The greatest obstacle to the Asuncion-Lima Railway was not actually the United States, but the relationship among Peru, Bolivia, and Paraguay.
Here, Bolivia had to be given special attention. It could be said that Bolivia had managed to offend every neighboring country it possibly could.
Bolivia had originally possessed around two million square kilometers of territory, but aside from Paraguay, Brazil, Peru, Argentina, and Chile had all seized considerable land from Bolivia. Now, Bolivia and Paraguay also had a territorial dispute.
Thus, Reyes said to Smith, "If you truly want to sabotage the government's construction of the Asuncion-Lima Railway, the best way is to drive a wedge between Bolivia and Paraguay. As long as war breaks out, the railway naturally cannot be built."
"However, I definitely cannot be the one to provoke a war. But I believe you should be able to find a way."
No matter what, Reyes was Bolivian. His family was tied to Bolivia, so he was unwilling to stick his neck out. Still, he had offered Smith, his partner, a plan.
Smith understood Reyes's difficulties, and he was unwilling to abandon a partner of many years. Since Reyes could not make a move, Smith could only think of a solution himself.
"Stir up relations between Paraguay and Bolivia..." Smith pondered.
To drive a wedge between the two countries, one merely needed to create a major conflict of interests between Bolivia and Paraguay.
Smith easily thought of Bolivia and Paraguay's territorial dispute over the Chaco Region.
The Chaco Region, also known as the Gran Chaco Region, covered more than six hundred thousand square kilometers. Bolivia and Paraguay disputed ownership of its northern portion, the North Chaco region.
This was actually a muddled account, because strictly speaking, the North Chaco region belonged to neither Bolivia nor Paraguay. By