Chapter 452： Bankrupt (1/2)
No money is always the most painful thing, especially because there are a lot of people pointing to eat, and it is urgent to solve the financial crisis.
Winter Palace in St. Petersburg
The new Chancellor of the Exchequer Yevgenkis reported in tears: ”Your Majesty, this is the most recent month's expenditure report. If no measures are taken, we will go bankrupt for up to three months.
It is not the first time that the tsarist government has suffered financial failure. If it is normal, bankruptcy will be fine, and the big deal will be announced.
The problem now is that the newly-developed wasteland campaign cannot stop, otherwise tens of millions of people will be hungry. By that time, not only will the reforms be destroyed, but even the Tsar Empire may collapse.
After taking a glance at the report, Alexander II was left aside and got up and wandered in the room.
The plan will never change quickly, and the actual number of people involved in the reclamation is far more than expected by the Tsarist government. There are many people with great strength and large expenses.
After hesitating for a long time, Alexander II asked, ”If we suspend international debt payments from now on, can we survive the crisis?”
Laying accounts is not an option, but the problem is that the Tsarist government really has no money. The Tsarist government has tried both international loans and bonds.
No one wants to lend money to poor ghosts, and even if the Russians can take out collateral, everyone is worried that they will not fulfill their promises.
Due to the war, some fertile soil in Eastern Europe was lost, and the tsarist government's fiscal revenue also shrank sharply.
If it weren't for a copy in the home, the Tsarist government would have gone bankrupt. The war was costly and the reform was also a swallow of gold, leaving little room for Alexander II to choose.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Yevgenkis thought for a while and replied: ”If some projects are suspended and the wasteland movement is fully guaranteed, it should not be a problem.”
It's time to do a multiple choice question, and after a loss of inconvenience, Alexander II made an ambitious Russian railway plan.
The entire line is up to 150,000 kilometers. Once this plan is completed, Russian Eastern Europe will be connected in series, and Prussia and Poland can almost be declared dead.
Alexander II made a decisive decision: ”Okay, then do that!”
The problem of development lags behind, and it is important to solve the problem at hand. On the face of it, it is a good thing that the land reclamation has increased the amount of land and allowed farmers to have land.
In fact, there are still many hidden dangers. The biggest problem is that there will inevitably be too much grain production in the future. Everyone knows the reason that Gu Chi hurts farmers.
Perhaps for a capitalist economy, increased food production is a good thing, as it can reduce the cost of feeding workers.
Then, for farmers and nobles, it was a disaster. Many aristocrats are dragging their hind legs, the main reason is that they fear that their own interests will be damaged in the future.
The Russian Empire was originally a big grain exporter. If it continues to increase production capacity, it will certainly not be consumed internally, and exports will become the only option.
From the beginning, the Tsarist government was ready to bring down European food prices. Countries can dump industrial products against them, and they can also dump agricultural products against them.
It would be better if there was a monopoly on continental European food supplies. To do this, we must first allow food for the Russian Empire to be shipped out.
The railway is an indispensable link. If traffic problems cannot be solved, the plan will always stay on paper.
No one opposed the plan of Alexander II, and it was more important to overcome the immediate problem than the great plan.
As long as the first year has passed, the output on the land can guarantee the basic life of the people, then the latter will be resolved.
In this era, the Russian peasants were very supportive and had just changed from serfs to free people. As long as they could fill their stomachs, they would not dare to have anything else.
As long as the most critical moment is passed, the later problems will be easy to handle.
On July 7, 1869, the Tsarist government issued a note to the major creditors, announcing that the Russian Empire was financially bankrupt and unable to continue to perform its debts.
The European world is in an uproar. In recent years, there have been no European countries that ran into debts, which has given the public an illusion that the government's moral integrity has improved.
The Russians have now broken everyone's illusions. It is a good financial situation for everyone, and it is not time for them.
If you really run out of money, you have to rely on accounts. Anyway, I do n’t want the money, or I do n’t want to give it. The rest is up to you!
Except for the creditors, the European people have turned into melon-eating crowds and set their sights on Vienna.
Some recent developments in Austria are very good and naturally make many people jealous. As Russia's biggest creditor, many people are watching Austrian jokes now.
You know, the Russians now pay the principal and interest of 30.684 million shields per month, which is 3,682.08 million shields per year.
This astronomical figure is enough to destroy the Russian-Austrian alliance. No matter how good a relationship is, it can't withstand the destruction of interests.
Franz was not as scared as he had imagined. He had already prepared the Russians to settle accounts when he refused to provide loans to the Tsarist government.
No, it should be said that this idea was prepared earlier. After all, the financial situation of the Tsarist government has not been embarrassing, and it is not easy to support it until now.
No matter how well prepared, the aftercare work must be done. Most of these loans are guaranteed by the Vienna government, otherwise few banks dare to take orders.
In addition to the problems, the Vienna government also needs to take responsibility. Fortunately, the vast majority of loans are secured, and now the job of the Vienna government is to urge the Russians to implement the collateral.
Prime Minister Felix frowned and reported: ”Your Majesty, we have made a preliminary estimate of the contract that was signed. Even if the Russians have fulfilled the mortgage, we will have to bear 38 million Aegis compensation within the guarantee.
This money cannot be borne directly by us; the Russians must be held accountable for it. Now that there is no money in the finances, let them postpone the repayment, and the tsarist government cannot continue to go bankrupt. ”
Franz nodded, others' debts could be ignored, and his own account would always be recovered. Even if there is no money, the tsarist government must be allowed to acknowledg the account first, otherwise it will be difficult for the Vienna government to explain to the people.
”The Ministry of Foreign Affairs communicated with the Russians and urged them to fulfill their contracts. They were unable to pay their debts and could defer payment.”
It is the uncle who owes money. The current tsarist government is this uncle.
It is impossible to collect debts by force. At this point, the money is not enough for military expenditure. Unlike Mexico, which is so good at bullying, fur bears still have strength.