Chapter 360 Argentina’s Surrender
It is worth mentioning that in addition to the great powers, the Ottoman Empire also has a battleship purchased from Brazil and built in the United Kingdom, as well as a battleship purchased directly from the United Kingdom, both of which have been completed. And it was just launched for testing not long ago.
The Ottoman Empire had extremely high hopes for these two battleships, and even pinned most of its hopes for the Ottoman Empire's revival on these two battleships.
But the fate of these two battleships of the Ottoman Empire can be described as twists and turns in history.
Although both battleships have been completed and have entered the testing stage, whether the Ottoman Empire can successfully receive these two battleships is still a question worth thinking about.
Of course, the real main force in the naval arms race is still the European powers, mainly Britain and Germany.
In fact, the pressure on Australasia's navy is far from that great, and even the current size of the navy is completely sufficient.
However, due to the need to expand military strength and consolidate national status, it is still necessary to expand the size of the navy.
After all, Australasia's geographical location determines that it is a country in great need of sea power.
Australasia can do without a strong army, but it cannot do without a strong navy.
The good news at the moment is that Australasia's navy, land and air forces are developing in a balanced manner, and there are no services that are lagging behind for the time being.
Although the three military services vary in size, Australasia's navy, land and air forces are not too strong compared to European powers and other countries in the world, but they are definitely not weak either.
A few days later, good news came from the war in South America.
Ever since the allied forces of Britain, France, Russia and Australia officially landed on the land of South America, Chile has reversed its decline and entered a state of full-scale counterattack.
So far, in this war that has lasted for more than three months, the situation has completely turned against Chile and the Allied Powers behind it.
Just as Arthur expected, the Americans did not dare to show up in this war at all. They could only provide assistance to Argentina behind the scenes, praying that Argentina could hold back the few four-nation coalition forces.
But in fact, there is a clear gap between the armies of great powers and the armies of ordinary countries, especially in the training quality and weapons and equipment of soldiers.
Although U.S. aid has smoothed the gap in weapons and equipment, the problem is that most Argentine soldiers have only received new weapons and are not familiar with the new weapons and equipment, which has also weakened the combat effectiveness of the Argentine army in disguise.
Especially after the powerful Australasian army landed in Argentina, they advanced all the way and broke through several Argentine positions.
If they were not worried about being cut off from their logistical supply lines if they were too far away, and at the same time exposing their sides to the enemy, I am afraid that the Australasian army would have already penetrated deep into the hinterland of Argentina.
But after the reinforcements from the other three countries arrived, the Australasian army had no worries.
It was also from that time that the Allied forces advanced all the way, forcibly pushing the line of fire between Chile and Argentina dozens of kilometers toward Argentina. Argentina's hinterland was already in danger.
Both sides spent a lot of money in this war. Even Australasia, which entered the battle midway, has consumed tens of millions of bullets, tens of thousands of artillery shells and a large amount of supplies so far.
Fortunately, the British Empire directly promised to bear the material costs of this war, otherwise the consumption of these weapons and equipment would be enough to make Arthur feel distressed.
It was the British Empire's agreement to bear the consumption of weapons and equipment that caused the Australasian army to be very arrogant in this war, and bullets and artillery shells were thrown at the enemy for free.
Although the consumption of weapons, equipment and supplies is indeed distressing, the results achieved are also the largest among the four-nation coalition forces.
So far, Australasia has killed at least 2,000 Argentine troops and captured more than 3,000 people.
These 5,000 people are almost one-twentieth of the total number of the Argentine army, which is considered a strain for the Argentine army.
The casualties of the Argentine army throughout the war have reached more than 20,000. If the number of prisoners of the Argentine army is also included, the current number of combatable soldiers of the Argentine army will not exceed 70,000 at most.
This also means that Argentina has lost nearly one-third of its army so far, and its morale has hit rock bottom.
While Arthur was guessing when Argentina would surrender and admit defeat, on October 30, 1913, according to news from the British Empire, Argentina formally requested an armistice.
In order to show its sincerity, Argentina has ordered the troops on the front line to stop fighting and not to be the first to fire under any circumstances.
Seeing that their strategic goals had been achieved, the four major Allied powers had no idea of continuing the attack.
France and Russia did not want to waste any more energy, and Arthur did not want his troops to suffer losses in vain.
In fact, the British Empire cannot afford the crazy consumption of Australasia. Although Australasia sent only one division of troops to South America, this division's crazy ammunition consumption was comparable to the troops sent by Britain, France and Russia combined.
