Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 1858 Situation in the Sea of ​​Hospitality

"What's the situation in the Black Sea region now?" The arrival of the Portuguese Albuquerque mission made the diplomatic department jump, and at the same time, it also made the compound of the State Intelligence Agency not far away very busy.Sheng Dehong, who had been promoted to deputy director, was asking questions just now. He is now an official in charge of the Ottoman Empire, so he is also very concerned about the situation in the Black Sea region, known as the Ottoman back garden.

"Not very good." An analyst in a black uniform dug out a large pile of documents from a filing cabinet, then picked out a few, and replied while checking: "Although Russia and the Ottomans have reached After signing the agreement, they are no longer in a state of hostility, but the Russians have not all left. They still have tens of thousands of troops on the left bank of the Dnieper River. The city of Kiev, which was assigned to the Russian Empire, also has thousands of troops. Give up Ukraine, because the conditions here are too good."

The agreement between Russia and the Ottomans was last year (1681).According to the agreement, the boundary between the two parties was formally determined to be bounded by the Dnieper River. The left bank belonged to the Ukrainian Cossack Emirate controlled by Russia, and the right bank was the territory of the puppet Cossack State established by Ottoman. However, the famous city of Kiev was assigned to the Russians.

This agreement basically reflects the comparison of the strengths of the two countries objectively, that is, the Ottoman Empire is now too spread out and has too many enemies. In addition, the newly appointed Grand Vizier of the Koprulu family wants to take advantage of the old enemy Austria. The main force of the kingdom was stationed abroad to confront the French at a favorable time, and they took advantage of Hungary, so they really didn't have the energy to entangle with the Russians on the northern shore of the Black Sea. Therefore, this agreement that basically maintained the status quo was very important to the Ottoman Empire. It is a good diplomatic achievement.After all, their prestige is still there now, and the emerging country Russia still has some lack of confidence in the face of the Ottoman Empire that has dominated the situation for two centuries, so it finally signed a peace agreement with the Ottomans.

The agreement was finally signed in Bekchisalay, the capital of the Crimean Khanate. The Crimean Khanate, as the main delivery force of the Ottoman Empire on the northern shore of the Black Sea, also participated in the negotiation of the agreement.The two sides finally decided to cease the war for 20 years. Western Ukraine emptied the central and southern areas of Kiev, and used this dilapidated area as a buffer zone between the two countries. All parties restrained Eastern and Western Ukraine and were not allowed to provoke at will.

It can be said that this agreement is very good for Ottoman and Russia, and it cannot be said to be bad for the Crimean Khanate, but it is for Ukraine, which was originally a unified country, and the more than 200 million Ukrainian people living on this land , but it is a big disadvantage, because it means that their country and nation will continue to split, and the Ukrainian steppe will still be plunged into tragedy.

This result is believed to be unacceptable to Doroshenko and Samoilovich, who have been fighting for a lifetime, and even Khmelnytsky, who has just been executed by the Ottomans, is very opposed.The reason is self-evident. They are all Ukrainians and Cossacks. Although they are hostile to each other and fight each other, their ultimate goal is to realize the independence and unity of Ukraine as a country.It's just that Ukraine's strength is too weak, and the surrounding enemies are too strong, so it has been reduced step by step to the work of Ottoman, Poland, Russia and other countries competing for the Ukrainian prairie, and it has fallen into a tragic ending.

Now Western Ukraine has completed the puppets of the Ottomans. Even the puppet duke Khmelnytsky they established was executed because he could not control his subordinates. The Crimean Khanate, which was in charge of monitoring them, was also ruthless. The black people, their hard life will continue in the future, and some will be blackmailed and ravaged by others.

