Japan was not close to the British Isles. Even if an agreement were reached at once and the equipment shipped back from London immediately, it would still be two months before it arrived.
Moreover, armored units were technical arms. Familiarizing troops with the equipment and completing basic training would also take a certain amount of time. Getting them onto the battlefield within half a year would already count as highly efficient.
For the Russo-Japanese War at hand, that could only be considered distant water—unable to quench the immediate thirst. To ease the present crisis, the Imperial Japanese Army would still have to rely on its own efforts.
No one could help with this problem. When it came to actual tactical command, the officers at the front were clearly more capable than these civilian officials in the government.
If even the professionals could not handle it, there was even less to say for amateurs. Japan's reserves were thin and could not withstand any tossing about. It had not yet reached the point where it could act willfully.
Hirobumi Ito said, "Although the Far East battlefield has caused some trouble, overall it remains within our control.
"According to intelligence provided by the British, the Siberian Railway will not be completed until the latter half of next year at the earliest.
"Adding the time needed after the railway opens to traffic for integration, it likely will not truly become operational until early 1906. We still have sufficient time.
"The troublesome part is the international situation. The struggle between Britain and the Holy Roman Empire is growing increasingly fierce. Many matters have been brought out into the open; they cannot even be bothered to hide them anymore.
"No one can say when they might start fighting. The Empire is tied too deeply to Britain,