First Town.

After Spain declared war on the United States, Ernst quickly received the news, and the war between the two countries naturally also attracted the attention of the East African Army and Navy.

The East African Navy has a short history and few achievements, and lacks experience, so it is very concerned about the impending naval warfare. Both the United States and Spain are maritime powers, so regardless of who wins or loses, this war can provide better data support for the development of the East African Navy.

The United States Navy is a key focus for East Africa, after all, the expansion of the US Navy has only occurred in recent years, with a large number of new technologies far surpassing Spain, the fading power.

The East African Army, however, is less focused on the Spanish-American War because the ground battles between the two countries are likened to the pecking of weaklings. However, since Spain did use some standardized equipment from East Africa in the Philippines, there is still some testing effect for weapons such as rifles, artillery, and machine guns.

"The great war between Spain and the United States is probably the last large-scale war of the entire 1890s. With the addition of the South African War and the Far East War, three large-scale wars have erupted in the short span of ten years, indicating that the world is in a period of intense collision, and the battle between old and new forces is far from over," Ernst remarked thoughtfully.

East Africa vs. the United Kingdom, Japan vs. the Far East Empire, and the United States vs. Spain are all examples of new powers challenging the old order of the international community.

Of course, the South African War is more complex, involving Portugal, and when the United Kingdom intervenes in the South African War, other countries are likely to overlook Portugal as a major force, and the Boer Republic receives even less attention.

These three wars are just appetizers. In Ernst's mind, Germany's challenge to British hegemony is the ultimate conclusion. In the old-world nations, the United Kingdom and France are the most representative, whereas among the emerging countries, it is naturally Germany.

Although there are rising stars such as East Africa, the United States, and Japan, these countries are not in Europe, and since the center of world civilization is in Europe, their value is different.

The main battleground of World War I was Europe, and World War II spread to Europe, and Asia and Africa. Of course, the main battleground in Africa during World War II was North Africa.

Archduke Ferdinand said, "This is the current international situation. Many countries have achieved their breakthroughs by riding the wave of the Industrial Revolution, but the international community is like a pie that has already been divided up. Newcomers can only get a slice by challenging the old powers."

Constantine: "The United States shouldn't really be considered a newcomer. In reality, the United States has always been strong, just hidden rather deep, easily overlooked. Therefore, the Spanish-American War is also a chance for the United States to showcase its military strength and gain more political influence."

"What my father-in-law and father said is both correct, but precisely because of this, East Africa must also not stop its developmental steps. For East Africa, the current international situation positions us rather passively," Ernst said. "On one hand, there's the substantial accumulation of countries like the United States, and on the other hand, the domestic economy of East Africa is just now gaining momentum, so if we wish to lead in dividing the international pie, it will take another twenty to thirty years at least."

The East African economy has only just constructed its overall framework, and its industrialization will require at least another decade or more of effort.

Given the current rate of East Africa's economic development, if urbanization can surpass thirty percent before 1910, the East African Government's performance could be considered very exceptional.

After all, in the previous timeline, the Austro-Hungarian Empire's urbanization level was just over twenty percent by 1910, and Tsarist Russia only had a little more than ten percent, both being much less advanced compared to current East Africa.

East Africa can enter the ranks of the world's strong nations, relying on its population and territorial accumulation, similar to Tsarist Russia, whereas other major powers are more powerful in terms of industrial strength.

Of course, Ernst is not too worried about enhancing East Africa's industrial strength, as East Africa has already completed the layout of emerging industries such as electricity and internal combustion engines, indicating that in the future, East African technology will not fall behind over time.

Therefore, the economic work of the East African Government is mainly to continue improving the domestic economic system and to drive economic development vitality. Currently, the state-owned economy dominates, which can better facilitate East Africa in catching up with other countries.

The reform of East Africa's state-owned economy has never ceased, even in the previous timeline the Far East Empire had to constantly spur its state enterprises, and East Africa's state-owned economic framework is even more rudimentary, with the East African Government continuing to fill in the gaps on this basis.

Of course, Ernst still won't loosen control over releasing the shackles of the private economy at this stage, after all, the state-owned economy in East Africa is still in the growth phase, and it helps the East African Government to focus national resources on competing with other countries.

Once the East African state-owned economy is relatively mature and can lead national economic development, that will be when Ernst will start the next phase of reforms.

...

Due to East Africa's instigation, Spain delayed the timing of declaring war, allowing the Spanish troops stationed in the Philippines more preparation time.

Once the two countries declared war, the U.S. Asian Fleet stationed at Xiangjiang officially headed towards the Philippines, and by the time the U.S. Navy reached the coast of the Philippines, it was already June.

The Spanish Navy in the Philippines adopted the previous timeline's strategy, preparing to rely on the geographical advantages of Manila Bay to maneuver against the powerful United States Navy.

At noon on June 3rd, the United States Navy finally reached Manila Bay and engaged in a standoff with the Spanish Navy. With the addition of the Salagosa and Sagunto, the number of ships in the Spanish Philippine Navy increased to eleven, including nine cruisers and two gunboats.

Only Salagosa, Sagunto, and Christina were steel-armored, so the Spanish Navy remained at a distinct disadvantage.

After just one encounter, the Spanish Navy was battered, with the Christina leading at the front taking a direct hit, causing a large breach through which seawater rapidly flooded into the compartments, while other ships were either sunk or damaged. Fortunately, the Salagosa and Sagunto remained intact.

This prevented the Spanish Philippine Navy from completely losing confidence. However, after the first round of direct engagement, the Spanish Navy dared not re-engage. By this time, the Spanish Navy had already lost four ships, prompting the Spanish Navy commander to decisively order the whole fleet to retreat into Manila Bay to avoid total annihilation by the U.S. forces.

During the retreat, another ship was unsurprisingly sunk, and the Sagunto was also hit by a shell due to its slow response, leaving only the Salagosa capable of organizing a limited counterattack.

Upon seeing the Philippine Navy retreat, Du Wei decisively ordered the U.S. Navy to pursue the battered enemy, but when fighting a home-ground Spanish force, the U.S. Navy didn't have such good fortune this time.

Firstly, this time Spain had laid mines in Manila Bay, and the coastal defense artillery had been upgraded. While pursuing the Manila Bay entrance, attempting to avoid Spanish coastal defense artillery fire, a U.S. warship steered north, directly into Manila Bay's minefield.

A loud explosion followed, and this U.S. warship unfortunately became the first U.S. Navy loss in the Spanish-American War.

For Spain, this was already a pleasant surprise. Of course, the Spanish government wouldn't see it this way, considering in the previous timeline's Battle of Manila, the U.S. didn't lose a single ship and easily annihilated Spain's Asian fleet.

This time, although Spain's Asian fleet had already lost nearly half of its strength, it still had some fight left, and by sinking a U.S. warship, the war wouldn't be lost too disgracefully. As for the subsequent outcome of the battle in Manila Bay, it would depend on the next moves by both countries.