Chapter 662 – Britain and France are on the same page

Grace compared the straight-line distances between France and India and combed through Nkrumah’s contacts to indicate that India was not a good place to start, and that it was already independent and unlikely to be able to give Britain command as it were.

“On the contrary France is different, Mr. Allen, I understand that many of the heavyweights in the French National Assembly, themselves leaders of the independence movement in Africa, were given high status by Paris and now live there.” Grace paused at this and said, “Can’t this man be bought off?”

“He is a Pan-Africanist and a socialist, the former if successful influence would quickly spread to other African colonies, the latter would cause damage to British and French interests.” Alan Wilson glanced at Grace and sighed, “So you say, can I let him go? It’s not that Britain isn’t willing to let the colonies become independent, but it definitely won’t work on this kind of person.”

“Afraid of the threat posed by the colonies backfiring?” Grace asked suspiciously, and could only attribute Britain’s wariness of Pan-Africanism and socialism to that, but he could see one thing, normal African nationalists, that Alan Wilson didn’t care about.

“Threats? That’s not true, there are many kinds of independence, but Pan-Africanism and Socialism, hurt Britain more than nationalists, the former could be considered the first piece of a domino, if we let this Pan-Africanist leader succeed in independence, we and the French would be in big trouble, and the influence would spread quickly. A preference for socialism, on the other hand, would sever economic ties with Britain in the short term, and what happens in the future remains to be seen, but not now.”

Alan Wilson showed the difference between the different forces of independence, it was not impossible to let go of the nationalists, he didn’t want Britain to rule Africa all the time anyway, independence was just a matter of sooner or later, he was just dragging his feet.

Pan-African ideas and socialist ideas, in Allen Wilson’s mind is actually not a big threat, said the colonial independence can be a threat to Britain? Not even British India could do that, let alone an African colony.

It’s not like he didn’t know what happened to several of the supporting countries of Pan-Africanism in the end; Ghana in the twenty-first century was far less influential than the Gold Coast in the 1950s. If there is a difference, Ghana has a lower status in the world than the Gold Coast does now, and by a lot.

None of the regimes in these so-called Pan-Africanist countries could organize new societies on their own.

Soon after the militarized zeal of the revolutionary countries faded, these Pan-Africanist regimes were counter-attacked and became dewy-eyed dictatorships.

The last country led by a Pan-Africanist leader became poorer the more Pan-Africanist soil there was.

Because Pan-Africanism believed that all of Africa was one family, but the colonies became independent first and then later. The countries that became independent first could support the other countries that had not yet become independent, but who would believe that they could merge and form a unified African parliament?

The problem is that not now, Britain can’t afford to throw its hands over the colonies just yet, Nkrumah has two intolerable qualities. Once he is allowed to become a success, the African colonial system has broken open a gaping hole, the impact is very bad.

“But looking at all the gold reserves, if it were me I couldn’t let the Gold Coast become independent so easily.” Grace was unaware that Allen Wilson had, in his head, divided the African independence movement into several categories, in which independence movement leaders like Nkrumah happened to be categorized among the ranks of those who made an example of them.

He just thought that Britain looked at the gold reserves of the Gold Coast, now South Africa is obviously not very obedient, and the Americans are not dry watching, Britain can only think of another gold in Africa to increase the power of the United Kingdom.

Think of it this way is also right, the British Gold Coast gold reserves, is indeed an important reason to do it.

But Allen Wilson could not admit it, stating that it was for the sake of not destroying civilization and order throughout Africa. Once independence succeeded under Nkrumah, it would only leave the Gold Coast in the midst of poverty.

Grace had an I’m-so-believing look on her face, and the two men tentatively determined that borrowing from France was more reliable than India.

Although Nkrumah had also adopted Gandhi’s campaign of nonviolent non-cooperation, India would not necessarily be able to get Nkrumah to leave the Gold Coast.

On the contrary several African leaders in the French National Assembly, such as Félix Houphouët-Boigny as well as Léopold Sédar Senghor, were still quite highly regarded by the government in Paris because they were all black.

From personal friendships and connections, it might be possible to facilitate Nkrumah’s trip. Grace said that once Nkrumah left the good old Gold Coast, he could use a plane crash to make Nkrumah disappear, which was not a problem for him.

But Alan Wilson had to be made to promise to give him the aerial route map of France as well as French Africa.

“No problem, the French can be commendable enough at this point.” Allen Wilson agreed in one breath, land power countries and sea power countries are different, France is much more resolute than Britain in some colonization issues.

According to his knowledge, the current French colonies of North Africa colonies, there is no flights between each other, but all exist and Paris routes, which is the same as in later times.

