East African industrial exports from the former Austro-Hungarian sphere of influence, which was one of the hubs for East Africa's exports to Central and Eastern Europe.

In the past, East Africa had three most important hubs for exports to the Central and Eastern European market: Trieste, Istanbul, and Odessa.

Through Trieste, East African goods could be sold to most parts of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and at the same time, they could be transported to countries such as Germany, Switzerland, and Poland via its domestic transportation network.

Istanbul, on the other hand, primarily targeted the Ottoman Empire market and the Balkan Peninsula region.

Odessa primarily trades with what was formerly Tsarist Russia, now the Soviet Union.

East Africa's influence in these three regions has been greatly weakened. After Trieste fell into German hands, in order to consolidate Germany's economic position in Central and Eastern Europe, Germany will inevitably impose some restrictions on East Africa, such as raising tariffs on East Africa.

Meanwhile, in Istanbul, due to Ottoman reforms, domestic industrial development, and German influence, the total value of East African exports is also declining.

Finally, there is Odessa. Odessa can be said to be East Africa's biggest loss in the Central and Eastern European market. In the past, during the Tsarist era, the domestic industry of Tsarist Russia was quite backward. Now, the Soviet Union's industrialization has been quite successful. In addition, the Soviet Union has a strong economic independence and autonomy, which has greatly reduced the Soviet Union's imports of foreign goods.

Previously, Tsarist Russia was a huge market with a population of nearly 170 million, and its domestic industry was extremely underdeveloped. East Africa had a relatively good relationship with Tsarist Russia. When Tsarist Russia existed, the two countries did not have any geopolitical conflicts. Therefore, East Africa was able to gain a huge advantage in Tsarist Russia's huge market.

During the Tsarist era, Russia alone accounted for over 60% of the trade in East Africa and the entire Central and Eastern European market. Therefore, it is entirely fair to say that the demise of Tsarist Russia was the greatest loss to the East African and Central and Eastern European market.

Major General Cheng An said, "With the dramatic changes in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, it is estimated that within a few years, the Central and Eastern European market will be completely replaced by South America."

"In the future, the scale of the Empire's trade with Central and Eastern Europe, especially its exports of industrial goods, will decline significantly."

"At this time, the importance of countries like Italy will become apparent. In order to make up for the lack of the Central and Eastern European market, the Mediterranean market will become the main strategic direction of the empire."

In Europe, the most developed regions are Western and Northern Europe, followed by Central and Eastern Europe and Southern Europe. Now, East Africa's market share in Central and Eastern Europe has plummeted, making Southern Europe a key area for East Africa's strategic expansion.

Of course, the market size of Southern Europe is obviously incomparable to that of Central and Eastern Europe, so East Africa has put forward the concept of the "Mediterranean market".

Among the Mediterranean countries, Italy, Spain, and the Ottoman Empire are all quite large, with a combined population of nearly 80 million. Combined with the Balkans, North Africa, and other regions, the Mediterranean market is a huge market with a population of over 100 million.

"Of course, more importantly, East Africa has an easier time influencing the Mediterranean market compared to the Central and Eastern European market."

"Although the Central and Eastern European market is generally considered an underdeveloped region of Europe, it is home to world powers such as Germany and the Soviet Union, which could easily have driven East Africa out."

The Central and Eastern European market is indeed larger and has stronger purchasing power, making it more attractive to East Africa. However, politically, this region is also the most difficult for East Africa to control.

For example, if Germany and the Soviet Union targeted East Africa's interests in the region, East Africa would have very limited means of retaliation and might suffer in silence.

This is similar to the economic suppression that the United States exerted on the Far Eastern Empire in the previous life. Admittedly, the Far Eastern Empire's goods were of high quality and low price, making them the most competitive in the world.

However, the United States still holds global military, political, and cultural hegemony. With just a nod to the countries below, some countries dare to infringe upon the interests of the Far Eastern Empire and disrupt its normal commercial activities.

In the Central and Eastern European market, East Africa would also face this dilemma. The Soviet Union was a whole market, needless to say, but in the Central and Eastern European countries outside the Soviet Union...

