To use an old saying, the cake is so big, if someone else takes one more bite, you will have to take one less bite.
The Mediterranean is already crowded enough. Britain, France, Italy, southern Africa, plus Spain, Greece, Egypt, as well as the dead Ottomans and the eyeing Russia have been squeezed into a sardine can. There is really no extra space for the United States.
The British had a good plan and wanted to use the United States to curb the expansion of influence in southern Africa.
However, the Americans are not easy to deal with. This is actually opening the door to thieves. In the end, I am afraid that not only did they fail to contain southern Africa, but the addition of the Americans caused the British influence in the Mediterranean to further decline.
What even Roque didn't expect was that before he could make the trip, the situation in North Africa worsened further.
After Eisenhower suffered such a big loss, he would definitely not swallow his anger and seek to regain his position.
At this time, it is no longer important which party attacked the American convoy. The key is that the Americans knew that an attack was going to happen, but they did not fight back or even escape unscathed. This was a huge blow to the image of the United States and made people feel uncomfortable.
I can't help but wonder whether the United States is as powerful as it seems.
After the convoy was attacked, the U.S. military mobilized frantically. The desert tribes near the attack site were unlucky. The U.S. military wiped out three villages in seven days.
"The Americans have gone crazy. This is the third time in a week. Now there are rumors among North Africans that we are carrying out a planned elimination of North Africans." De Gaulle took the initiative to find Patton, hoping that Patton could properly restrain the US military.
There is actually a misunderstanding here.
The desert tribes are armed, fragile and sensitive, and will definitely resist when faced with the pursuit of the US military.
The Americans were furious and their retaliatory measures were brutal, which had begun to affect the North Africans' attitude towards the Allies.
The Allies initially drove the Italians away under the pretext of saving North Africa.
During the Italian rule in North Africa, there was no such bad behavior.
In the eyes of most North Africans, the U.S. Army, the British Army, and the Southern African Army are all similar. They all have a common name: Allied Forces.
"This is normal for Americans. They have always treated North American natives this way." Patton's dislike of Americans has reached a new level. Americans used to pretend, but now they don't even bother to pretend.
If you look at how Americans treat Indians, you will know what their moral standards are.
When faced with countries like the United Kingdom and southern Africa, Americans will exercise some restraint.
Americans don't have that much patience when it comes to North Africans. Their so-called "civilization" is only useful when it benefits them.
"If this continues, we will soon encounter a collective counterattack by the North Africans. Do we have to kill them all by then?" De Gaulle was obviously not as decisive as the bearded man.
Just a few days ago, when Big Beard gave a public speech on the radio, he called on all Russians to take up arms and kill all their enemies.
Killing them all was unacceptable to de Gaulle.
But it’s understandable for Russians.
After all, the Germans had caused too much harm to the Russians.
The French are not qualified to forgive the Germans on behalf of the Russians.
"Andre, calm down, we can't let the situation get worse." Patton didn't want to irritate the Americans. Putting himself in their shoes, if the southern African convoy was attacked, Patton's way of retaliation would probably be more cruel than that of the Americans.
Precisely because he did not want to irritate the Americans, even though the Adan Company's drilling team had arrived in Algiers, Patton did not let them go, and instead asked the drilling team to stay in Algiers temporarily. At this time, everyone needed to calm down.
Now that Adan Company's drilling team is to leave the city, the fun will be great.
If Adan's drilling team is also attacked, Barton will lose face.
If safety is a bigger problem, why was the American convoy attacked but the southern African convoy was safe?
I'm afraid Americans will really go crazy by then.
"Indeed, we all need to calm down." De Gaulle is not in a hurry. He is the one who really enjoys watching the excitement and not taking it too seriously.
Everyone feels bad now.
The Americans were frantically looking for the murderer, while the British were completely fooled. They found the oil field and successfully pumped out oil, but they did not dare to transport a drop of it because no one could guarantee that the British convoy was safe.
