The flush of sympathy for Austria had faded, and a mood of cold calculation was setting in. How aggressive a stance would Austrias Council of Joint Ministers (its governing body) decide to take? No one was sure yet, despite extensive back-room diplomatic contact. It hadnt gone unnoticed that Russia had a defense pact with Serbia, and that it was hungry for Mediterranean ports and possibly a piece of moldering Austrias holdings in the Balkans. Then there was the matter of Russias 1892 mutual defense treaty with France. And Frances 1904 Entente Cordiale with England. A bizarre possibility would be that France would be forced to support Russia, maybe by sending troops, in a war with Austria. But the new kid, Germany, had felt systematically boxed out, at least as they saw it, and threatened. England and France saw Germany more like an animal that had been caged... for now. Marianne and the Bear embrace (1893):
Posted on: Thu, 17 Jul 2014 00:41:15 +0000
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