As for Eastern Ukraine, it's not much better.They are even about to be revoked the name of the Ukrainian Cossack Emirate, and replaced by the "Hetman Jurisdiction" under the tsar, or "Little Russia", which shows the attitude of the Russians.Especially recently, the Russians have gone to various settlements in Eastern Ukraine—because of the unpopularity and repeated defeats of the Western Ukraine government, Eastern Ukraine has occupied a great reputation and attracted a large number of people. It prospered - a lot of officials were stationed, which obviously wanted to divide the power of the Cossacks at all levels, and finally included this so-called "Little Russia".

Some people may say that Russia has ruled Ukraine, and perhaps the people of Eastern Ukraine will be spared the suffering of war and live in peace and tranquility.Facts have proved that this is just a shameful conjecture. From the perspective of Moscow, Eastern Ukraine under their rule is just a natural barrier to prevent the Crimean Tatar cavalry from going north, so as not to be invaded by these fierce nomads into the soft land. hinterland, destroying local towns and agricultural facilities.Therefore, the people of Eastern Ukraine have never had much respite. The Russians continue to ask them to pay money, food, horses and horses, together with the Russian troops stationed there (the supplies of these Russian troops may be the people of Eastern Ukraine. burden) for group training as the first line against the Tatars.As for the front line, everyone knows that it is easy to break through, so there is no need for any investment and construction, it is just a barrier and buffer zone, so this is doomed to the tragedy of Eastern Ukraine.

The business station set up by the people on the east coast in Haji Port is not for nothing. Over the years, they have penetrated deeply into the Crimean Khanate, which is close at hand. There are many "informants" among the feudal manor owners who have provided a steady stream of information for the east bank, so they understand the changing situation on the Ukrainian prairie in a timely manner, and they will not be blinded.

The chaos in Ukraine naturally makes people on the east coast worry about whether their local investment and market can be guaranteed.In particular, the rise of Russia is becoming more and more obvious, while the Ottoman Empire is sluggish. Although the Crimean Khanate has not shown signs of weakening—even its national strength has improved in recent years—it is not the same size as Russia after all. Yes, once a big war breaks out, it may not be able to withstand the [-] troops that the Russians may mobilize. The Black Sea, the "sea of ​​hospitality", may be out of the control of the people on the east coast in the not-too-distant future.

"That bull of Russia!" Sheng Dehong groaned when he heard the words, and then said in a helpless tone: "The huge Russian Empire is like a bull with infinite strength. Turned around, no longer going east against us. If this bull starts to charge south again, we now have to think of a way to make it turn its center of gravity to the west to fight the Poles and Swedes .”

"Director, is it necessary for us to target the Russians like this? This seems to be a thankless thing. Even if the Russians really occupy the entire Ukrainian steppe and drive the Crimeans into the southern peninsula, It’s not necessarily a catastrophe for us, is it? Our Don, Dnieper, and Danube trades are still sustainable?” The young analyst brought a cup of espresso to Sidley and asked puzzledly.

"You speak like a businessman, not a qualified intelligence officer." Sheng Dehong glanced at the other party and said, "Can this kind of thing be measured by business? The Ottoman Empire, the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of France, and even China , India, these huge continental countries are our targets of containment, don’t give up because of difficulties, then what do we apply for funding every year? Drink coffee and read newspapers? It is not necessarily a bad thing to say it is, and it may even bring a lot of convenience because of political unification, but can this little money make up for our huge strategic loss? Don’t think that we are just a small country in the New World with a population of 500 million. I feel that containing Russia is a thankless task, and some things are better done sooner than later, and later than never.”

"Inducing them to move west is one of our most important strategies. In addition to properly strengthening our influence on Russia, it is also an important means to add more resistance to them on the northern shore of the Black Sea. We have strengthened the Crimean Khan At the same time, the forces of Genoa, Venice and other countries were introduced on the northern shore of the Black Sea. If we can introduce some other European countries and at the same time increase the power we can control or influence locally, it will only put pressure on the Russians. Sheng Dehong said: "So it is very important for the Portuguese to join us at this time. Their country is also short of food, and they often ask for it from the Amsterdam market. If we introduce it to the northern shore of the Black Sea, like the Genoese, Venice It is a sure-fire thing for us to set up many commercial stations and wharves in the local area.”

