Chapter 80 Oil Strategy (Seeking monthly ticket recommendation support)
Zhang Feng's family is currently involved in many industries, but none of them are the core industries of the United States. Now the pillar industries of the United States are automobiles, steel, and oil. Of course, motor and electrical manufacturing and the construction industry are also developing rapidly and have become the main industries supporting the economic growth of the United States.

It was not until the beginning of World War II that the military industry would rapidly rise and become another pillar industry.

Zhang Feng's family will definitely enter the three industries of automobile, steel, and oil, but not in the United States, because these three industries in the United States have basically been monopolized by large conglomerates, and he will not be stubborn enough to challenge the order.

However, Madagascar's future development requires these three industries to support a certain economic scale and employment environment.

There is no need to rush for cars and steel, as there will be many opportunities in the future, but the same cannot be said for oil. The window period for entering the oil extraction industry is getting shorter and shorter, and oil is indispensable for future wars and construction. In order to avoid being stuck in future plans, Zhang Feng began to think about how to obtain oil sources with low risk.

The first thing that came to his mind was naturally the oil kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He had previously thought about establishing good relations with Saudi Arabia in advance, perhaps to get the oil he had always dreamed of. However, by the time he was capable, Saudi Arabia had already been established and was connected with the American consortium. Naturally, it looked down upon Zhang Feng's strength.

In 1933, Saudi Arabia leased the right to exploit oil in an area of ​​93.2 square kilometers to Standard Oil Company of California, USA for 66 years. In 1938, large amounts of oil were discovered in the Dammam region of Hasa.

Zhang Feng would naturally not snatch food from the tiger's mouth and overestimate his own capabilities, but he thought of another medium-sized oil-producing country through Saudi Arabia. Although its total oil output ranked only around 50th among the countries in the world in later generations, it was enough to support the development of a large oil company.

The most important thing is that this is the only country with which we currently have the opportunity to cooperate. At this moment the world has been divided up and there is nowhere to start, unless we go to war with other powerful countries.

In the 19th century, the Ottoman Empire invaded Yemen and established a large-scale garrison in the region to establish its dominance.

As the Ottoman Empire that ruled the Arabian Peninsula was severely damaged in the First World War, the Arabs took advantage of the situation and sought to establish their own Arab countries. Among them, Ibn Saud, who was born into a declining aristocracy, seized the throne of the Sultan of Najd. After that, he continued to expand abroad and renamed Najd the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on September 1932, 9, and he himself became the founding king. This outstanding figure in Arab history was hailed as the "Napoleon of Arabia" by the West.

When Saudi Arabia was founded, the only country in the Arabian Peninsula that was not very supportive was the Kingdom of Yemen, except for small countries such as Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain, which were protected by the United Kingdom. The Kingdom of Yemen also achieved independence after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and established the Mutawakkiliya Kingdom.

Yemen is Shia and Saudi Arabia is Sunni, so there is a natural conflict between the two countries.

It just so happens that at this time, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been continuously annexing Yemeni territory in order to expand its sphere of influence.

During its expansion, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia annexed Asir in 1926. Yemen has always claimed sovereignty over the area. In addition, Saudi Arabia also tried to incorporate Baha, Jizan, Najran and other places into its territory, which Yemen believed should also be its own territories, leading to hostility and conflict between the two countries.

In 1934, a fierce war will break out between the two sides, and Yemen will fail because its military is relatively weak and cannot withstand the powerful strength of Saudi Arabia.

At that time, Britain was intervening in some political affairs. It took advantage of the war to sign a so-called friendship treaty with northern Yemen, resulting in the separation of north and south Yemen.

This was the opportunity for Zhang Feng to intervene. After two years of development, the Chinese-American Company now had 380 million immigrants in Madagascar. With more than a month left until the end of 1933, the goal of 1 million was within reach.

Among the 380 million immigrants, there are nearly 320 million Chinese and 60 white immigrants from the United States and Europe. The economic crisis has intensified in recent years, and countries have no good way to ensure the livelihood of civilians.

