Pacific War Breaks Out

Early in the morning, Franz had just finished his morning exercises and had not yet had breakfast when Foreign Minister Wessenberg hurried over with bad news.

"Your Majesty, word has come from our embassy in Bolivia. Two days ago, Chilean forces invaded Bolivia. The balance in South America has been broken."

The Austrian Government's main reason for paying attention to this war was still the nitrate trade. Because of its South American colonies, Austria's relations with Chile and Argentina were not particularly good.

Since rich nitrate deposits had been discovered in Bolivia's coastal Atacama Province in 1863, it had become Austria's principal source of imported nitrate.

As commercial exchanges increased, relations between Austria and Bolivia had steadily warmed, to the point that they were nearly quasi-allies.

It was merely that the Vienna Government's strategic focus was not in South America, and the forces it had invested in the region were extremely limited, preventing any further development.

No matter what, as a great power, it was inevitable that one would play the role of a shit-stirrer on the international stage. Austria had not risen to prominence mainly because its British counterparts were too formidable and had stolen everyone's thunder.

A small investment did not mean no investment. The Vienna Government had also cultivated junior partners in South America, though their ties were not deep and they could only be considered partners.

Bolivia was one of them, having received Austrian assistance in military matters. Unfortunately, the Bolivian Government was not particularly clever. Seeing Britain, France, and Austria secretly competing with one another in South America, it chose to sway from side to side.

Swaying from side to side also required capital. With capital, it was flexible diplomacy; without it, it was walking a tightrope. Without question, Bolivia was a country without such