The First Anti-Comintern Pact
The First Anti-Comintern Pact
“For now, I’m thinking of Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, and Turkey. I’ll also reach out to Britain and France.”
Apparently Bulgaria had quietly sounded out our foreign ministry about wanting to join the Anti-Comintern Pact, probably because they were irritated with Yugoslavia. I wasn’t sure how that would turn out. Still, if Hungary, Slovakia, and Romania were all signing on, what choice did they have? Greece still seemed full of complaints, so it probably wouldn’t be long before they turned red too. Even if they did, they could still fight on our side. After all, America wasn’t communist, so it wasn’t like they’d be sending Lend-Lease to the Soviets to beat up Germany or anything.
Anyway, Poland—right next to Germany and of decent size—and the weakened but still viable Austria under Hitler would make the Anti-Comintern Pact function properly in an emergency. Slovakia was technically independent but clearly under Austrian influence, so they’d probably come along too. At least as long as those two didn’t cause any major blunders.
“Is there anything our Germany can help with?”
“Help with?”
What was this one-armed man suddenly talking about?
“After all, aren’t we going to be on the same side from now on?”
If Germany had been whole, he probably wouldn’t have said something like that. He was clearly trying to find some way to pull us onto his side.
“In that case… naval technology. Yes. Could we perhaps obtain some U-boat technology?”
The navy hadn’t been rebuilt yet, and Russia’s technology was admittedly a bit lacking. Our fleet and submarine technology lagged behind other nations. Rebuilding the surface fleet would cost a fortune, so I figured it would be better to churn out as many submarines as possible in the meantime. The reason we’d been crushed in the naval battles of the Russo-Japanese War wasn’t simply because the Baltic Fleet had sailed all the way around the world and arrived exhausted. They’d received help from their ally France for fuel and everything else. Japan’s fleet, raised with British assistance, had also been superior in performance. And Russian submarines were several generations behind the other great powers.
So yes, I needed to wring out whatever I could get.
“That shouldn’t be difficult. Even though there was a mutiny among the sailors, we moved all the technical secrets to East Prussia so the reds couldn’t get their hands on them.”
“Oh, well done.”
Still, considering that the first people to side with Rosa Luxemburg or that Karl person during the revolution had been from the military, moving the technology to East Prussia probably didn’t change much. But at least the sailor mutiny had indeed happened.
“Then, why don’t you rest until Chief of State Józef Piłsudski arrives? I’ve already transferred power to the Duma, after all.”
“Ah, I see. I understand what you mean.”
I gave a suitably vague excuse that as a mere figurehead I had to mind the Duma’s mood, and sent the Kaiser on his way. I had someone here I was actually glad to see.
Józef Piłsudski finally arrived in Moscow. His face was filled with displeasure. It looked like he’d been thoroughly cursed at by Russians the entire way here. I had made sure to give him the grandest possible treatment. When crossing the border, I’d had Polish flags draped all over his car under the pretext of security—so that anyone who saw it would immediately know: Here comes the Chief of State! In every city we hung banners that read “Welcome, Chief of State of Poland!” as a bonus.
Thanks to my sincere efforts, Józef Piłsudski looked utterly exhausted from the ordeal he’d endured in East Prussia. His face was gaunt.
“Welcome. I hope the journey wasn’t too difficult?”
I smiled brightly as I shook hands with Józef Piłsudski. My lips were stretched so wide they practically reached my ears. The man watching me smile had both eyes trembling violently. After being cursed at the whole way here, my behavior must have seemed ridiculous to him.
“Yes, Your Majesty. It is only thanks to Your Majesty’s warm welcome that I was able to arrive here safely.”
I continued smiling innocently, pretending to know nothing.
“There’s no chance of terrorism in our Russia, so please don’t worry. Since you’re here, why not take the opportunity to do some sightseeing?”
Go ahead and look around everywhere. Despite how it might seem, traveling in Russia these days had become rather pleasant. Of course, if the Polish leader wandered around he’d probably get cursed out in all sorts of ways, but at least there wouldn’t be any bomb attacks.
“No. Sightseeing seems rather difficult at the moment.”
“Oh, really? That’s a shame. I went to the trouble of hanging huge signs in every Russian city welcoming the Chief of State.”
I beamed at him with an innocent, wide-eyed smile, like a naïve young girl who had no idea what she was doing.
“I would prefer to refrain.”
“Well then. Let’s stop the jokes here.”
After all, this was a meeting to sign the Anti-Comintern Pact. It wasn’t the place for playful banter and laughter. Though of course we still had to smile. It would look strange if the leaders of the two countries didn’t at least appear friendly while Poland was becoming Russia’s meat shield.
Normally the Prime Minister should have handled this, but considering Polish history and how they had once been ruled by the old Russian Empire, it seemed more appropriate for the Tsarina to step forward. The leaders of neighboring countries would of course know this was all an act, but on the surface we needed to show a gesture of reconciliation. That was why it was better for me to appear. If Krivoshein was going to look after Poland, he had judged that Russia should display the dignity of a great power. The White Army leadership had tried to block it, but I accepted immediately.
At first glance it looked like Russia was being very generous, and there was plenty of grumbling within the military. But if you looked deeper, only Piłsudski’s insides were burning pitch black. Poland would be the one shedding blood for Russia in the coming war. No one would want to cry more than Piłsudski.
Yes. If I had to put it in Eastern terms, Piłsudski’s visit here could be seen as a tributary mission from a vassal king. The Polish cabinet was probably viewing it as a national humiliation. In any case, this meant they no longer had any room to maneuver against Germany. They would have to focus everything on striking Germany and achieving victory.
And.
