บท 1066: Chapter 1066: Putting Argentina on the negotiating table
After Xia Yu and Elena left, Prince Philip packed his things and returned to London, where he met with his wife and then Margaret Thatcher, informing each of them of the content of his meeting with Xia Yu.
The two of them were in complete agreement. Margaret Thatcher would represent the government in meeting Xia Yu. The issue of Hong Kong's stability could be discussed, but only on the condition that Xia Yu's news would be of great use to the UK.
The next morning at 10 o'clock.
Xia Yu arrived at 10 Downing Street and met Margaret Thatcher, whom he had not seen for a long time, and Prince Philip, whom he had met just the day before, in the prime minister's luxurious drawing room.
Politicians are always good at superficial politeness, and the atmosphere at the meeting was friendly.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Margaret Thatcher took the main seat, inviting Xia Yu to sit on the sofa to her left, and Prince Philip to the sofa to her right.
According to the division of labour agreed upon yesterday, today Prince Philip would mainly observe the proceedings, while Margaret Thatcher would take the lead in the negotiations.
Due to the urgent time frame and the serious issue of war,
Margaret Thatcher did not engage in idle chatter with Xia Yu and got straight to the point.
With a solemn expression on her face, she looked at Xia Yu and said, 'Mr Xia, Prince Philip already told me the general information yesterday. After discussion, we have reached a preliminary agreement.'
Xia Yu's gaze fixed on her, his attention fully focused.
Margaret Thatcher continued, 'The stability of Hong Kong can be negotiated, but the prerequisite is that your information is of great help to the UK.'
'On behalf of the government, Prince Philip is responsible for this promise on behalf of the royal family!'
'Of course there is no problem with that!'
Xia Yu suddenly smiled and nodded.
Since the Prime Minister and Prince Philip had placed the stability of Hong Kong on the negotiating table, the last shred of worry in his heart was gone.
His confidence was growing!
'Then please tell us the details you know,'
Margaret Thatcher said immediately.
Xia Yu smiled and said, 'This matter is quite long-winded. As I have prepared in advance, I have written the relevant information in my notebook. Please wait a moment!'
After saying this, Xia Yu opened the briefcase he had brought with him, and in the focused gaze of Margaret Thatcher and Prince Philip, took out a notebook and solemnly handed it to Margaret Thatcher.
The latter immediately took the notebook and opened it, and Prince Philip also leaned over to take a look.
The message was written entirely by hand, without the use of a printer.
But fortunately, his handwriting was very beautiful, and there was no difficulty reading it.
When they saw the name of a country, both Margaret Thatcher and Prince Philip looked incredulous.
Argentina!
It was Argentina?
How dare they?
This was completely out of the question!
Margaret Thatcher wanted to throw the notebook out of her hands for a moment, but considering that Xia Yu had brought it as a bargaining chip and could not be fooled, she kept her patience and continued to read.
As she continued to browse, her attitude gradually changed.
As Margaret Thatcher and Prince Philip's faces became more and more solemn and cold, Xia Yu's mouth curled up slightly, and he leisurely sipped his coffee.
Meanwhile, in his mind, he once again simulated how to negotiate more appropriately later.
After a long time, Margaret Thatcher and Prince Philip finally finished reading all the information on the notebook, and both of their faces were very solemn.
'Argentine interim military government!'
Thinking of all the information about the Argentine interim military government in her mind, a glimmer of gloom flashed in Margaret Thatcher's eyes.
If someone had told her before that Argentina would dare to provoke Britain and start a war with it, she would never have believed it.
Although Argentina was now a major South American power and Britain's influence was waning, it was not one that Argentina could provoke!
Moreover, she had not received any reports from below about the attitude and instability of the Argentine military government.
And to be honest, the territorial conflict between Britain and Argentina was mainly focused on the Malvinas Islands.
With the continuous loss of overseas colonies after World War II, Britain's attitude towards overseas colonies has changed.
Over the past 20 years, the British government has analysed the Malvinas Islands, which are isolated in the corner of the South Atlantic, many times. It is a heavy burden, and giving up is the best option.
However, because the islands have few resources, most of the residents are of British descent, they have neither the capital to become independent nor the desire to become Argentines, so the issue has been left unresolved. Even the British government has repeatedly persuaded the residents of the islands to accept Argentina and get out of it.
In particular, over the past decade, the British government has been actively negotiating with Argentina to try to find a proper solution to the question of the Malvinas Islands. It has signed a number of agreements, and Britain has not only agreed to transfer the islanders' nationality and resources such as oil and fisheries to Argentina, but even after Margaret Thatcher came to power in 1979, she further mentioned a new plan to return sovereignty of the Malvinas Islands to Argentina and gradually transfer administrative rights.
No matter how you look at it, it seems like all Argentina has to do is wait to receive the Malvinas Islands!
One wants it, the other wants to give it, and the negotiations have been going on for almost twenty years, so the result is about to be seen.
So at first, when she saw that it was Argentina, Margaret Thatcher felt that it was absurd, and that unless Argentina had gone crazy, it would never initiate a war on its own initiative.
