The Art of Politics

Chapter 627: 197 The Art of Politics

The French Government wielded far greater influence than a handful of capitalists. Once he received authorization from the Paris Government, Minister Tom's confidence immediately swelled.

In less than a month, they obtained the Panama Canal development rights from the Colombian Government, paying nothing more than a batch of material aid.

It was mainly arms. Colombia's domestic armed forces had not erupted into conflict chiefly because of pressure from outside.

Everyone feared that if civil war broke out, others would seize the opening and they would once again be reduced to a colony.

They were especially wary of neighboring Austria. Austrian Central America alone possessed military forces capable of threatening their very survival.

With the Central American countries serving as cautionary examples, the Colombian Government now did not even dare casually accept European immigrants, fearing their regime would be subverted from within.

Colombia itself had a small population and did not dare accept European immigrants in large numbers, so its economic development was naturally slow.

Now, granting the Panama Canal concession to the French was not only for material aid, but also meant to bring in French power to balance Austria.

These were all minor issues. Neither France nor Austria took Colombia seriously. If one wanted to play the balancing game, one also had to see whether one could keep it under control; if not, one would suffer the backlash.

If the Panama Canal had already opened to navigation, then France and Austria might indeed clash over their interests. Unfortunately, the canal still existed only on paper.

It was impossible for two great powers to come into conflict over benefits that might exist. To put it bluntly, digging a canal also required certain prerequisites. If the geological conditions were unsuitable, failing to dig through