The idea of reopening the Madrid Conference and internationalizing the Moroccan issue proposed by German Prime Minister Bülow was originally intended to use the interests of various countries in Morocco to force France to make concessions.
But who knows, after countries gather in Madrid, this will not be the case.
Driven by Britain and France, France received support from ten countries including Britain, Russia, Spain, and the Netherlands. As for Germany, only Austria-Hungary and Italy supported it. This was a disastrous defeat for German diplomacy.
Faced with this situation, Germany was of course unwilling to do so, so it stepped up efforts to connect with other countries in Madrid in an attempt to regain its diplomatic disadvantage.
Just after a meeting in which German Foreign Minister Schrichofen put forward new proposals for dealing with Morocco and representatives from participating countries discussed it, Bacona packed up his things and prepared to leave the venue with the Italian delegation.
He has long seen the dilemma of the reopened Madrid Conference and its ally Germany. Compared with Germany, other countries are more willing to believe in Britain and France. In this regard, Italy has no choice but to count on the Germans themselves.
After he left the venue and was about to board the bus back to the embassy, someone suddenly stopped him.
"Your Excellency Bacona, I am a staff member of the French Embassy. Can I talk to you?"
"French?"
Bacona looked at the other party with a puzzled expression.
I saw this man who claimed to be a staff member of the French Embassy, walked into Bacona and whispered, "Your Excellency, our Foreign Minister Delcasse would like to invite you for a drink."
Bacona has served as Italy's foreign minister for so many years, and of course he knows the man in charge of French diplomacy. Delcasse has served as foreign minister in six French governments, and can be said to be France's senior diplomatic controller.
Moreover, Mr. Delcasse was very capable. He concluded an agreement with the United Kingdom as soon as he took office and successfully resolved the Fashoda crisis. France continued to consolidate its colonial empire in West Africa while striving to gradually become friendly with the United Kingdom. He also mediated the U.S.
Spanish War and helped the two countries reach a peace treaty.
When Delcasse was the Minister of Foreign Affairs, he continued to maintain his consistent anti-German stance. Kaiser Wilhelm II even called him "the most dangerous Frenchman to Germany." Delcasse gradually isolated France's diplomacy since the Second Empire.
break, and instead launch a diplomatic offensive against Germany.
Such a French foreign minister would definitely not be looking for him just for a drink. But it might as well be a meeting to see what he wants to say.
"No problem, I happen to be a little thirsty too."
Afterwards, Bacona asked the rest of the delegation to return to the embassy first. He planned to meet Mr. Delcasse.
Under the guidance of the French Embassy staff, Bacona soon met the French Foreign Minister in a cafe not far from the venue.
"Your Excellency Bacona, it is a pleasure to have a drink with you."
In a relatively secluded room, Delcasse looked at Bacona as he entered and greeted him warmly.
"Hello, Mr. Delcasse."
After a brief greeting, the two parties sat down. Delcasse was seen holding a bottle of red wine and saying while pouring the wine. "This is the Romanee-Conti wine that I have collected for 16 years. It was given to me by a friend of mine."
Mine, I have always been reluctant to drink it, but today I suddenly became interested, so I took the liberty to invite you."
Bacona is also very good at dealing with Delcasse's courtesy. "Thank you for your kind invitation, but I won't be polite."
Then the two of them drank one cup after another. During the drinking period, the two of them chatted. Anyway, as long as the other party didn't take the initiative to bring it up, Bacona could treat it as an ordinary wine tasting party.
As for how much wine there is in a bottle, it won't take long before you can see the bottom of the bottle.
Only then did Delcasse speak. "Your Excellency Bacona, our two countries have historically been good neighbors and friendly, and there have been no conflicts worth fighting. Why are the diplomatic relations between our two countries so tense?"
Hearing Delcasse's words, Bacona smiled and said nothing. Because these words were too nonsense, the relationship between Italy and France has never been good. It was like this before unification, and even more so after unification. As for now, it is just like that.
Seeing that Bacona did not speak to him, Delcasse certainly knew that if he wanted to resolve the tense diplomatic relations between Italy and France, he could not do it with just one sentence. How could this be possible without something practical?
Speaking of which, Italy has developed rapidly in recent years, so France has to pay more attention to its neighbor. Fortunately, the other country has not greatly expanded its army, but in terms of navy, Italy has taken a lot of actions.
"Bakona, the current relationship between your country and our country is abnormal, very abnormal."
Delcasse continued, "I know that your country has always been very dissatisfied with our country's occupation of Tunisia, so I am thinking, if our country makes certain concessions on the Tunisian issue, will the situation be different?"
Delcasse's words made Bacona unable to remain calm. Needless to say, the importance of Tunisia to Italy, so after hearing Delcasse's words, Bacona said, "Your country
How do you plan to make concessions to our country on the Tunisian issue?"
"If your country can receive the same treatment as ours in Tunisia, I think this will be enough to resolve the previous unhappiness between your two countries!"
Delcasse's words made Bacona think about it. This condition seemed very generous, and allowing Italy to return to Tunisia was considered a huge concession from the French.
However, Bacona is not so easy to fool. He asked before. "I don't know, is this what you want, or what your government wants?"
It was obvious that he was asking whether Delcasse had come up with this idea, or was it prepared by Paris?
If it's the former, it means it's just Delcasse's own private thoughts. If it's the latter, it's the government's decision. The difference between the two is huge.
Faced with Bacona's inquiry, Delcasse answered very calmly. "This is my humble opinion, but if your country is willing, I will push our government to implement it."
"Then it's up to you to promote it first. It's still a bit too early to say whether you are willing or not."
After saying this, Bacona stood up and left, while Delcasse poured out the last bit of wine in the bottle and drank it before leaving.
"Minister, how was the discussion?"
The man who claimed to be an embassy staff member asked at the door.
"The talks were pretty good. At least we know each other's requirements."
What Delcasse said was correct. They did understand each other's requirements. At least he knew what the Italians' requirements were. They wanted the whole of Tunisia.
He had previously talked about giving the Italians the same treatment, but His Excellency Bacona did not have much trouble in his eyes. It was obvious that the conditions were not in place.
But throughout Tunisia, Italians have a really big appetite.
When Delcasse lamented the huge appetite of Italians, Bacona in the car also lamented the good tricks of the French Foreign Minister.
It was said before that the Italians should be treated the same as the French in Tunisia, which sounds good, but the French have been in Tunisia for so many years, what benefits can the Italians get now? It is just empty talk, and it is the diplomat
The minister has his own ideas.
If you want the two countries to reconcile as before, everything will be in vain if you don't get Tunisia. Don't think that he doesn't know what this guy is up to, just tell him directly that if you want to get Italy's friendship, then get Tunisia in exchange.
Of course, the contact with Delcasse must be reported to Rome. This at least represents a trend. The French have finally faced up to Italy's dissatisfaction. In addition, France is facing pressure from Germany and wants to break the diplomatic situation in order to reduce its own pressure.
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In the car, Baccona basically understood Delcasse's thoughts closely.
