African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 1249: Chapter 258: Odessa

In other words, East Africa and the United States are mutually restrained. With East Africa as a potential rival, the United States cannot perfectly replicate the process and outcome of the past where the clam and the snipe fought and the fisherman benefited. However, both East Africa and the United States have gained ample benefits.

Of course, other non-belligerent countries have also gained considerably, such as the Far East Empire and Japan, as well as the Ottoman Empire, which has not yet joined the war, and neutral countries like the Netherlands.

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July 1916.

Odessa Port.

A commercial ship flying the Greek flag slowly sailed into this major Russian port in the Black Sea.

Since the late 19th century, with the completion of the railway leading to Kyiv and Lviv, Odessa’s port throughput expanded, making it Russia’s second-largest port after Saint Petersburg.

Odessa’s economic strength has long ranked among the top four cities in Russia, alongside Saint Petersburg, Moscow, and Warsaw.

With Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria moving into the Moldova region, the pressure on Russia’s southern front suddenly increased, so last month, Russia ramped up its orders with East Africa.

Odessa and Moldova are closely connected; in the past, Odessa was one of the three states bordering Ukraine and Moldova, with the largest border area.

”It seems the Allies of Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria have caused tremendous pressure for Russia, otherwise the Russians wouldn’t be so eager to increase their orders.” Captain Rorlingen sighed as he looked at the busy Odessa port.

During the war, the entire Odessa became an important hub for trade between East Africa and Russia, so since 1914, thousands of sails competed in the harbor of Odessa.

By July 1916, the number of commercial ships in Odessa port hit a new high; Rorlingen last visited Odessa in May, yet now the ship density in Odessa port is estimated to be more than double what it was in May.

The channels started lining up like a long dragon, and the Russian port administrators were extremely busy, as every day, details could lead to port congestion due to their oversight.

”Captain, Russia took a major hit this time, since Germany hasn’t made progress on the Western Front, the pressure shifted to the Eastern Front. Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria’s combat power is quite considerable; I’ve heard Russia loses ground daily, and the situation is quite pessimistic,” First Officer Corolla remarked.

Rorlingen expressed a different view, saying, ”The Russian army may indeed be at a disadvantage now, but these are just skirmishes for Russia; after all, Russia’s territory is vast. Let’s talk when the Allied powers penetrate Russia; for now, they barely reach Ukraine’s edge, and defeating Russia is far from reality!”

Corolla: ”Indeed, how enviable the Russians are. If Greece had such vast territory, we wouldn’t be so cautious on the Balkan Peninsula.”

Rorlingen: ”Besides the Ottoman Empire, I can hardly think of directions for Greek expansion. Yet the Ottoman Empire is a powerful nation; though it’s now corrupt, a dying camel is still bigger than a horse. Unless Balkan nations unite as before, there is no hope otherwise.”

”But that’s just wishful thinking; last time, our conflict with Serbia offended Bulgaria greatly, and now Serbia is gone, making Balkan national unity impossible.”

Corolla shook his head, saying: ”That’s fine; Serbia and Bulgaria conflicted with us anyway. They both aimed to dominate the Balkan Peninsula, posing threats to the Kingdom; Greece should rely on itself for reviving.”

”Greece’s economy has visibly improved over the past two years, and industrial development has also been rapid; all of this is a result of the war. When other European countries are worn out, our opportunity will arrive.”

Greeks have their own dreams of being a great power, especially with the Eastern Roman Empire; after gaining independence in the 19th century, they considered themselves as successors to the Eastern Roman Empire, repeatedly attempting to reclaim Constantinople as their capital, willing to resort to force for this.

Ernst had a similar view to the Greeks, recognizing that only Greece was the most legitimate successor to the Eastern Roman Empire, as it largely Greekized later on. Comparatively, Russia acquired its crown through marriage, which always seemed less convincing, and the Ottoman Empire and later Turkey claiming to be successors of the Eastern Roman Empire appeared even more ridiculous.

If the ancestors of the Eastern Roman Empire were resurrected, they would probably prefer Greeks as their descendants, given closer race, religion, culture, and habits.

In fact, Greeks are essentially descendants of the Eastern Romans, unaltered by Ottoman rule. As for Ottomans, they are the descendants of enemies; as for Russia, they are descendants of barbarians. Don’t think marrying an Eastern Roman princess can make one an Eastern Roman emperor, unless Russians truly occupy Constantinople, restoring Eastern Roman territory.

Even so, the Tsar of Russia becoming an Eastern Roman emperor and Russians becoming Romans are two concepts, after all, during the Roman Era, there were cases of barbarian emperors, even a black emperor appearing. Of course, the Roman black emperor was probably more like Pushkin, possessing black lineage, rather than being a true black person.

This is similar to Obama in the previous era, except for being darker; his connection with Kenyan homeland blacks is largely bloodline-based. Obama was essentially a mixed-race person.

Back to the main topic, Greece’s great power dreams are just fantasies; they cannot shake off economic control by great powers.

Regarding Greece’s current economy, its recovery is mainly due to its favorable position. As a neutral country, Greece realizes the role of an intermediary similar to the Netherlands.

Many East African ships presently operate under Greek names to navigate European trade routes; however, Rorlingen is genuinely a Greek commercial ship.

Rorlingen plays the role of a middleman in the current East African and Russian trade, responsible for transporting East African goods to Russia to earn shipping fees.

This is welcomed by East Africa, as trading in Europe carries enormous risks for domestic ships.

Several large, state-owned trade companies in East Africa are actively exploring Asia-Africa-Latin America trade routes to shift away from European trade dependence, a result caused by mutual restraint between the Allies and the Allied powers.

Fortunately, many countries are willing to act as intermediaries, such as the Netherlands, Italy, Portugal, Greece, the Ottoman Empire, and even some French and British commercial ships.

Despite the motley mix, East Africa-Europe trade remains largely unaffected, as the industrial products from East Africa and certain strategic materials are indispensable to both camps.

Correspondingly, East Africa is now vigorously developing trade with South America, West Africa, Indian Ocean coastal areas, and the Far East.

European markets are tempting, but East Africa cannot grasp them now; only neutral markets in Asia, Africa, and Latin America are the foundation for post-war East African industrial survival.

After all, Europe’s major countries occupy most of the region: Britain, France, Germany, Russia, Austria, and Spain account for six out of nine world powers, leading to the meat of the crisis that sparked World War I in Europe.

In contrast, countries like the United States, East Africa, and Japan, located beyond the ”civilization centers,” have ample maneuverability and significant expansion possibilities besides the surrounding colonies.

Germany and Austria-Hungary can only gamble on national prosperity; Russia’s conditions are superior but internal social structures stifle its potential.

Moreover, Europe contains several economically and industrially robust small countries, unqualified as great powers, such as the Netherlands, Belgium, and the Kingdom of Italy.