But after reading Xia Yu's intelligence and analysis, Margaret Thatcher is now half convinced.
She is somewhat convinced that the risk of war is real and not small.
Because 'waging war abroad can divert internal conflicts' is a historical test that has been experienced, and this is a mistake that past dictators have made!
The Argentine military junta, a group of stupid big men full of muscles, is really likely to do something unreasonable.
And the situation in Argentina has reached a state of out of control. Not to mention the military junta that has barely shown its ability to govern the country for decades, even if it were the British government, it may not be able to turn it around.
After all, the situation in the UK is not at all serious compared to Argentina, and even so, the UK is still struggling in the quagmire.
According to the information in Xia Yu's notebook, the internal conflicts in Argentina are now very acute. The data shows that in the past six months, Argentina's inflation rate has reached more than 500%, the gross domestic product has fallen by more than 10% year-on-year for three consecutive quarters, manufacturing output has fallen by more than 20%, while wages have not increased by more than 20%.
The Argentine Federation of Labour, which is gaining more and more supporters in the country, has already launched a long-term general strike, and the government is being rejected and hated by the people.
The Chairman of the Argentine Military Junta and Commander-in-Chief of the Army, Fortunato Galterri, is incompetent and has a bad reputation. He has been relying on high-handedness to barely maintain his rule. Now that there is opposition rising up all over Argentina, Galterri urgently needs political achievements to prove the validity of the military government and that he can change the country!
The solution was to take back the Falkland Islands with a strong hand and become an Argentine national hero.
...
After a long while, Margaret Thatcher placed her notebook on the table, her face returned to a calm expression, she looked at Xia Yu quietly and said slowly, 'Mr Xia, I have finished reading the information, but it is full of uncertainties.'
'And most importantly, Argentina will never be our opponent, we will not lose!'
Margaret Thatcher spoke these last words with a resounding voice, as if she were stating a foregone conclusion.
The negotiations had officially begun!
Xia Yu gave a faint smile and said without haste, 'Ms Margaret, although the British army has not fought a war for twenty years, there is no doubt about Britain's strength. I believe that on a global scale, Argentina is definitely not Britain's match.'
'But the Malvinas are next to Argentina, but for the UK it's halfway around the world, the supply and troop lines are too long.'
'I believe that before seeing my intelligence, no one would believe that Argentina wants to take back the Malvinas by force. Just as you haven't received such intelligence, you can see that the people below simply don't take this matter seriously.'
'Under these circumstances, can the garrison on the Malvinas resist the Argentine army?'
'Once the Argentine government succeeds in retaking the Malvinas, the reputation of the UK will take a heavy blow.'
'And with the information I have now, as long as Britain prepares in advance, it can thoroughly teach the Argentine military government a lesson and definitely achieve a complete victory. This will be a huge victory for you and for Britain.'
'To be honest, the value of this information is extremely great.'
Margaret Thatcher's eyes twinkled, and she was moved.
She has been in office for so long, and her approval rating has been declining due to the privatisation reform, which has led to a significant increase in unemployment.
And her diplomatic achievements have not been many. If she can demonstrate her tough foreign policy by beating Argentina, it will definitely stop the decline of Britain's influence for the time being and also increase her support rate...
But...
The stability of Hong Kong is also an important direction of her diplomacy, and Hong Kong's geopolitical position in Asia is also very important, so she still doesn't want to give it up.
We must maximise our interests!
After thinking for a while, she looked at Xia Yu sharply and asked, 'But Mr Xia, none of this has happened yet, and this intelligence contains too much speculation. When do you think the Argentine military junta will act?'
Xia Yu pretended to think for a moment, and said with certainty, 'According to the current situation in Argentina, Galtieri can't hold out for long. He can only hold out for another six months at most.'
Margaret Thatcher frowned at the weekend and asked questioningly, 'In other words, probably in April next year, Galtieri will take action. What if he doesn't?'
Facing Margaret Thatcher's aggressive stance, Xia Yu's smile gradually faded. He sat up straight and said solemnly, 'He will definitely take action. This is the only way for him to maintain his rule. If he doesn't, he will only be driven from power.'
'As a dictator, the probability of him doing so is very high.'
Margaret Thatcher bit her lip and retorted, 'But none of this has happened yet, and it may not even happen.'
'So if you want to use this information as leverage, it's not enough.'
Prince Philip also added, 'Mr Xia, the Prime Minister is right, the value of your information cannot be intuitively reflected, and it is full of uncertainty.'
Margaret Thatcher's face showed regret, and her tone was full of regret and helplessness: 'Unfortunately, it is difficult for us to agree to your terms.'
Xia Yu frowned and said in a deep voice, 'Ms. Margaret, first of all, I would like to reiterate that the British government has the right and obligation to manage and develop Xiangjiang. Even if Argentina does not take any extreme actions, the British government is still obliged to restore Xiangjiang's prosperity.'
Seeing Margaret Thatcher's face turn a little ugly, Xia Yu's tone softened and he said slowly, 'Of course, what you are saying also makes sense, so we can choose a compromise!'
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