Public opinion had been stirred up, and Franz naturally would not pass up such an opportunity to boost his reputation. Cracking down on the drug trade was unambiguously a force for good.
Others feared retaliation from opium dealers and had to watch their words, but he was the emperor—what did he have to fear?
On June 26, 1889, Franz issued the Declaration of War on Drugs, calling on every country in the world to act together and eradicate the drug trade.
The opium trade was naturally the primary target of condemnation. Franz had no intention of sparing the British any face and directly demanded that the British Government be held responsible for the widespread opium scourge.
On the same day, the Austrian Foreign Ministry also sent diplomatic notes to countries around the world, inviting them to attend the International Anti-Drug Conference to be held in Vienna a year later.
The long interval could not be helped.
Communications were inconvenient in this era. By the time the news spread across the world, several months would have passed; then, for delegates from every country to arrive in Vienna, less than a year truly would not suffice.
The main purpose of convening the International Anti-Drug Conference was to build momentum and pressure the British Government. Naturally, the more delegates attended, the better.
Franz had always preferred to plan before acting. Since he had decided to strike at the British opium trade, he naturally had to produce results.
He did not expect the British Government to yield. At the very least, international law had to explicitly prohibit the sale of opium and restrict its use to the medical field, rather than allowing it to be freely sold as a health tonic.
Franz personally stepping forward naturally gave a tremendous boost to the confidence of