Chapter 780 South American Conflict

The sale of the TV technology would net Arthur approximately A$220.5 million, but a significant portion of that would have to be paid to the government as taxes.

In fact, for Arthur, there are some reasonable ways to avoid taxes to reduce the annual taxes that the royal consortium needs to pay.

But as the monarch of the country, Arthur's words and deeds play an important leading role. If Arthur starts to avoid taxes legally, then more capitalists and entrepreneurs will definitely choose to avoid taxes.

In this way, the tax revenue received by the country will be greatly reduced, which will in turn affect the country's total annual fiscal revenue.

Anyway, for Arthur, paying taxes is nothing more than pouring money from his left hand to his right hand. It was also a good thing for Arthur that the government was getting higher and higher taxes and revenue every year.

If we look at the relevant tax rates in Australasia, this income of up to 220.5 million Australian dollars will require at least 50 million Australian dollars in taxes.

For the government, there will be an additional tax revenue of more than 10 million Australian dollars per year within three years, which is quite good news.

Speaking of which, the royal consortium controlled by Arthur is not only the largest taxpayer in Australasia, but also the company with the largest number of employees in Australasia.

According to the royal family's annual report, the tax paid to the government by the royal family in 1930 was more than 17 million Australian dollars, accounting for 35.7% of the government's total tax revenue.

If you include some other industries, the tax revenue Arthur's industries pay to the government is almost equal to the total tax revenue paid to the government by all other industries combined.

Paying more taxes also means one thing, that is, Arthur actually earns a lot of income every year.

After the Australian dollar depreciated, the combined annual revenue generated by all Arthur's businesses actually doubled.

In 1930 alone, the total profit of all Arthur's enterprises exceeded 180 million Australian dollars, which was close to half of the country's total fiscal revenue.

This may seem exaggerated, but it is actually a reasonable number. Although the royal consortium on the surface only has banks and military industries, behind the scenes Arthur controls all extremely important industries in Australasia.

From grain and food processing to various industrial products and machinery, including mineral mining and processing, oil mining and refining, etc., there are royal consortium investments everywhere.

If Arthur had not deliberately concealed some enterprises, I am afraid that the people of Australasia would be surprised to find that their daily lives are inseparable from the enterprises of the royal consortium.

Because the royal consortium is present in all walks of life, and a large number of small and medium-sized enterprises and factories are invested by the royal consortium.

Making a fortune from the TV set made Arthur feel really good, and he smiled one of the few times during the cabinet meeting.

In fact, Arthur has rarely expressed his emotions in cabinet meetings since more than ten years ago.

After all, as a qualified monarch, it is best not to let his subordinates guess his mood.

Being indifferent to emotions and anger is the most important thing a qualified monarch should do.

Speaking of this cabinet meeting, what was discussed was not a domestic topic, but a new crisis abroad.

This can be regarded as the main theme of this era. Although the overall tone is still peaceful, it is inevitable that crises or even wars will break out in some areas.

This crisis is not Europe, nor is it a region where great powers previously competed. Arthur also did not expect that such a crisis could break out in South America when all European countries were moving towards peace and when the United States had been eliminated in advance.

The protagonists of this crisis are Bolivia and Paraguay. This crisis is also famous in history and is called the Chaco War.

From the name, it is easy to understand that the real reason for the outbreak of the Chaco War was the dispute between Bolivia and Paraguay over the sovereignty of the Chaco region.

Speaking of which, the situation in South America has always been unstable. Although there are no super large-scale wars, there have always been many small-scale wars and disputes between several countries.

In addition to the three most powerful countries, namely Brazil, Argentina and Chile, including Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay and other countries, the relations with each other are not so good.

The Chaco region is located to the west of the Paraguay River, east of the Andes, south of the Amazon Basin, and north of the Pampas. It is an uninhabited area of ​​more than 650,000 square kilometers.

The reason why no large-scale conflicts broke out before is because this area is not only sparsely populated, but also has no valuable properties.

Although Bolivia and Paraguay have always had considerable disputes over the Northern Chaco region, it is naturally impossible for the two countries to break out in a war in such an area with neither people nor products.

But the situation has changed subtly in recent years. Before the United States was destroyed, the American Mobil Oil Company announced that it had discovered a large number of oil fields in the North Chaco region.

Originally suppressed by the United States, although the conflict between Bolivia and Paraguay became more intense, it was far from the point of breaking out into war.

But with the demise of the United States, relations between Bolivia and Paraguay could no longer be maintained.

In 1930 alone, more than ten small-scale armed conflicts broke out between the two countries in the border areas, two of which almost turned into war.

Speaking of which, this large-scale conflict is also related to Arthur. Because Arthur and the British agreed to control world oil prices, international oil prices generally rose, and major oil companies made a lot of money.

Because of this, countries are paying more attention to the oil fields discovered in the North Chak area. As time entered 1931, foreign powers including Britain, Australasia and France also entered the Northern Chaco region aggressively, making this area already filled with gunpowder smoke even more chaotic.

As the first oil company to discover oil in the North Chalk area, Mobil Oil Company's treatment at this time was not so good.

After the demise of the United States behind the scenes, Mobil Oil Company was a lamb to be slaughtered to the great powers.

It is undoubtedly a foolish dream for Mobil Corporation to compete for oil exploration rights in the Northern Chaco region when the major powers are already involved.

Although only two countries, Bolivia and Paraguay, are currently in conflict in the Northern Chaco region, there are already countless countries behind the scenes.