Patton is also feeling uncomfortable now. He is the commander-in-chief of the Allied Forces in North Africa. Now the Americans and British are suspicious of each other, and Patton can only appease both sides.
De Gaulle, who had not suffered any losses, was also sad.
Although there is no loss, there is also no gain.
For the French, if you don’t make a profit, you lose.
Patton did not do nothing. He communicated with Eisenhower and Alexander respectively in the past few days, trying to find a plan acceptable to everyone.
Eisenhower was resolute and would dig deep into the ground to find the murderer and the real culprit behind the scenes.
"David, I have to say, there may never be a truth in this matter." Patton reminded Eisenhower, that's about it.
It is obvious that the people who attacked the American convoy were supported by mysterious forces. They might be some major country in the world.
What will we do then? World War II is not over yet, and World War III is about to begin?
Eisenhower is also using the topic now. Think about how many American soldiers died in vain because of someone's command error during the Battle of Sicily, and how many died at the hands of their own people?
No one is responsible for this.
"I only do what I should do and leave the result to God." Eisenhower believed that these were two different things and should not be confused.
"Harold, our most important task now is to defeat the Axis powers, not to exploit oil." Patton hoped that Alexander could provide some sweetness. Up to now, this matter is no longer simply a problem of the oil fields, but an issue of the alliance.
Conflicting interests within the military.
"Marshal, I have no say in the oil field issue. The decision now rests with London." Alexander's attitude was more determined. You can do whatever you want, as long as it does not infringe on the interests of the British Empire.
Then we'll have to wait for London's decision.
While Patton was trying to reconcile, Winston was waiting for news from North Africa.
Winston was not waiting for the investigation results of the attack on the US military, but for the confirmation of reserves from the oil field.
If the reserves are large, Winston's attitude will be very tough.
As a child, Winston will be very flexible.
As for how many American soldiers and drilling workers were killed or injured in the attack?
Sorry, Winston doesn't care about this issue at all.
During a war, casualties are normal.
"Professor Wollaston has confirmed that the North African oil fields have at least 100 million barrels of reserves. This is not the final result, but with our current technology, we can only determine 100 million barrels."
The news coming from North Africa is exciting. The value of 100 million barrels of oil to the British Empire is immeasurable.
Since the outbreak of the World War, Britain's energy supply has been in an extremely insecure state. During the North African Campaign, oil tankers bound for Britain from Port Elizabeth even had to bypass the entire African continent.
As a result, Britain increased its dependence on American oil.
Then American oil tankers were threatened by German submarines. Oil has become a matter of life and death for the current British Empire.
"It's great. I can finally take a breath and have a good sleep at night." General Ismail, Chief of Staff of the Ministry of National Defense, was very happy. This is really a good rain after a long drought, and God is still favoring the United Kingdom.
"The Americans are making great efforts to find the murderer. It is a good thing to have 100 million barrels of oil, but we cannot transport a drop of oil." Foreign Minister Robert Eden frowned. He has been under great pressure in the past two days.
After the attack, Washington sent a co-investigation notice to the British government, hoping that the British army could cooperate with the US military in investigating the truth of the attack.
The investigation is fake, and the intention to get involved in the oil fields is real. Otherwise, an attack with only dozens of casualties would not have attracted Roosevelt's attention.
"Who attacked the American convoy?" Winston was very angry. This matter really had nothing to do with him.
"It's not us, it's not southern Africans, maybe only God knows." Aiden didn't know either.
"Could it be the French who did it?" Ismail's mind was wide open, and it was not impossible.
"The French don't have this ability. I would rather believe that someone made the decision on their own." Winston didn't like De Gaulle. He was so tall and he didn't look like a good person.
"No, no, no, General Alexander would not do that." Ismail still trusted Alexander.
"No matter what the truth is, it doesn't matter. The most important thing now is Tehran. How did you arrange it?" Winston asked Aiden. He, like Rock, attached great importance to this meeting.
If there are no accidents, the long-debated second battlefield will be confirmed in this meeting, and then there will be no reason to delay further.