The difference is that because of the limitations of the voyage in this era, it is not possible for Paris to arrive in French Central Africa with a direct flight. The French stopover in Africa was Algiers, capital of the Algerian Overseas Department.

From this we know how much France valued Algeria, and once Algeria became independent, French colonial rule in Africa was bound to collapse. Allen Wilson, who came to Nigeria and also stopped over from Algiers, knew this well.

“I’ll send someone to Algeria to wait, as for the cooperation of the French side?” Grace said this looking at Allen Wilson, indicating that he could be the white glove, but other levels would require Allen Wilson.

Allen Wilson stood still for a long time and dove head first into the office of the Nigerian Executive Office, he didn’t really know the French personally, but his wife, Pamela Mountbatten, was beloved by many of her friends in France’s aristocratic circles.

It would be interesting to see if the special Anglo-French relationship traded for Libya could survive this one. Grace’s suggestion would be best made by an invitation from an African member of the French Communist Party or the French National Assembly.

This Alan Wilson had recognized, not that he really knew whether it would achieve its purpose. But common sense dictated that there should be some sleepers within the French Communist Party. After all, France was part of the free world and could not be indifferent to a pro-Soviet organization in the country that was momentarily at odds with the Italian Communist Party.

There is a saying that every meeting of the American Communist Party is left with agents of the U.S. government lurking within the American Communist Party, except for Bailaud himself, and there is good news and bad news in this; the good news is that the federal government has had the entirety of the American Communist Party in its grasp, and the bad news is that both the FBI and the CIA believe that the other party’s agents who have lurked within the American Communist Party have turned against the United States.

The French Communist Party may not have been as weak as the American Communist Party, but Allen Wilson believed that the French government must have planted reliable people among the French Communist Party, practicing to break the fortress down from the inside.

At the critical moment just in front of his wife to ask for help, Alan Wilson believes that this is nothing to be ashamed of, it is all for the continuation of civilization of the British Empire, licked all licked, still care if it is not kneeling it.

Soon Pamela Mountbatten was subjected to her husband’s telegram, she has recently been checking the body has been determined that the belly under the good news, in retrospect, should go to find a good environment in the city for a temporary stay.

She was about to contact her husband, but at this time received the telegram and read it in a soothing mood.

The telegram greeted his wife, and then mentioned the current Allen Wilson himself in British West Africa encountered difficulties, as well as ways to deal with Nigeria, but ultimately in the Gold Coast issue, Pamela Mountbatten saw her husband’s anxiety.

Since South Africa had been less than obedient, the Gold Coast was an important source of gold for Britain, with over one hundred and fifty tons of gold imported into the country in the last year.

The good news for the Gold Coast at the moment is that since the establishment of the Colonial State Enterprises (CSEs), all the major colonies have focused on absorbing ex-soldiers into the CSEs. The most remarkable thing about this result is that it has prevented these soldiers, who have had war experience, from becoming the backbone of the opposition to British colonial rule.

This is certainly stronger than the original history, so the armed resistance in the British African colonies was not strong.

Naturally Alan Wilson couldn’t reveal this in a telegram to his wife, but it was implied, just get rid of Nkrumah. It might be better to replace him with a compliant leader of the independence movement and talk again.

Hoping to be able to borrow French influence in Africa to get Nkrumah off the Gold Coast was an idea that Allen Wilson did not hide from his wife either.

“Once the Gold Coast becomes independent, this Pan-Africanist will surely create instability in other colonies. This is the first piece of the domino is falling, military action but because Nkrumah’s own experience of staying in the United States may cause misunderstanding among the Americans, so try not to use it, I mean to make it disappear with an accident.”

Rubbing her stomach lightly Pamela Mountbatten put down the telegram, “Marina, prepare a plane to Paris and make an appointment for me to meet with a friend who works in politics, the French Communist Party would be best.”

A day later, Pamela Mountbatten had arrived in Paris with two aides, not forgetting to say to the two aides behind her, “Marina, Zakharova, Grace is in Nigeria, with my husband, how is he as a person.”

“Very highly regarded by the chief,” replied Marina dryly, “and not surprisingly, the next chief of the Chetniks, whom we all respect.”

“That reassures me that Alan thinks highly of Northern Rhodesia.” Pamela Mountbatten lifted her wrist to glance at the time and stepped out of the airport where a car was already waiting.

Traditionally, France was an old revolutionary area, but it wasn’t always the revolutionaries who revolutionized, in the case of Napoleon, it was a revolution on behalf of the army. The left and right in France are not clearly separated, on the contrary there is quite a lot of intermingling.