Chapter 597 Meeting with Nicholas II

After attending Dmitry's coronation ceremony, Arthur chose to go to nearby St. Petersburg to take Queen Mary back to her natal home.

In any case, the Russians formed an important part of Australasia's population, and the relationship between Australasia and Tsarist Russia was worth maintaining.

Today is different from the past. The current status of Russia and Australasia has undergone earth-shaking changes, and the Russian government also attaches great importance to Arthur's visit.

In the East Palace, Arthur finally met Nicholas II, whom he had not seen for more than ten years. Nicholas II looked much older. Although only ten years had passed, he looked at least twenty years older.

Queen Mary took a few little ones to reminisce with the Russian royal family, while Arthur and Nicholas II entered a conference room.

"Arthur, long time no see!" Nicholas II said with emotion as he looked at Arthur who was in his prime and full of energy.

"Long time no see, cousin Nicholas." Arthur said with emotion as well.

The last time we met, Nicholas II's status was higher than Arthur's. Now Arthur's status in the European royal family has surpassed Nicholas II's.

Although Arthur and Nicholas II were equals, Nicholas II was much older than Arthur. The difference in status between the two also made them feel the emotion brought about by the changes in the situation.

"Thank you for your help before. Otherwise, it will be a problem whether the Romanov family can maintain its rule." Speaking of which, Nicholas II was very grateful to Arthur.

If it hadn't been for Arthur's strong support for him during the previous revolution, I'm afraid he wouldn't have had a chance to make a comeback, and Russia would now have become a republic.

Although the current situation in Russia is relatively chaotic, a large number of countries have become independent from Russia.

But in the final analysis, the best part is still under the rule of Tsarist Russia. If it develops with peace of mind for 20 years, Russia will still become the European bulldozer it once was. After all, its land area and population are still ahead of other European countries.

"This is what I should do, Cousin Nicholas. No matter what, maintaining the monarchy is the common goal of all European royal families." Arthur said with a smile.

Nicholas II nodded, still believing what Arthur said.

After all, he and William II were able to keep their thrones, and Australasia had a part to play.

Otherwise, there should be two more powerful republics in Europe at present, and the Hohenzollern and Romanov families will also become the history of European dynasties.

"Arthur, the recovery of Russia's economy still needs the support of Australasia. I hope we can establish further cooperation and help Russia restore its economic and industrial levels faster." After feeling deeply, Nicholas II said this Then he made a condition to Arthur and said it quite sincerely.

Although Russia can also get support from Britain and France, the support from Britain and France requires Russia to pay a greater price, and the sincerity is not very high.

Although cooperation with Australasia is also an exchange of interests, at least Nicholas II understood that Arthur had no other requirements and would not covet Russian land.

This is actually determined by the distance of Australasia. Because it is far away in Oceania, Australasia does not pose much of a threat to European countries, which is also the reason why Australasia can gain the trust of many European countries.

But Britain and France are different. Even if Britain and France do not have positive land claims, they will try every means to control a country. This is something that many European countries do not want to see.

"This is natural." Arthur said with a smile: "Of course I am happy for Russia to resume its industry and economy. After all, Russia is one of Australasia's most important allies."

"However, the help from Australasia is still somewhat weak. Russia still needs the support of Britain and France to better restore the post-war order."

Nicholas II also nodded, approving the proposal to gain support from Britain and France.

Currently, the two most powerful countries in Europe are Britain and France. If you want to restore order better, you must obtain the consent of these two countries.

"Arthur, I want to invite some Australasian officers to help us train the army. I want to form a brand new army and even promote the military reform of the entire Russia." At the end of the conversation, Nicholas II put forward his final words Proposal, said to Arthur.

Arthur was not surprised that Nicholas II proposed military reforms. After all, the performance of the Russian army in previous wars and civil wars was not good, and it could even be said to be a mess.

Poor logistics, chaotic command, unsatisfactory cooperation and uneven weapons and equipment, this is a true portrayal of the Tsarist Russian army throughout the period from World War I to the Civil War.

It is precisely because of this that Tsarist Russia suffered huge losses in World War I, and the combat effectiveness displayed by Tsarist Russia in the civil war could only barely compete with Soviet Russia.

