Chapter 52: Diplomatic Strategy
"Your Highness, I believe the issue of New Zealand cannot be resolved in a short time, and the solution will depend on Your Highness's own stance on New Zealand," Prime Minister Evan said, forcing himself to step forward and respond.
"Oh? Prime Minister Evan, please elaborate," Arthur said with a smile.
The New Zealand issue was a headache for Arthur as well, so gathering ideas from many was a good approach. At the very least, the former premiers of various colonies were more familiar with situations like New Zealand's, and their suggestions might prove useful to Arthur.
"Your Highness, the policies for New Zealand truly depend on your own vision," Prime Minister Evan continued, seeing that Arthur had not objected and seemed genuinely interested. "If you view New Zealand as a colony like New Guinea, and believe it does not lie within our future core sphere of influence, then I think we should suppress the independence movement in New Zealand. At the very least, during your reign, New Zealand should not gain independence, and no independent actions should be allowed at all."
"But if you wish to fully integrate New Zealand and merge it with Australia to form a new nation, then I believe you should fully respect the will of the New Zealand people. You might even consider promoting New Zealand's independence at an appropriate time, so it could join the Australian family as an independent nation," Prime Minister Evan explained. "In my view, the trend of independence, whether for Australia or New Zealand, is unstoppable. Even if the government's policies and methods manage to suppress New Zealand's independence for a short period, this cannot last long. In ten years, or at most a few decades, New Zealand will surely erupt with a much stronger independence movement than now. Therefore, I believe we must first define New Zealand's future status within Australia before formulating any management policies. If we wish to firmly hold New Zealand in our hands, then we should treat it as an independent country from now on, not as a colony."
Ultimately, New Zealand's status had already become similar to that of Australia—they were both striving to evolve from colonies into independent nations.
Even though New Zealand lagged far behind Australia in both land area and population, the will of the people could not be ignored.
"Hmm, well said, Prime Minister Evan," Arthur nodded with appreciation toward Evan.
"New Zealand is the third largest region in Oceania and serves as a natural eastern shield for Australia. I believe New Zealand is an inseparable part of Australia's future sphere of influence. We should value and respect the interests of both New Zealand and its people. I believe it's highly possible for Australia and New Zealand to form a close united country, whether as a federation, confederation, or a unified state. In any case, New Zealand is extremely important to us and to Australia—it is vital territory we cannot afford to lose. During our administration of New Zealand, we should adopt a tacit and supportive attitude toward its independence. As long as New Zealand is willing to unite with Australia to form a new nation, then whether or not it is considered independent becomes irrelevant," Arthur said with a smile.
New Zealand's important geographical position meant that Australia could never give it up.
From Arthur's perspective, as long as the people of New Zealand were willing to form a new nation with Australia, whether New Zealand was considered independent or not was of no consequence.
"Your Highness, then should we also implement all of Australia's policies in New Zealand?" asked Minister of Finance Roger Joseph Ebert urgently. "I worry that we might build up New Zealand, only for it to turn around and deny us, declaring independence—then we'd be in trouble."
Although Australia still had nearly 90 million pounds in funding after various expenditures, it should not be forgotten that all of that money was borrowed from Arthur. Along with 50 million pounds worth of equipment, the Australian government now owed the royal family a total of 150 million pounds.
Although this was an interest-free loan, being in debt was never a pleasant experience. Since taking charge of the finance ministry, Minister Roger Joseph Ebert had been meticulously budgeting every expense, trying to save as much money as possible while still supporting national development—a challenging task.
"That won't be necessary, Your Highness. If we were to implement all of Australia's policies in New Zealand right now, the people there might be thrilled in the short term. But then what? What means would we have to keep them loyal? If they become dissatisfied and demand new welfare policies, what then? Let's not forget—our foundation is in Australia. Controlling New Zealand must be based on the premise that we first control Australia," Prime Minister Evan quickly interjected, reminding Arthur. "Your Highness, I believe that for now, New Zealand needs stability, not change. We only need to maintain the policies in place from the British period. When the tide of independence becomes unstoppable, those very policies will be the tools we use to win over the New Zealand people."
"Hmm, that makes a lot of sense, Prime Minister Evan. Our foundation, no matter what, is always Australia. We should prioritize the will of the Australian people. For now, New Zealand should remain stable. When it eventually seeks independence, the policies we've enacted in Australia will be incentives to attract them. As long as they are willing to continue under Australian rule, then Australia has no problem treating New Zealand as part of itself and extending all preferential policies there as well," Arthur nodded, indicating his agreement with Prime Minister Evan's opinion.
Hearing Arthur say this, Roger Joseph Ebert finally let out a sigh of relief.
If Australia's policies were to be implemented in New Zealand at the same time, it would cost at least several million, possibly tens of millions of pounds.
For a developing Australia in urgent need of funding, saving this money was certainly preferable.
"But at the same time, it is necessary to appropriately win over and draw closer to New Zealand. Minister Andrew, I'm assigning this task to you. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be responsible for fostering ties with New Zealand and striving to sign a series of treaties with them that bring Australia and New Zealand closer together across various areas. In this regard, we should show New Zealand proper respect. The treaties must be fair and equal for both sides and must leave the people of New Zealand satisfied," Arthur instructed.
Without altering the broader policies, signing a series of trade and other agreements with New Zealand in advance would help narrow the distance between Australia and New Zealand, and could be beneficial for a potential future union between the two nations.
(End of Chapter)
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