The Rise Of Australasia

The Civil War in El Salvador was like the final straw that broke the camel's back, directly prompting the American people to start condemning the government and erupting in Protests demanding that the government promptly use military force to recover these regions.

In particular, the Panama Canal, which concerns the interests of all American People and the convenience of east-west traffic along the American Coastline.

The significance of the Panama Canal to the United States is no less than that of the Malacca Strait to East Asia and the Suez Canal to Mediterranean countries.

With the Panama Canal, Americans only need to navigate around Central America to freely traverse the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.

But if they lost the Panama Canal, or even if it fell into the hands of America's enemies and competitors, Americans traveling between the east and west coasts would have to go around an entire South America.

This would not only increase the cost of the journey but also add a lot more time consumption. As a result, the development of the American economy would be hindered, which would be a major event for the United States.

"The incompetent Coolidge Administration, you are even weaker than the Wilson Administration!"

"America has not been a superpower since World War I, because it has had two of the most incompetent Presidents in succession!"

"Why should the vast United States fear rebellion from small countries? What is our government doing?"

Starting from mid to late March, such reports began to appear frequently in American newspapers, also reflecting the dissatisfaction of the American people and the Opposition party with the current American government.

The American Government was so busy that President Coolidge's reputation in the United States also fell sharply in an instant.

While the Americans were busy, the British Government also announced loudly that it would support the Civil Wars in Central American countries and end the peace in this region as soon as possible.

This proposal was recognized by most countries in the World Alliance, and while they did not agree to armed intervention, they already held the moral high ground in principle.

At the same time, Australasia publicly recognized the rebellious spirit of the Central American countries and announced its support for the rebels in El Salvador.

This was like the final straw that broke the camel's back, directly causing America's rule in Central America to collapse.

Although France was not interested in military intervention in Central America, it would not stand up against Britain either, for they had a PY transaction with the British, gaining further rights to exploit the Germans.

Since Britain and Australia announced their support for the Central American rebel forces, communication between the American Government and the Island Nation became more frequent.

But neither America nor the Island Nation were confident in uniting to face Australasia and Britain.

Although the Island Nation's army had an absolute advantage in numbers, the combined navies of Britain and Australasia could completely blockade the Island Nation.

The army of the Island Nation can't set sail, so naturally, the deterrent force against Britain and Australasia approaches zero.

Moreover, the Island Nation would not pour all of its efforts into America's Central America, after all, the so-called Island-United States alliance was not that tight.

The backstabbing of the two countries in the naval limitation treaty negotiations, coupled with the gap caused by influenza, made it unlikely for these two countries to stand united.

Fortunately, the British had no intention of declaring war on America directly, and President Coolidge could only hope, upon a sigh of relief, that the American army would be able to suppress the local Rebellion.

This chaos in Central American directly turned Central America into a chessboard, with America and pro-American forces, as well as Britain and Australasia, becoming the players.

Although America has an absolute advantage in terms of distance, Britain and Australasia are stronger in overall strength and also have a nominal advantage, which is an undeniable factor.

Although it currently appears to be a war between the local governments and rebel forces of these countries, the real influences on these wars are the behind-the-scenes power games of the world's Powerful Nations.

Luckily, El Salvador is just a small country, and Australasia only needs to assist with some Weaponry to help Carlos Herrera y Luna gain sovereign Power of the Salvadoran government.

The rest of the larger countries can be left to the British to plan; Arthur can just wait and see how the British and the Americans fare in their power struggle in Central America.

There were not a few major international events that occurred in 1923, but before paying attention to these major events, the development of Australasia is also very important.

In the second half of the previous year, the three R108 battleships that took more than a year to build had their launch tests, allowing the hastily rushing Sydney Shipyard to finally take a breath of relief.

However, the delay by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was indeed effective, and with the various issues in the negotiations among several countries, the Naval Limitation Treaty was dragged into the new year without being signed.

Nonetheless, this did not hinder the naval testing of Australasia.

According to the shipyard's timetable, the earliest R108 battleship is expected to complete its launch tests by the middle of this year and be officially commissioned into the navy's fleet.

And the remaining two battleships are expected to complete their sea trial phase by the second half of this year, at the latest they won't carry over to the next year.

This also means that Australasia could welcome the addition of three super battleships within this year, ultimately consolidating Australasia's naval strength to the point where the nation would no longer fear any other country in naval matters.

