"We are allies with Germany, but we are not the younger brothers of Germany, not to mention that we have various contradictions with Austro-Hungary. Italy is an independent country. Our likes and dislikes should start from the needs of the kingdom and not be bound by a treaty." King Umberto I said.

It has to be said that from a historical perspective, the Italians' foreign policy was still very good. Although from the perspective of Germany, Prince Ruprecht was very angry about Italy's betrayal, this "sacred egoism" did benefit Italy a lot. After World War I, not only did he obtain land from France and Austro-Hungary, but he also owned the same naval tonnage as France.

"The fundamental reason why we signed the Three Kingdoms alliance with Germany and Austria was to balance the influence of Britain and France in the Mediterranean. Italy is an emerging maritime country. The existence of France and the British Mediterranean fleet made us feel insecure. In this case, in 1887, the fundamental purpose of our signing of this treaty with Germany and Austria was to give us one more bargaining chip in our relationship with Britain and France."

"Do you know the chips? It's something that can be used for exchange. We are different from Germany. The contradiction between Germany and France is irreconcilable, and the contradiction between Britain and Germany may intensify over time, but we can live in peace with Britain and France. So we left a backdoor in the agreement. The biggest use of this treaty is not to serve as the shield of the Kingdom of Italy, but to force Britain and France to face us and leave a glimmer of opportunity for the improvement of the relationship between the two sides."

"I never thought of getting into evil with the British for Germany and Austria. Never!" said Umberto I.

"The Germans never treated us as an equal partner. Germany and Austria believed that we were very weak and even despised us. They repeatedly prevented us from obtaining colonies, and even said that doing so would disperse our military power. Now, the Germans have acquired colonies from the Portuguese. This practice is difficult for me to accept!" said the Duke of Abruci.

Italy is called "poor imperialism". This makes sense. Don't compare the imperialism of Britain, France, Germany and Russia. Even the weak Austro-Hungary can stand out in Italy. In addition to the navy's several more eye-catching performances in the war, the army actually did not put much pressure on the allies.

But it cannot be denied that Italy, a country from the top to ordinary people, has a strong desire to rise! It even established a third-largest navy in the world. Although this record was broken after not maintained for a few years, the Italians can also say that I have been the third brother at least!

After 1903, after the new Italian government began to focus on economic construction, the Italians who gradually gained money began to get ready again. The Italian Navy began to re-form a new plan of expansion, requiring the naval force to reach 60% of the French Navy, and at the same time had a four-to-three advantage over the Austro-Hungarian Empire! This eager naval expansionism also quickly infected the people. The famous Italian nationalist poet ****Zha wrote the content of "arming to the bow of the ship and sailing to the whole world" in his script "Ode to the Battleship".

Just imagine that the Germans suddenly bought a 2 million square kilometers of colony in Africa but did not let the Italians touch it. In this case, it is no wonder that the Italians were indignant.

"But will we anger the Germans when we do this?" The Prime Minister was still a little worried.

"We are just neutral and do not tend toward either side. What's more, neither Portugal, France nor Germany have anything to do with us, and the Germans will not make too many enemies at this critical moment. Of course, if Germany is willing to give us some convenience in expansion, we can also support Germany." Umberto I said meaningfully.

Although pasta fell into a big fall in Ethiopia and had been honest for many years, there is a saying that goes? The wildfires cannot burn and the spring breeze blows again. Especially this time, the German expansion actions once again stimulated Italy. So they turned their attention to Africa, but Africa was almost divided at this time. No one touched Ethiopia, and Libya seemed to be a good choice. And now, Libya is still the territory of the Ottoman Turkish Empire.

What the prince did not expect was that the actions he had taken in Africa actually stimulated the little brother of Italy. What was even more unexpected was that the Italian-Turkey War, which broke out in 1910 in history, is now brewing. What was even more unexpected was that a series of changes happened like dominoes!

The Italians' strategy can be said to be correct. After all, for the country, interests and success are the king. However, Italy made a mistake, or often made a mistake, that is, it was to estimate its own strength too high! They tried to exchange a verbal statement without any expenses for Germany's support in the colonial field. The country targeted this time was Türkiye.

If it were historically, Germany's attitude towards Turkey was ignoring it, but now it is different, because the prince knows that the one who can really stand with Germany in the end is Turkey, not Italy! How to improve Turkey's strength and allow him to play a greater role in World War I have always been the issue that the prince considers.

Therefore, in the current prince's view, Turkey is a younger brother who is ready to develop at any time. Now there are outsiders who beat me up. And it is either a powerful country like Britain and France, or a shit pasta! To use later Internet terms, the worst Italians are Italians on their own. They need 3 divisions to face hostile Italy, 5 divisions to face neutral Italy, and 10 divisions to help them.'

The reason why Italy finally managed Turkey was because Turkey was weak enough and there was no land transportation between the mainland and Libya. Not to mention the Italian Navy, the Pisa-revised armored cruiser of the Greek Navy could stabilize the Turks. In addition, when the Italian-Turkish war broke out, the Balkan War broke out, and the Balkan coalition forces all came to Istanbul. How could Türkiye have the mood to take care of other things?

To deal with such an opponent, the prince believed that it would be a waste to let Germany take action, and Austro-Hungary was enough to settle it. Of course, it was not the time. The prince had already arrived at Kiel Port, and in the port, the first thing that caught his eye was the German high seas fleet's thugs!
Chapter completed!