The situation cannot be delayed. As the situation on the Russian battlefield improves, the Axis troops are being driven out of Russia. If the Allies still do nothing, then just wait and see Russia occupying Europe.
By then, I am afraid that the Russian model will follow the footsteps of the Russian army and spread throughout Europe.
By then, southern Africa and the United States will leave Europe, and the United Kingdom will face the threat of the entire Europe alone.
For hundreds of years, Britain has adhered to the continental equilibrium policy in order to avoid this situation.
"We have prepared several combat plans, but the one that is most likely to be implemented is still the original one." Aiden was very distressed. There were also differences of opinion within the UK regarding the opening of a second battlefield.
The key lies in the location of opening the second battlefield. Some people in the UK support the Balkan Peninsula, some support it in France, and some even support it in Germany. According to the results of the Casablanca Conference, the possibility of opening a second battlefield in France is the most likely, but this
The plan met with widespread opposition in the British Parliament.
Winston insisted on opening a second battlefield in the Balkans in order to prevent the Russian model from spreading to the Balkans.
As for Germany and France, that was not Winston's concern.
Roque hopes to land in France, partly because of his own memory, and partly because of the enclave of Saint-Roch.
As for landing in Germany, this plan has the least support. Only the craziest guys will support this plan.
"No, I'm not asking about that, I'm asking about how to arrange the meeting between me and Locke." Winston didn't care about the details of the second battlefield. It was depressing to talk about it, and it didn't matter if Winston said it.
On the contrary, it is the meeting with Roque that Winston is looking forward to now.
The last time Winston and Rock met was during the Casablanca Conference. A lot of things happened in the past year or so, which caught people off guard. Winston did not expect that the relationship between Britain and Southern Africa would reach the point it is today.
"I have confirmed with Marshal Smuts that you will meet with Lord Nyasaland the day after he arrives in Tehran." Aiden breathed a sigh of relief. Smuts still respects Britain.
"No, it's too late the next day. I hope to meet Locke on the day he arrives in Tehran." Winston couldn't wait. He and Locke had many issues to communicate.
"Okay, I will contact Pretoria." Aiden could understand Winston's mood.
"Oil" Ismail is obsessed with it and hopes to resolve the matter as soon as possible.
"The oil issue will be discussed after I go to Tehran to meet Locke. Are we short of oil now?" Winston is good at focusing on the key points. If it is not so urgent, he can let it go first.
"That's not true. There is a constant supply of oil from southern Africa and the United States. To be honest, the oil that southern Africa and the Americans give us is cheaper than the oil from Royal Shell." Ismail couldn't help but complain, Royal Shell is a British company.
.
The key is cost.
Not to mention southern African oil, Americans are now following the example of southern African oil companies and using a large number of Mexican workers, successfully reducing costs and increasing competitiveness.
Royal Shell's environment is getting more and more difficult, costs remain high, oil production is getting lower and lower, and there are not many high-quality oil fields in hand. The news of the discovery of oil fields in North Africa can have such a sensational effect, unlike Royal Shell
It has a lot to do with fanning the flames.
After all, Anglo-American Petroleum was jointly established by the United Kingdom and the United States. After a series of equity changes, Royal Shell has now become a purely British-owned enterprise. Therefore, if nothing unexpected happens, the mining rights of the North African oil fields will definitely be taken over by Royal Shell.
.
"That's alright, let's cherish the time we have now. This is one of the few areas where we can get relatively fair competition between southern Africa and the United States." Winston shook his head and smiled bitterly, which clearly shows how bad the situation Britain is facing now is.
Competition will never be fair. Southern African oil companies and American oil companies have now reached a tacit understanding to a certain extent to jointly harvest the British Empire.
The British certainly don't want this kind of position of being at the mercy of others.
Therefore, the trip to Tehran is important for both Winston and Britain. Britain needs to find a new balance between southern Africa and the United States, and Winston also needs to restore the friendship with Rock.