After the completion of all three R108 battleships, Australasia will have no further delays regarding the Naval Limitation Treaty.

But as of yet, this treaty has not been formally signed, a fact that is surely worth deep reflection.

There's another piece of good news within Australasia, namely, the basic completion of the Fourth Phase of Leonora Industrial Base.

This phase of the industrial plan has been more than four years in the making since its commencement.

Though it has endured incidents such as the flu and other surprises, it hasn't severely hindered the overall progress of the construction of the Fourth Phase.

Of course, the Cabinet Government did speed up the progress of the Fourth Phase plan for the Leonora Industrial Base appropriately, as this year is 1923, and a new term of Cabinet members will soon be voting.

As long as the construction of the Fourth Phase of the industrial base is completed and quickly put into use, the achievements of the Cabinet Government will look a bit better, and it will be simpler for some cabinet members to seek re-election.

After all, in Australasia, the most important factor for cabinet officials seeking re-election is their performance during their term.

In the past 20 years, the Cabinet Government has not made any major mistakes, which also places high demands on the re-election of cabinet members.

They must avoid errors and even have good achievements to qualify for re-election.

Although most cabinet members are likely to be re-elected, as one of the superpowers in the current world, competition in the Australasia political arena is still very intense.

Political parties have developed over the years and are no longer just a few in number. Presently, there are over 100 registered political parties in Australasia, with as many as 27 based on the seating of the House of Representatives, clearly demonstrating the complexity of current political competition.

Fortunately, these parties are all strictly scrutinized and managed by the Royal Parliament and the Electoral Commission, and Australasia's crackdown on illegal parties is quite strong, which means that most of the parties are within Arthur's controllable range. Such a development doesn't harm or threaten Arthur's power.

This, however, has made it tough for those cabinet officials and other political parties because political competition in Australasia is relatively fair, and even the activity funds for the parties are uniformly distributed.

This means that in terms of financial resources, there will not be much difference between political parties.

For parties to attract more public support and thereby secure more seats in the House of Representatives, they must sincerely consider the people's interests, not just make empty promises without heed for practical actions.

The factories and warehouses constructed as part of the Fourth Phase of Leonora Industrial Base have officially started production, with hundreds of factories already introduced, and ongoing efforts to attract more investment.

A steady stream of small and medium-sized manufacturers also choose to relocate within the industrial base, as the more developed industrial system there makes purchasing raw materials and selling industrial products much easier.

Of course, Arthur would not allow the Leonora Industrial Base to monopolize the industrial scene in Australasia. Find your next read on My Virtual Library Empire

There's no other reason than for the sake of national security.

Although currently countries do not have the capability for long-range strikes, this does not mean that in the future they won't acquire that ability.

For the security of the nation, industry may be centralized but should not be overly so. Leonora Industrial Base will become the leader of the western industrial sector in Australasia, but there should also be industrial bases and areas of various sizes in all states and other administrative regions, achieving a blossoming of industry in multiple locations.

The industrial construction in the New Zealand Region is also progressing smoothly. Although the industrial bases in North New Zealand State and South New Zealand State are not large, combined they still contribute about ten thousand jobs, providing considerable economic contributions and tax revenue for both.

This is similarly the case in Queensland State, New South Wales State, and Victoria State.

The economies of several states in the Australian Region are among the best in Australasia, except for the relatively small Tasmania State and the newly established states of Northern Australia and the Capital Territory.

This also means that the state governments of these wealthier states have comparatively more financial resources, and their infrastructural development is quite advanced compared to other states.

However, Australasia's infrastructural planning is based on the supreme government's strategy, such that even the newly established state of Dili has caught up with its basic infrastructure.

This system, where the supreme government plans uniformly while state governments have some freedom in construction, is quite suitable for the development of Australasia.

When power is too centralized, state governments do not have enough room to maneuver. But if power is too dispersed, and state governments have too much autonomy, it's not good for the nation's unity and stability.

Finding a balance between the two levels of government and exploring a system that suits development in Australasia while not harming the political systems of both levels has been an ongoing effort for Australasia for more than 20 years.

Currently, it seems that this system is working quite well, where state governments enjoy relative autonomy but are subject to restraint by the national government and do not have military power, thereby not undermining national unity.