The Bottom Line

Arthur's decisive refusal had been beyond the American ambassador's expectations, leaving him rooted to the spot after believing he could achieve his objective.

After racking his brains for a way to respond, the American ambassador said somewhat awkwardly, "Your Majesty, are you really not going to reconsider? The United States is willing to become Australasia's ally on both sides of the Pacific, jointly managing and ruling the entire Pacific Ocean.

"If your country is willing, we can deepen our cooperation in industry and the economy. This would benefit the development of both countries."

This time, Arthur shook his head even more decisively. It was true that the United States had the world's largest industrial and economic scale, but the Great Depression was only a few years away.

If Australasia deepened its economic ties with the United States, then the United States, which would be hit hardest by the Great Depression, would inevitably drag Australasia down with it.

Besides, Arthur understood the principle that one mountain could not contain two tigers. The Pacific Ocean was vast, but to the technologically advancing Great Powers of the world, it was not a territory where influence could be shared with other countries.

The United States' previous Pacific policy had already proven that the Americans' ambitions were enormous. They even wanted to rule both sides of the Pacific.

Under such circumstances, the American proposal to jointly divide and rule the Pacific was most likely fabricated, and it was fundamentally impossible to implement it completely.

Compared with the Americans, the British people's assistance was clearly more reliable for now. Although Britain's industrial scale and economic strength could not compare with America's, Britain was a European country, and its conflict with Australasia was far less serious than its conflicts with France and the United States.

Once Britain