When the intelligence personnel of the Public Opinion Survey secretly spread the news in various countries that there were places overseas that could provide enough daily necessities to ensure their survival, many people were willing to leave by ship, just like many people who immigrated from Europe to America a long time ago for survival reasons.

This is still the case because American Chinese companies only need skilled immigrants. Otherwise, tens of millions of hungry white people could directly occupy Madagascar. Of course, whether they have the transportation capacity and can afford to support them is another matter.

In November 1933, Yemen sent troops to occupy Najran. Ibn Saud sent a delegation to Yemen to try to conclude a peace treaty. Unexpectedly, King Yahya of Yemen ordered all the delegation members to be imprisoned. He proudly declared: "Who is this Bedouin (referring to Ibn Saud)? How dare he challenge our family's 11-year hegemony?"

Madagascar, 10 kilometers away from Zhangjiacheng, after the arrival of German military advisers, a series of military facilities were built here, such as airports, shooting ranges, individual physical training grounds, warehouses, housing, etc. There is no name here for the time being, only a code name, Wolf's Lair.

There are dozens of aircraft of various types parked at the airport, the most numerous of which are the L33 fighter jets produced by Lockheed. However, it is said that Lockheed has stopped production of this model of aircraft, and the logistics department of the Meihua Company is already discussing the purchase of the latest P34 fighter jets that have just been produced.

With the support of the California consortium, Lockheed has accelerated its research and development progress. It now has two major customers, the China Company and the U.S. Department of Defense.

As for orders from China, they are very unstable. It depends on when the overseas Chinese make donations and when the bald men have money to purchase.

On the other side of the airport, there are 50 tanks and armored vehicles of various models and sizes parked on the ground. Most of them are light tanks. Type A costs US$4000 and Type B costs around US$6000. They are mainly used for training.

There are also several combat-capable medium tanks and armored vehicles, with prices ranging from $2.5 to $6.

It’s not that tanks are very cheap nowadays, nor that there are no good tanks, it’s just that there is no need to buy them now.

Zhang Feng plans to directly equip himself with the famous Tiger and Leopard tanks in the future.

Powerful heavy tanks such as the brave Tiger and Panther tanks. A Tiger tank weighing more than 16 tons is a devastating force on the battlefield. Its price is indeed not cheap, with an average price of US dollars per tank.

There is also a Jagdpanther tank destroyer modified from the Panther, which costs more than $10. The most expensive mass-produced tank destroyer is the Jagdtiger. Its prototype, the King Tiger heavy tank, cost $20.93, while the Jagdtiger cost as much as $25.7. The Jagdtiger is definitely worth the price. With a 128mm heavy gun, it is normal to penetrate two M4s or T-34s from the side with one shot.

"Beep! Beep! Assemble!"

A whistle broke the quiet of the afternoon. After an hour's break at noon, the Wolf Lair started its training mission again.

Thousands of soldiers first line up and run 10 laps around the training ground, and then do physical exercises such as push-ups and horizontal bars. Only after completing these basic trainings will they begin learning special skills.

"Team one goes to the airport, and team two goes to the tank and armored vehicle camp." A white instructor commanded.

Among these people, we can also see members of the Dragon Warrior Commando who participated in the last jungle encirclement and suppression of indigenous guerrillas.

"I heard that we will be given some real big toys soon?" a white instructor asked Zhang Dabiao.

Because of his outstanding performance in the last Sino-Malaysian War, Zhang Dabiao received one year of further training in the military academy. Now he is a senior general in the US-China Company’s army, and he is now the Chinese person in charge of the Wolf’s Lair.

"Yes, there is no need to hide it from you. We may have military operations in the near future, so we are getting everyone here for training now. It won't be long before we go directly to the battlefield." Zhang Dabiao narrowed his eyes and said to the soldiers who were training seriously in front of him.

"We don't know when we can go to the battlefield." The white instructor said calmly. It was impossible to tell what he was really thinking. Maybe he was envious and longing, hoping to wash away the shame of last time, or maybe he was glad that he didn't have to go to the battlefield to die.

(End of this chapter)