Chapter 2285: British-Japanese Relations II
So, in the face of this situation, what should the UK do? The current strength of Britain is in a very delicate state. In this plane, Britain is a defeated country in the First World War, so its situation is much worse than in history. If in history the British were able to forcibly suppress everything with guns, then now the British are somewhat powerless to do so.
But at the same time, it needs to be admitted that although Britain failed, it still has not reached the point of collapse. The two most important dominions of Australia and Canada are still subject to the British Empire. The nationalism of each colony has not been fully awakened, or has not found a path that suits them, making their resistance to colonial rule very inefficient. After Germany acquired the British colonies in Africa, it also objectively allowed Britain to close its front and get rid of some burdens, which made it possible for the British colonial rule to continue.
So, the problem is a bit complicated now. If the British are strong enough, they can just use force to suppress it. If the British are no longer able to maintain colonial rule, then giving up is also a good choice. And now, much to the dismay of the British, the UK is somewhere in between these two extremes... It is true that the sunset of the empire is absolutely unacceptable to the British, and continuing to maintain it means huge investment and bloodshed! In particular, when the British still want to wrestle with the Germans in Europe!
Therefore, in any case, Britain needs to maintain its rule in a cheap and efficient way, especially when the local troops are not enough and the colonial army may not be reliable! So, what are the forces available to the British?
It is unrealistic for Australia and Canada, which have just experienced the war, to continue to provide a large amount of military power. First of all, the two dominions also paid a very heavy price in this war! Australia now has a population of just over 4 million and has provided more than 400,000 troops! More than 200,000 casualties! Such a huge casualty has caused Australia to suffer severe blood loss, and has greatly affected Australia's perception of the British Empire. And so is Canada. It is not realistic for them to continue to undertake large-scale military missions. And if you rely on British personnel? This seems to be very difficult. After all, nearly 2 million people were killed and injured in the British local army in this war!
Well, since the internal power of the British Empire system is no longer enough, what about using external power? There are not many such things in British history, but they are very common in European history, such as the intervention of European countries in the French Revolution, and Russia's military assistance to European countries during the European Revolution in 1848! Therefore, the British must also consider using the power of their allies as a last resort.
But it is a pity that after this war, Britain will not have reliable and powerful allies for a long period of time, and there are even fewer allies that can be used in Southeast Asia or South Asia! Look at the map. After the war between the United States and Japan is over, Southeast Asia will be under the domination of three forces, the United States as a powerful outsider, Japan, the leader of East Asia, and the British Empire, which is no longer brilliant!
Even if a certain degree of reconciliation has been reached between the United States and Britain, the United States can provide funds and even equipment, but the Americans will never directly help the British to suppress the resistance of the colonies. Americans will use their military power cautiously. And helping the former enemy, the British, to maintain their colonial rule is also not in line with mainstream public opinion in the United States. There will be a lot of political pressure, and most importantly, this is a money-losing business! The British don't have enough money to "hire" American troops!
Well, tell me, why should the Americans get blood on a guy who is not an ally? You know, after World War II in history,
The United Kingdom has become the younger brother of the US emperor, but the United States still sits and watches the collapse of the British colonial empire. Even when Britain, France and Israel joined hands to compete for the Suez Canal, they chose a suppressive attitude! Therefore, it can be said that even if Britain and the United States become allies, the Americans will not help the United Kingdom on the issue of suppressing the colonies, because on this issue, the Americans will only trouble the United Kingdom and not benefit!
What about Japan? How will they do it? In Ruprecht's view, it is cost-effective for Japan to help Britain maintain its colonial rule in Southeast Asia. Of course, there is a prerequisite for this, that is, Britain and Japan are still allies, and Britain has not reached a tacit agreement with the United States. !
First of all, from a geographical point of view, after the expansion during the war, the British and Japanese colonies have actually bit together. For example, Britain and Japan shared the islands of Kalimantan and Guinea. The turmoil in the British Far East colonies would directly affect the stability of the Japanese colonies. Therefore, from this perspective, it is also necessary for Japan to ensure the stability of Malaya, Sarawak and other places.
Secondly, in this war, Britain and Japan have reached a tacit agreement on certain "employment agreements". To be honest, in this world war in this plane, the Japanese contributed more than in history! Even the battleship sank several ships! The number of Japanese troops who participated in the war in Europe also exceeded 200,000. The decisive factors that caused this situation were the British pound and the tacit approval of Japan's occupation of the Dutch East Indies!
Although the British have been complaining that the Japanese participated in this war for the pound, there is no sincerity and friendliness towards their allies. But I have to admit that the "price ratio" of the Japanese army is still relatively high. Of course, this does not mean how high the combat effectiveness of the Japanese army is, but because the "price" of the Japanese army is very low! After all, unlike the British mainland army that has to consider pensions and resettlement issues, the recruitment cost of a soldier in the Japanese Army is just a postcard! Pensions and salary costs are also extremely low!
As for the low combat effectiveness of the Japanese army, this is actually not a problem. After all, how high combat effectiveness do you need to deal with colonial uprisings? Not against German tanks and planes! The inhuman blood and brutality of the Japanese army is not a problem in the eyes of the British, because the British think that this can deter the independent elements in the colonies very well. As for whether the Japanese will eventually occupy the magpie's nest? The British are not too worried. First of all, Japan's poor political and diplomatic situation makes it impossible for Japan to harm British-Japanese relations for some small interests! After all, Japan does not have an ally in the world now! And after the end of the war, Japan had to try its best to win over the British in order to barely fight against the United States!
The second one is here~~~! ! ! Ask for a subscription and a reward~~~! ! ! !
Recommend the new book of the urban master Lao Shi: