African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 1273: Chapter 282: Deep Cooperation

On the third day, Prime Minister Kaiboer personally visited Frier’s temporary residence.

”Your Excellency Frier, we have agreed to the territorial deal with your country this time. We are practically giving away these dozen islands at a bargain. We hope your country will safeguard our interests in the South Sea region in the future.”

”No problem, no problem. I can assure you, Prime Minister, that we in East Africa have no covetous intentions toward the East Indies islands. Our appeal to your nation this time is entirely due to strategic security needs in the South Sea region.”

Having sealed the deal, Frier was in a great mood. Naturally, he would not make things difficult for Kaiboer, both assuaging these Dutch prime ministers and greatly appreciating the Dutch government’s pragmatic approach of recognizing opportunities.

As for Prime Minister Kaiboer’s mention of ”bargain,” it was indeed true. After all, these strategically positioned islands are not for just any country to buy if they wish, especially since East Africa paid so little.

It was just at this time that the British were mired in the quagmire of World War I; otherwise, the British would surely have stepped in to stop this territorial exchange between East Africa and the Netherlands.

In fact, from the incident of East Africa forcibly taking the Kra Strait Territory earlier, it could be seen that the current British inability to manage the South Sea region properly.

In the past, East Africa wouldn’t have even imagined controlling strategic points like the Kra Strait, let alone prevent the potential threat to the British colonies on the Malay Peninsula that East Africa might cause, and the pressure forming on India from East Africa’s influence trickling into the Eastern Indian Ocean.

The British would never have allowed East Africa to control the Kra Strait, but now they are completely unable to prevent it, and thus can only take a lesser approach to protect the Tabi River Plain for Siam, making it impossible to construct the Keray Canal.

Regarding the territorial exchange between East Africa and the Netherlands, even if the British knew, they could not intervene. This was entirely different from East Africa acquiring the Kra Isthmus. For the Kra Isthmus, East Africa directly threatened the Siamese government with force, and only as one of Siam’s two protectors could the British use their position as mediators to obstruct East Africa.

But East Africa’s attitude towards the Netherlands was different; although Frier also probed Prime Minister Kaiboer, it ultimately remained within reasonable bounds.

Moreover, the Netherlands is not a country like Siam, completely incapable of independence, but instead has significant influence in Europe, and even worldwide.

Therefore, East Africa and the Netherlands are entirely capable of doing business behind closed doors, without having to care much about the opinions of third countries.

Frier said to Prime Minister Kaiboer, ”After this agreement is signed, we in East Africa will certainly focus on developing the Sunda Strait route, and we also hope your government can play a significant role in the region, enhancing the economic value of the Sunda Strait.”

”The potential of the Sunda Strait is not much less than that of the Malacca Strait, but in the past, it was bypassed by the world’s main shipping routes, so not many ships chose the Sunda Strait.”

”Coupled with the underdeveloped ports and services on both sides of the Sunda Strait, which further put the Sunda Strait at a disadvantage in competition with other world shipping routes.”

”Therefore, we in East Africa hope to achieve further cooperation with your country, jointly creating a stable route from the Indian Ocean to the Far East Empire.”

Upon hearing what Frier said, Kaiboer was initially skeptical.

This is also the helplessness of small countries; they cannot afford to be careless in their communications with the world’s great powers. If they fall into the great powers’ traps, they could be heading towards irrevocable disaster.

Seeming to perceive Kaiboer’s concerns, Frier explained, ”Prime Minister, there’s no need to be nervous. I am not being facetious. Since we in East Africa want to break the monopoly on East-West trade by the Malacca Strait, we will certainly come prepared.”

”And the territorial exchange with your country earlier was our prerequisite for military and strategic levels in the South Sea region to ensure the security of the Sunda Strait route.”

All of East Africa’s actions in the South Sea region, aside from the needs of its colonial activities, were also to bypass the Malacca Strait, a world-class trade channel monopolized by the British.