The British really didn't expect it. They originally thought that the total number of troops sent by the four major Allied powers was only tens of thousands, and the weapons, equipment and resources they consumed would not be too much. Who would have thought that Australasia was an outlier. After all, he was just pretending to be a coward, and he had to fulfill his promise with tears in his eyes.
Finally got to the point where the Argentines formally requested surrender. The British could no longer sit still and said with great relief, Argentina, you are such a good person!
On November 7, 1913, representatives of the British Empire, France, the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Australasia, Chile, and Argentina gathered in Sydney, the capital of Australasia, to negotiate a perfect end to the ongoing South American War.
The reason why Sydney was chosen for the peace talks was that Australasia was the closest Allied power to the South American battlefield.
Secondly, the capitals of the other three Allied powers are all located in Europe. It is difficult to guarantee that the Allies will not step in or do something to cause trouble.
In a conference room of the Sydney Government Offices, this time the peace talks also started smoothly.
First, both parties express their demands.
Chile demanded that Argentina pay 10 million pounds in compensation, recognize Chile's sovereignty over all previously disputed areas, and Argentina renounce sovereignty over these areas.
At the same time, the Chileans demanded that Argentina cede the Tierra del Fuego province, specifically the entire area south of the Strait of Magellan.
Argentina's southernmost provinces of Tierra del Fuego and Santa Cruz are separated by Chilean land and divided by the Strait of Magellan.
This also means that if the Chileans really get this area, it will not be easy for Argentina to get this area back.
Because of the Allied Powers, Chileans also have a huge appetite. In addition to demanding reparations and cession of land, the Chileans also demanded that Argentina's total military force should not exceed 40,000 and the army should not exceed 30,000.
If the Argentines accept this condition, then within South America, Argentina will lose the right to compete for hegemony in a short time.
The demands of the four Allied Powers were simple. France and Russia did not have large land claims in South America. In conjunction with the British Empire, they had already signed a private treaty, so they only asked for war reparations from Argentina.
Australasia's request is to carve out a four-nation condominium area on the black soil of Argentina to prevent Argentina from starting another war when it becomes stronger in the future.
The British Empire did not have much appeal. After all, the British Empire, which had a vast land, did not look down upon Argentina's land.
In order to get the four major powers of the Allied Powers to agree to their demands, Chile has been constantly contacting the diplomats of the four major powers since the beginning of the peace talks, and has made numerous secret moves.
Argentina's request is very simple. As the only defeated country, Argentina knows that it has no strength to resist, so it naturally does not have too outrageous demands.
Argentina is willing to pay compensation of about 1 million pounds, and is willing to restore the national border between the two sides to before the war, and at the same time give up the areas in dispute with Chile.
As for Chile's request to limit the size of its military and cede Tierra del Fuego and Australasia's request to create a condominium within the black soil, Argentina said it could not accept it.
Although the Argentinians had a good attitude towards admitting their mistakes, the demands that Argentina agreed to were somewhat suspicious of sending beggars away from the eyes of the four major powers.
The four major powers sent troops thousands of miles away, and the total cost definitely exceeded 1 million pounds.
Coupled with Chile's own domestic losses, 1 million pounds is a drop in the bucket for Chile and the Allied Powers.
And shouldn't it be something that the defeated country must do to give up the islands that were originally in dispute?
Do you, Argentina, a defeated country, still want to retain its sovereignty over disputed areas after defeat?
Because of disagreements, the peace talks have stalled again.
However, the Allies and Chile were in no rush for peace talks. At least the current cost of the war is affordable by the Allied Powers and Chile, and the balance of the war has already tilted towards Chile.
Even if the Argentine government refuses to let go at this moment, it is unwilling to pay more compensation for land and funds. When Argentina's front line really can no longer hold up, Argentina will not want compensation this much.
I believe that the Argentine government also understands this truth. The current reluctance may be just Argentina's stubbornness.
On November 11, after four days of peace talks with no results, Chile announced the resumption of war with Argentina and ordered frontline troops to immediately deploy for an attack.
Although the great powers did not express their stance, the expeditionary force dispatched by the Allied Powers was also planning to launch an attack on the Argentine army after Chile announced the resumption of war.
Later on the 11th, fighting resumed on the South American battlefields, and the gunshots that had been silent for a few days once again sounded in this area.
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(End of chapter)