Regarding the grain production area on the northern shore of the Black Sea, the people on the east coast had a private agreement with Venice and Genoa*, that is, if something happens due to the Russians, then everyone can form a joint force to join the Ottoman Empire to intervene .The two Italian countries share little and little trade with Russia, and being thousands of miles apart, there is no burden to antagonize Russia.Therefore, it should not be a problem for the two countries to form an armed force of thousands of people.If you count the approximately 3000 armed forces held locally by the people on the east coast and the 1 people promised by the Portuguese, the number of this force may expand to close to [-] at most.

These 1 people are all Western European troops with higher equipment and tactics than Russia, and their combat effectiveness is still higher than that of ordinary Russian troops. Although the combat effectiveness and morale will decline to a certain extent due to language barriers and laborious expeditions, it is still a good example. A powerful force, combined with tens of thousands of cavalry from the Crimean Khanate and Cossack infantry from Western Ukraine, may not be able to withstand the first wave of offensive. When the Ottoman Empire adjusts its direction, it will dispatch elite main forces to stabilize the front line.

"Of course war is our last resort, because no one can predict the outcome. The best way for us to force Russia to go west is to maintain a certain degree of economic and trade ties with them, that is, to make them gradually depend on our commodities and technology (but still can’t learn the most advanced and cutting-edge things, even the second-level ones), at critical moments we threaten to cut off trade, stop providing technical assistance, and let the Russians wake up. That's the best way." Sheng Dehong said: "If the Russian card is played well, it will also play a very important role in our seeking various interests in the vast Central European region."

The analyst nodded repeatedly after hearing this, but he still felt somewhat disapproving in his heart.He has studied the country of Russia in depth and knows their national character. He always feels that if there is such a day, when the people on the east coast use various means to threaten them not to go south and occupy the north coast of the Black Sea, the Russians may not necessarily buy it, and they may even accept it. Will be very angry, there is a feeling of being betrayed.Especially when the tsar's power is very strong, it is really hard to say what effect this method will have, but at this time, there is no need to talk back to your boss, and you can talk to him later when you have time.

"In the future, we may cooperate with the people from the Ministry of War and send people to Lisbon to inspect the equipment and combat capabilities of the Portuguese soldiers, and find out whether they have the ability to confront the Russians head-on. If not, we may need to recommend the following The Portuguese government headed by the regent Prince Pedro has increased investment in the army to enhance its combat effectiveness. How about it, Xiaoqin, are you interested in going to Lisbon to be stationed abroad? The office to be established there is still short of people, and our department needs to recruit someone In the past, I hoped that this person was you." Sheng Dehong put down the white porcelain coffee cup in his hand and asked with a smile.

"If you want me to go, Director, of course I have no objection." Analyst Xiao Qin said: "The Portuguese Army is actually quite good, much better than the Spanish Army. In the early years, the British helped them carry out transformation. Later, during the war between France and Spain, the Duke of Shishuangberg from Paris reorganized the Portuguese army and introduced the French military training and logistics system. Therefore, the combat effectiveness improved rapidly. The next two battles defeated the dominant Spanish army. That’s the proof. It’s not been too long now, I don’t think the Portuguese Army has degraded that fast, and if we help, they’ll be back to a respectable level.”

"Well." Sheng Dehong nodded upon hearing the words, and then urged: "At the same time, we must also pay attention to collecting various intelligence between Portugal and the United Kingdom. After we have a foothold there and obtain a comprehensive market, this matter should be settled. It’s very easy to handle. The Portuguese are still fighting fiercely with the UK. By investigating the information of the Portuguese, you should be able to learn a lot of news about the British industry, commerce and even the political circles from the side, and it must be of great reference value. Of course, these are all It is you who need to be responsible to Director Mo, who is in charge of Iberia, I hope you can do well in your new job."

(End of this chapter)