After Mobil Oil and the French teamed up, the situation in Bolivia and Paraguay became more delicate.

Mobil Oil, France, and Chile supported Bolivia, while Dutch Shell, the United Kingdom, and Argentina supported Paraguay.

The purpose of the cabinet meeting was to decide Australasia's preference in this conflict.

As the most influential power in South America besides Britain and France, Australasia still has a relatively high say in this conflict.

In fact, it can be seen from the geographical location that the only three powers that can exert influence on South America are Britain, France, and Australia.

The other powers either lacked strength or were too far away to participate in the competition in the Northern Chaco region.

So the question is, what attitude should Australasia adopt in this competition?

To put it bluntly, this competition is between Britain and France. Bolivia, Paraguay, and even Argentina and Chile are just pawns.

Australasia's attitude not only determines the strength of both parties in this conflict, but also determines the final situation in South America.

Because after the demise of the United States, South America actually became a terra nullius. The three most powerful countries in South America are still small countries in front of the great powers, and they are powerless in the face of the invasion and occupation by the great powers.

This incident seems to be just a competition for oil, but it is actually an expansion of the sphere of influence of several major powers in South America.

No matter who wins this conflict, they can take the opportunity to expand their sphere of influence in South America.

Because of this, Arthur must be careful in his choices and fully consider the impact of his choices.

In fact, according to the current situation, Arthur is more inclined to continue to cooperate with the British and continue to control the world oil market.

At this time, Britain still needs Australasia very much, because they are fighting France alone in South America and may not be a match for the French.

After all, Mobil Oil Company had chosen to cooperate with France at this time. This oil company established in Texas was the largest non-governmental oil and gas company in the United States.

Its history can be traced back to the Standard Oil Company founded by Rockefeller. It is firmly ranked in the top ten in the ranking of the world's top 500 companies in later generations.

It is natural for Mobil Oil Company to cooperate with the French. After all, Texas was now independent as the Lone Star Republic, which was under French control.

After all, Mobil Oil Company was the first to come to the Northern Chaco region. If they are determined to cooperate with the French, coupled with the help of Chile, they will definitely give the British a headache.

"Your Majesty, I think we should enter the scene with a high profile and let Britain and France take the initiative to win over us." Prime Minister Raul first proposed at the cabinet meeting.

Seeing that the success attracted everyone's attention, Prime Minister Raul explained unhurriedly: "Whether we support the UK or France, we cannot obtain the maximum benefits if we take the initiative.

Instead of doing this, it would be better to sit back and watch, and let Britain and France take the initiative to win over us. In this way, we can choose the most sincere party to join them and create the greatest benefits for us.

It doesn't matter to us whether Bolivia or Paraguay wins. Only interests are the most important and determine which side we should support in this conflict. "

I have to admit that Prime Minister Raul, who has a military background, is still very decisive from a political perspective.

Because he is Arthur's absolute confidant, Prime Minister Raul will not actively favor one side when thinking about issues, but will give priority to the interests of Arthur and Australasia.

This is different from some officials. Because of their Australasian origins, some officials have extremely strong British backgrounds and will involuntarily favor the British when thinking about issues.

In previous decades, it was Australasia's strategy to favor Britain, and it was understandable.

But judging from the current situation, Australasia cannot blindly support the United Kingdom. Britain and Australasia also have conflicts of interest, which means that it is impossible for the relationship between the two countries to return to what it was before.

"What is the current situation in South America?" Arthur did not rush to make a decision, but asked his own question.

"Currently, conflicts have broken out between the two sides in the border areas. Bolivia and Paraguay are both buying weapons on a large scale, and there is a high possibility of war." Foreign Secretary Wellington replied.

The world situation is very complex, and the causes of events are definitely not as simple as what appears on the surface.

Although it seems to be a conflict between Bolivia and Paraguay over the oil-rich Chaco region, there are various factors behind it.

Having said that, a considerable part of the cause of this conflict must be attributed to the previous economic crisis.

After the outbreak of the economic crisis, the imports of all major powers decreased significantly, causing the prices of agricultural and animal husbandry products and industrial, mining and other primary products to plummet.

South America is a typical export region for agricultural, animal husbandry, industrial and mining primary products, and the same is true for Bolivia and Paraguay.

Bolivia has long relied on the export of silver and tin ores to obtain reliable income, and a large part of the Paraguayan government's fiscal revenue relies on the export of agricultural and animal husbandry products such as beef and yerba mate.

The impact of the economic crisis has caused social unrest in these two countries, and various classes have become dissatisfied with the rule of the oligarchic elite.

Under such circumstances, even without the oil in the Chaco region, there is a high possibility that the two countries will eventually go to war.

Because once domestic conflicts fall into an irreconcilable state, the last resort can only be to divert the conflicts through war.

“Let the diplomatic ambassador contact Bolivia and Paraguay to see if an arms trade order can be reached.

In addition, a new guard will be sent to our farm in Argentina. I believe that Britain and France will take action after learning the news. "Arthur thought for a while and gave his order.

For Australasia, even entering the venue must not be too abrupt.

After all, the main theme of the world situation is peace, and people actually do not want to see war happen.

If Australasia high-profile supports the outbreak of war, it will not be tenable at the level of public opinion.

But if you change the way, by selling weapons and declaring your presence by sending a small guard, the same purpose can be achieved.

This can not only remind Britain and France that it is time to win over them, but also avoid being framed as warmongers.

After all, arms trade is normal, it is what other countries are doing. You can't just blame Australasia for the war just because of an arms trade order, right?

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