"I'm very sorry, Foreign Minister. After deliberation by our government, we have decided not to sell or lease the Azores to your country. Portugal was a neutral nation during the last World War. Now that the international situation is growing ever more tense, we are unwilling to be drawn into a confrontation between great powers. We hope to remain neutral," Portuguese Foreign Minister Castro said with an apologetic expression.
Wachth was not surprised. Or rather, from the moment he realized the Portuguese were stalling for time, he had already expected this outcome. However, he did not agree with the Portuguese choice. Their desire to remain neutral and avoid becoming involved in a confrontation between great powers was simply too foolish and naive.
If Portugal did not possess the Azores, then perhaps no one would care if they wished to remain neutral. But with the Azores in their hands, still wanting to remain neutral was nothing but a pipe dream. The Azores' vital strategic position meant that Germany or other great powers would spare no effort to seize them in their grasp. Portugal's rejection of Germany's demands was, in effect, making an enemy of Germany.
The German Navy had already decided that it had to take the Azores. Originally, they had hoped to purchase or lease the Azores peacefully. But the Portuguese government had rejected that. Therefore, Germany would next use every means at its disposal to seize the Azores. This would absolutely not be good news for Portugal.
"Foreign Minister, you are rejecting the goodwill of the German Empire!" Wachth said.
"Foreign Minister, the Portuguese Republic has no such intention. We merely wish to remain neutral," Castro said.
But Wachth did not waste any more breath. He left the Kingdom of Portugal directly and boarded a warship of the Atlantic