Chapter 1140: 1046: From Persia to Central Asia

Chapter 1140: Chapter 1046: From Persia to Central Asia

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Talleyrand first bowed in acknowledgment, then hesitated slightly and said: “Your Highness, what if the British fail to respond properly and the Russian army actually enters the Khyber Pass…”

His concerns were not unfounded.

According to the strategic plan just mentioned by the Crown Prince, France would strongly support Russia in its Middle East expansion.

Currently, Afghanistan is extremely weak due to the King, Tamerlane, having died without clearly designating an heir, leading to fierce battles among his over twenty sons.

If Russia gains control of the area east of the Caspian Sea, it can easily conquer Afghanistan after defeating Persia, allowing entry into the Khyber Pass.

The Khyber Pass is the only land route from the Middle East to the Indian Peninsula.

The combat capability of the Indian Princely States is by no means capable of stopping the flood-like Russian ground forces.

Once Russia acquires the wealthy colonies of South Asia, it will quickly develop into a terrifying monster, causing upheaval across the European Continent.

Joseph smiled and shook his head: “You need not worry; the Russians will never be able to control Afghanistan.”

Talleyrand thought the Crown Prince meant that if the British couldn’t hold off the Russians in Afghanistan, then France would intervene in the Middle Eastern affairs.

So he no longer spoke and bowed out.

Joseph watched his departure and muttered to himself: “The ‘Graveyard of Empires’ is not a name given lightly.”

There have always been mistakes in names, but none in nicknames. Afghanistan being called the “Graveyard of Empires” is backed by numerous solid military records.

Not to mention the current Tsarist Russia, even the omnipotent Red Empire of the 20th century, after covering Afghanistan’s desolate hills and valleys with T72 tanks and Mi24 armed helicopters, could only retreat in humiliation.

After defeating Napoleon, Britain also ambitiously tried to control Afghanistan, the “pivot of the Eurasian continent,” but despite Afghanistan erupting in fierce civil war, the British Expeditionary Force was still driven to a shameful retreat, leaving behind over twenty thousand corpses.

Afghanistan is a treacherous place, full of mountains and very poor, making it hard to acquire local supplies; basically, whoever goes there dies. Joseph was not worried in the slightest.

At the royal banquet, Bezbediko deftly used diplomatic language to engage Queen Mary and the nobles, suddenly turning his head seemingly inadvertently to Talleyrand beside him:

“Archbishop, it seems the Crown Prince is quite interested in Middle Eastern affairs.”

Talleyrand put down his cutlery, wiped his lips with a napkin, and quietly said: “Actually, His Highness is interested in the Tsar’s ‘East Caspian’ strategy.”

What is referred to as the “East Caspian” is the area later known as Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan.

Currently, it is still the Sultanates of Khiva and Bukhara. After long-term infiltration, Russia has already established small-scale fortresses here.

Bezbediko smiled: “The Crown Prince doesn’t seem to have mentioned that area.”

“That’s because your country has not yet met the conditions for expansion into that area.”

“Do you mean?”‌

“Occupying Khiva is bound to threaten the plains south of the Caspian Sea in Persia,” Talleyrand said, “which produces nearly half of all Persian grain.”

“So His Highness has always been waiting for you to completely defeat Persia.”

Bezbediko thought for a moment, somewhat puzzled: “What is attracting His Highness to Khiva?”

“Naturally, it’s cotton…”

Talleyrand immediately offered the reason prepared by Joseph, but pretended to regret: “Oh, I shouldn’t have said this to you. According to the plan, this should only be mentioned after Persia becomes a vassal state of yours.”

Bezbediko slightly frowned: “There have been people in Khiva planting cotton, but the yield doesn’t seem to warrant special attention.”

Talleyrand leaned a little closer to him and said in a mysterious whisper: “Alright, I’ll be frank. Our people surveyed the area, and there are vast undeveloped lands suited for cotton cultivation.

“The opinion of the agriculturists is that if fully promoted, the yield could even rival that of the United States.”

He had no concept regarding the cotton cultivation in Central Asia, but since the Crown Prince himself had said so, he believed there would be no issue.

Indeed, there was no issue, as Joseph was deeply aware that from the mid-19th century onwards Central Asia became one of the core cotton production areas in the world.

The soil and climate there are highly suitable for cotton growth, and once supplied 70% of the Soviet Union’s cotton needs, accounting for over 20% of the world’s cotton production.

Currently, due to both Khiva and Bukhara not prioritizing cotton, no one is aware of the situation there.

Historically, once Russia occupied Central Asia, it immediately began forcibly converting all farmers here to cotton farming.

By the mid-19th century, even Britain began to covet the cotton yield here. At that time, one reason for the British invasion of Afghanistan was to extend their reach into the Central Asian cotton production area.

Joseph believed that once Bezbediko returned, Russia would promptly send people to the east of the Caspian Sea to verify if it’s suitable for cotton planting. Their conclusion would naturally be positive.

Driven by such immense benefits, Catherine II would undoubtedly accelerate the southward process.

It is well-known that textiles are the largest traded commodities of this era, with nearly half of the U.S. national budget supported by cotton exports.

By leveraging their geographical proximity to Europe, Russia’s costs would be undoubtedly lower than those of the United States, meaning they would earn even more than the Americans.

This is practically an irresistible overt scheme for Russia.

Actually, after decisively defeating Persia, Russia could gain many other benefits.

For instance, controlling a port in the Persian Gulf, then setting out from there for direct trade with the Far East. This is the most lucrative trade route for European countries.

And furthermore, eyeing Afghanistan to advance into the vast Indian Peninsula through the Khyber Pass.

However, these two points would lead to direct conflict between Russia and Britain, so Joseph deliberately refrained from mentioning them, instead focusing on the Caspian Sea east coast which has little involvement with Britain.

These benefits ought to be apparent to Catherine II herself.

Talleyrand continued: “The Crown Prince hopes to gain the privilege of purchasing cotton from your country preferentially.

“You know, we and the British are fiercely competing in many industries.

“And in the textile industry, the British have always held a slight advantage, primarily because they bribed the American Government to secure the majority of cotton produced in North America. Of course, there’s also cotton from India.

“We must obtain a stable supply of cotton to ensure our textile mills are not crushed by the British.

“The only source we can think of at present is the production area east of the Caspian Sea.”

Reasonable and flawless, Bezbediko immediately raised his glass: “I will report this to the Emperor as soon as possible and suggest granting France the priority to procure cotton.”