After all, East Africa cannot earn much from colonial activities, not even breaking even in most colonies so far.

On one hand, the colonial environment in East Africa is too harsh, either tropical rainforest climate or icy tundra in places like Alaska.

On the other hand, East Africa’s colonial development is weak, with a small population size. Of course, East Africa’s large-scale ”slaughter” in the South Sea region did not help either.

But no matter what, at this stage East Africa does not rely on their colonial territories’ modest offerings, nor can it.

Therefore, compared to the colonies, East Africa places more importance on trade fluidity. Now, as the world’s largest industrial nation, East Africa holds an advantageous position in international trade, which is also its primary means of accumulating national wealth.

Meanwhile, the British have long controlled global maritime supremacy, mastering numerous straits, canals, passages, routes, islands, etc., thereby controlling the basic order of world trade.

Especially the Malacca Strait and the Suez Canal, two vital transportation arteries for East Africa, could be said to be a thorn in East Africa’s side, a constant burden.

If these two passages were cut off, they could directly stop foreign trade on the East African East Coast for a while.

Prime Minister Kaiboer also understood the meaning behind Frier’s words.

He asked somewhat uncertainly, ”Are you suggesting, Your Excellency Frier, that your country will develop the Sunda Strait route?”

Frier shook his head and said, ”Of course not. Rather, it’s that our two countries will jointly develop the Sunda Strait route. After all, the places the Sunda Strait route passes through aren’t solely East Africa’s; on the contrary, your country’s position and importance are higher.”

From exiting the Sunda Strait to the Far East Empire’s South Sea, this entire stretch can be said to be entirely between East Africa and the Netherlands, and the fact that the Netherlands controls the Sunda Strait means that it is impossible to develop this route without the Netherlands.

Frier said, ”Of course, to ensure that the Sunda Strait will not be manipulated by any unscrupulous great powers in the future, we have another request to your country, that is, no third-party country’s military or military facilities should exist in the East Indies region under your control, including the Sunda Strait.”

”And we in East Africa will also support your country’s status and interests in the region, ensuring that your interests in the South Sea region are not encroached upon by other nations.”

East Africa can allow the Netherlands to continue holding the Sunda Strait, but absolutely cannot let the Sunda Strait fall into the hands of any other powers apart from East Africa.

No matter how the Sunda Strait is currently far inferior to the Malacca Strait, it doesn’t mean this piece of meat isn’t desired by other nations.

In a past life during World War II, Japan and the United States fought fiercely over the Sunda Strait; later, in maintaining world dominance, the United States attached special importance to the Sunda Strait.

In a past life, the American Seventh Fleet depended heavily on the Sunda Strait for transit between the Pacific and Indian Oceans, and the Sunda Strait, because of its unique underwater conditions, was very suitable for submarine passage.

These historical events and features highlighted the importance of the Sunda Strait, actually even before the 1980s its conditions were superior.

Yet, due to nearby volcanic eruptions, the seabed of the Sunda Strait became shallower and uneven, which is unfavorable for the smooth passage of ships exceeding 200,000 tons.

Of course, ships of the present age are not as exaggerated as those of the 21st century; the Titanic, which sank not so many years ago, had a displacement of just over 50,000 tons.

So the Sunda Strait is absolutely adequate for East African needs, especially in a military sense. Even in a past life, the Sunda Strait was sufficient for naval use; after all, even in a previous life, American aircraft carriers weighed only about 100,000 tons.

If East Africa values the Sunda Strait so much, what about the British as the world overlord? The answer is that the British also monitor the Sunda Strait, but only monitor.

The British control the Cocos Islands and Christmas Island on the west side of the Sunda Strait, but these two islands are a long way from the Sunda Strait and are insufficient to support a British blockade of the Sunda Strait.

Of course, this is also related to the fact that the importance of the Malacca Strait surpasses that of the Sunda Strait. Before East Africa, apart from the Netherlands and a few other nations, few countries chose the Sunda Strait route as a trade route.