Take Romania and Bulgaria as examples. If East Africa demands that they open their markets, while Germany demands that they cease trade with East Africa, these countries would obviously prefer to risk offending East Africa and obediently comply with Germany's arrangements.

After all, Germany could control their anger, and East Africa had almost no military presence in Central and Eastern Europe to protect its own interests.

“The situation in the Mediterranean market is very different. In the Mediterranean, we have Dalmatia as a foothold, and we also border North Africa and East Africa. Among the major powers in the Mediterranean, Italy and East Africa have many common interests, which can replace some of the role of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in the past.”

Although Italy is an industrialized country, its industrial level is far inferior to that of other European powers, and it is extremely dependent on the import of external resources. East Africa happens to be Italy's main export destination for raw materials. Therefore, the economic interests of East Africa and Italy can be coordinated through negotiations.

At the same time, Italy's expansion in North Africa also depended on East Africa, which could exert influence over its Libya and Red Sea colonies.

Therefore, after Austria-Hungary became part of Germany's sphere of influence, Italy became the best representative of East Africa's interests in Europe at this stage.

Although the Kingdom of Dalmatia had closer ties with East Africa, it was too small and its location was not prominent enough to help East Africa expand its interests in Europe.

As for the issue of Italy's extreme nationalist parties being in power, it is clearly not important to East Africa, since the two countries do not have any core interests in conflict.

Major General Cheng An said, "Therefore, cooperation between the Empire and Mediterranean countries such as Italy will be a key focus of national development in the coming years."

“Learning from the lessons of the Central and Eastern European market, East Africa must establish its own military presence in the Mediterranean market to prevent a repeat of the Austro-Hungarian upheaval that could have damaged our overseas interests.”

"Jauf Town is the core stronghold of the Empire's military presence in North Africa. Through here, the Empire's land and air military forces can radiate to the four North African countries."

"This way, Imperial personnel will feel safer when conducting trade activities in North Africa."

Only when a gun is pointed at their head will some forces restrain themselves, sharpening their eyes to realize that this is someone they cannot afford to offend.

In the past, East Africa clearly did not have such confidence in Central and Eastern Europe because, no matter how strong its military was, it was difficult for East Africa to pose a threat to Central and Eastern European countries.

The Mediterranean market is quite different. This region is home to many national and local powers, none of which are particularly strong, and the military influence of East Africa has already infiltrated the area.

For example, the East African navy stationed in Dubrovnik, Dalmatia, can deter small countries such as Montenegro and Albania, as well as some local and tribal forces along the North African coast.

Major General Cheng An continued, "Developing the Mediterranean market requires military support, and the North African Railway is one of the three major arteries for East Africa to deter and strengthen its influence in the North African region."

"Therefore, you must keep your mission in mind, ensure the safety of the railway lines in North Africa, and strengthen equipment maintenance."

Besides the North African railway, East Africa has two other routes to the Mediterranean market: the Suez Canal and the Strait of Gibraltar. However, the Suez Canal is entirely in British control, and even if the East African navy wanted to pass through, it would need British permission.

Therefore, whether the East African Navy can cross the Suez Canal into the Mediterranean to protect its national interests depends entirely on the British.

In comparison, the situation in the Strait of Gibraltar is somewhat better. Unless there is a direct threat to British interests, the East African navy will not encounter any trouble passing through Gibraltar. However, the Strait of Gibraltar is also of limited use.

The North African railway is completely different. Even if Italy were to have a conflict with East Africa in the future and wanted to block the North African railway, it would have to think twice. After all, the North African railway runs along land, and the southern part is completely controlled by the Darfur colony in East Africa. East African military forces are capable of moving north without worrying about suffering too much damage.

Not to mention that after East Africa deployed its air force, almost half of North Africa was within the range of East African air force firepower.

The Suez Canal can be blocked, and the Strait of Gibraltar can be sealed off. It would be extremely difficult to hinder the military influence of East Africa on North Africa by land or air, unless the other side is far stronger than East Africa, but there is no such country in the world.

(End of this chapter)