Improving the combat effectiveness of the army was the first thing Nicholas II determined to change.

At present, the total number of troops in Tsarist Russia exceeds one million. Nicholas II naturally does not have such huge ambitions and wants to reform millions of troops at once.

After receiving the demand list provided by Nicholas II, Arthur finally understood that Nicholas II's demand was to carry out comprehensive reforms for a small part of the current army, which is the current Russian First Army.

The current Russian First Army is a collection of Russia's elite troops. The entire army has a total number of troops, and each army has 3 divisions.

We can see the obvious characteristics of the Russian army. The number of troops is relatively bloated. The average number of people per division is more than 20,000, which is significantly different from the average number of Australasian divisions during World War I.

Such a large army size led to a sudden increase in logistical pressure. The weapons, equipment and logistical resources allocated to each division were not as much as expected, which also led to the poor status of Russian logistics throughout World War I.

In order to carry out a desperate reform, Nicholas II decided to completely imitate Australasia in the First Army and form new divisions with 60,000 men each.

In order to better learn about Australasia's military establishment, the deployment of weapons and equipment, etc., it is also an important part of Russia's military reform.

This also means that after comprehensively reorganizing the entire army group, Russia will have to spend a lot of resources and time for this, and the cost will definitely not be small.

"Completely reorganize the entire First Army?" Arthur asked curiously.

"Of course." Nicholas II nodded and said with a slightly serious expression: "Time does not wait for anyone, and Russia's situation also requires a better army. I will cut down part of the army to reduce military expenditures. These reductions will All military expenditures will be used for the reorganization of the First Army.

Arthur, the reorganization of the army still requires strong support from Australasia, and Russia will never forget the friendship of Australasia. "At the end of the words, Nicholas II looked at Arthur and said in a very sincere tone.

Help Russia carry out military reforms?

This was not a problem at all for Arthur. First of all, whether Russia is strong or not does no harm to Australasia at all, and it can even add a more reliable ally.

Secondly, only when Russia becomes stronger can Germany be successfully restricted in Europe if World War II breaks out in the future.

After all, it would be very difficult to defeat Germany during World War II if it relied solely on Britain and France.

The development of this world has long been different from that in history. The signing of the US-Island Alliance also made Arthur wonder whether the United States will join the future Allies instead of the Axis Powers, as it did in history.

In addition, Russia is still in chaos, and it is basically impossible to fight the future World War II with the current European situation.

If the three countries of Britain, France and Russia unite to counter Germany, perhaps they can suppress the Germany in history.

Although it was uncertain whether the world would develop as history did, the rise of Mussolini in Italy and the birth of the Nazi Party in Germany had to keep Arthur on guard.

A Russia that has regained its strength can not only compete with the island countries in the Far East, but also deal with Russia that starts a war in the future.

After comprehensive consideration, making Russia stronger is conducive to the development of Australasia, and Arthur will naturally not refuse Nicholas II's proposal.

"Of course, no problem, cousin Nicholas. As an ally of Russia, I am naturally happy to see Russia become stronger." Arthur smiled and nodded, agreeing to Nicholas II's proposal.

"Australasia is willing to provide Russia with the weapons and equipment, training officers, etc. required for Russia's military reform. We also welcome more Russian officers to study abroad in Australasia and learn more military tactics and military ideas. .”

Helping one is helping, and helping two is also helping. Finnish and Russian military students can also be arranged together for centralized education, etc.

Arthur doesn't have to worry about conflicts between the two countries for the time being. After all, neither Nicholas II nor Dmitry is stupid. Moreover, the two countries are from the same royal family, so they have natural advantages in relations. of.

Even if Nicholas II was smarter, he could sign an alliance with Finland to increase his influence in Eastern Europe.

Although the land of Finland may be abandoned for this purpose, for Russia at present, completing domestic unification is the most important thing.

If there are no special events or wars among the many countries that were separated, including Lithuania, it will be very difficult for Russia to take them back.

Even Lithuania, which is controlled by Poland, with the support of Britain and France, it is impossible for Russia to go back.

Russia's hope of regaining these countries may only come after a powerful country destroys these independent countries.

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