To drive the nail in properly, I had prepared something special. Journalists from all over the world had gathered here—reporters from Britain, France, Austria, Turkey, and every other anti-communist nation. Even communist Germany would be watching Poland’s moves. The moment had arrived that would be reported in newspapers across the world as “Russia’s forgiveness” and “the reconciliation between Russia and Poland.”
Countless journalists swarmed like ants, taking notes and photographs of me standing together with Piłsudski. Russian reporters, discreetly planted by the Ohrana, recorded the scene as a historic moment—the day Russia and Poland reconciled.
“The Tsarina of Russia and Chief of State Józef Piłsudski of Poland are smiling together!”
“This is a historic moment of reconciliation between Russia and Poland!”
“Ah, to so mercifully forgive Poland after they even carried out a bombing! As expected of our Russian saint!”
In front of the Kremlin, the Russian people watched the two of us with a mixture of shock, confusion, rage, and various other emotions. But the majority praised me for forgiving the arrogant Poles. I forgave them mercifully? I was actually the type to hold a very long grudge. If the name Poland still existed far in the future, then they could call me merciful then.
Piłsudski would have to be extremely nervous. About what would happen to Poland after he died. What kind of future awaited them. Probably one where the entire country was carpeted with bombs. He might be worrying about exactly that.
Whether he disliked the journalists snapping photos nonstop or not, Piłsudski clicked his tongue, his expression twisting.
“Please smile on such a fine day.”
“Hahaha. Understood.”
The day we smiled together in reconciliation between Russia and Poland was January 22, 1924. It might seem forced, but it was the same date as the January Uprising of 1863, when Poland had rebelled against the rule of the Russian Empire. The day the January Uprising began had become the day Russia and Poland reconciled. Wasn’t that quite an interesting twist?
After the performance of Russian-Polish reconciliation ended, we moved on to the actual Anti-Comintern Pact. On the German Empire side were Kaiser Wilhelm II and Foreign Minister Richard von Kühlmann. On the Russian side were myself, Prime Minister Krivoshein, and various ministers. On the Polish side were Chief of State Józef Piłsudski and the noticeably well-named Gabriel Narutowicz, among others.
Since everything had already been discussed in advance, there was no need for further coordination.
“At this moment, Russia, Poland, and the German Empire declare that we stand together against the aggression of the communist party.”
If I were to put it more bluntly: “At this moment, Poland declares that it will become the meat shield for Russia and East Prussia.”
On the surface it looked like three countries had formed a limited alliance aimed at communist Germany and Italy, laughing and chatting together. But if one were to summarize this Anti-Comintern Pact meeting simply, that was it.
“Sign it immediately!”
“We. Po.land. are. Rus.sia’s. bit.ch.”
Why did I feel like I could already see the future Privilisnkij Krai? It was probably already visible in Piłsudski’s future. Look at him—he was trembling even as he signed. Even if he accepted the Anti-Comintern part, he probably had no idea what kind of future this pact would bring.
The German Empire (East Prussia) and Poland joined the Anti-Comintern Pact I had created today, just as they had been told in advance. Austria would have no choice either, since they had to fight both Germany and Italy. For today it was just the three countries—East Prussia, Poland, and Russia. Next would be Romania, Austria, and Turkey. Yugoslavia looked like it would turn red and end up getting crushed by Hitler later. So for now, these three countries would form the first Anti-Comintern Alliance?
Britain and France, with their excessive pride, had agreed to joint action against the communists but showed no interest in the Anti-Comintern Pact I proposed. Damn pirates and frogs. All they had was pride. Even when Russia developed the Ilya Muromets, they had sneered that there was no way Russia could have created such a thing.
“Wouldn’t inviting Romania be a bit ambiguous?”
“Foreign Minister, what do you mean?”
“Romania seized Transylvania, Bukovina, and Bessarabia in the last war. Wouldn’t that create problems with Hungary and Austria?”
The Foreign Minister had struck a rather sharp point. Yes, that was true. If this were a serious alliance, that would indeed be an issue. But this was the Anti-Comintern Pact. So it was fine.
“Still, it would be better to invite them now. What would happen if Romania were left isolated? Communist Germany would approach them. Besides, it’s not as if they have conflicts with all their neighbors, is it?”
Austria and Hungary would probably complain a bit, but they would accept it. After all, hadn’t Hungary received Romania’s help?
“Yes. It is said that during the communist revolution in Hungary, Romania provided material support, allowing Horthy’s Hungarian army to annihilate the communist forces.”
“But even so, wouldn’t there still be some awkwardness between them?”
Following Foreign Minister Vasily Kharlamov, even Deputy Foreign Minister Boris Savinkov seemed negative about Romania. I thought that was unnecessary worry. This wasn’t a complete division of sides. On the surface it was certainly an Anti-Comintern Pact, but it was ultimately a pact limited to “communist states.” As I said, it was simply an anti-communist agreement. We could simply state that it would not interfere in bilateral national issues between the parties.
I waved my hand.
“Since we’re only coming together to oppose communist states, it should be fine. Just make the proposal. If they refuse, we can say we clearly offered. That’s all there is to it.”
“Then we will also invite Bulgaria, who reached out first regarding the Anti-Comintern Pact.”
“Bulgaria?”
“Yes. Bulgaria lost territory to Serbia and Greece in the last war. And now Yugoslavia is about to turn red. Wouldn’t it be good to invite Bulgaria to the pact in order to check Yugoslavia?”
So the foreign ministry had already been thinking about it. Of course they had been our enemy in the last war, but there are no eternal enemies or eternal allies. The more allies, the better.
“Do as you see fit.”
But wasn’t that something the foreign ministry should handle on its own? I’d rather they didn’t ask me about every little thing.