"Whoever holds the initiative in international trade controls the world!"

This sentence was said by Lynch a few years ago. At that time, Mr. Truman didn’t feel much about it, thinking it was perhaps just... a way to boost the mood of other content.

It wasn’t until this moment that he understood the true meaning of this sentence.

Looking at those enthusiastic diplomats, eager to become brotherly allies with the Federation, this is the benefit of controlling the trade initiative.

These small countries wanting to develop, wanting orders, cannot offend the Federation. The more they rely on the Federation’s orders, the more they will be unable to escape the Federation’s control in the future.

The diplomat from Gafura sat on the side, looking extremely displeased but with no alternatives.

Oppose?

He might very well be asked to leave, thus causing Gafura to exit this organization.

He could only sit silently, enduring the uncomfortable feeling, as if there were thousands of worms crawling and biting inside his body!

After discussing trade issues for a while, Mr. Truman then talked about the currency order issue.

"The Silver Alliance’s silver currency has actually alerted us to something, the stability of major international circulating currencies, especially settlement currencies, is very important."

"A few days ago, the silver currency’s exchange rate with their allied countries was very high, and they were waving cash to make large purchases internationally, but now..."

Mr. Truman shook his head with great regret, "Those things have become worthless!"

"Many countries, including ours, were affected by this turmoil. The Federation also had some merchants sell their products to them in exchange for those..."

He chuckled a couple of times, his laughter filled with disdain and contempt, "So we need to stabilize the currency exchange rate system and adopt a stable currency as the main settlement currency within our organization."

After giving everyone a moment to reflect and process, he continued, "I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but compared to silver’s rapid fluctuations, gold has actually been very stable."

"The Silver Alliance has many problematic policies, but there is one decision I think is more in line with the current international situation, and that is the issue of currency pegging with precious metals."

He pursed his lips and took a sip of water, "What we need is a stable currency relationship, rather than exchange rates that surge or plummet due to a specific policy. Pegging currency to precious metals is feasible."

"But it cannot be silver, we all know..." he smiled, "Silver is worthless!"

The diplomats laughed along, accommodatingly.

"So what we want to peg to is gold..." Mr. Truman glanced at Lynch sitting at the far end, this "Golden Alliance" plan was initially proposed by Lynch.

It aligns too well with current development trends, and after several discussions within the Federation Government, it was quickly approved.

Even those tricky Senators in Congress had no objections to this plan, with only five abstentions and the rest voting in favor—it was a "unanimous vote" proposal.

The abstentions were to prove that the Congressional vote was fair and impartial and... free, which was symbolic. If there hadn’t needed to be abstention votes, it would have been a truly unanimous approval.

The true architect of the plan, at this moment, looked like an ordinary participant, seriously reading documents, which made Mr. Truman find it amusing.

"Federation Sol will be pegged to gold, we will announce the exchange rate and adjustment cycle soon, during which anyone..." he held up one finger to emphasize, "anyone can exchange for an equivalent amount of gold from the Federation’s banks or even the treasury!"

"Of course, the exchange rate pricing of Federation Sol is not entirely based on gold. We also considered various factors like technological advancement and societal development, whose details will be disclosed in a larger-scale meeting later."

The credit currency system is not fully established yet, and the reason lies in the significant status fluctuations of various countries internationally.

At any moment, significant exchange rate changes could occur due to certain changes. This situation sometimes makes "credit" not so "credible."

As the global landscape continues to change, catalyzing greater changes, constructing a credit currency system is challenging.

No one can believe the Federation will always be at the forefront of the world; even Gafura’s era has ended, and the Federation’s era may yet end in the future.

Thus, against this social and era background, pegging and linking to precious technology/infrastructure is instead the most suitable choice.

Regardless of the changes in national status, the price of gold at least does not fluctuate a lot.

Even with the severe impact this time, it only dropped by more than twenty percent, less than thirty percent, mainly due to some groups frantically suppressing it.

It won’t take long for it to rise back naturally.

This is different from silver. Once it falls, it never gets the chance to rise again.

In addition to these, technology and productivity weighting is also a reasonable weighting reason. As a country’s national power continuously increases, the currency’s purchasing power naturally needs to enhance, which is a very complex calculation process that the people in the Federation Government can resolve.

This meeting is not the final decision-making meeting.

Mr. Truman’s words undoubtedly informed these people that Federation Sol would become the main settlement currency within this alliance.

Avoiding looking at the Gafura diplomat’s face, which seemed like he had lost a loved one, the other countries actually had little reaction to this proposal.

The birth of "Alliance Currency" has already made them aware of the value and benefits of this alliance currency.

Otherwise, they would consistently face various counter-effects brought by exchange rates in trade surpluses and deficits. With a unified currency, whether it’s imports or exports, regardless of surpluses and deficits, the impact would be reduced to a certain extent.

Coupled with trade matchmaking within the alliance, it greatly enhances trade exchanges while reducing various losses caused by currencies.

At this moment, a diplomat suddenly proposed an idea, "Mr. Truman, as member states, can our currency exchange rate fluctuations follow the fluctuations of Federation Sol?"

Mr. Truman was taken aback for a moment, then looked towards Lynch, who also raised his head to look at Mr. Truman.

Their gazes met in the air, and then Lynch slightly shook his head. Mr. Truman immediately started to shake his head, "This issue is rather complicated, involving a lot of content. We need thorough discussions before we can draw accurate conclusions."

With a diplomatic rejection, the diplomat who proposed the idea smiled, not showing any obvious disappointment.

Exchange rate fluctuations are essentially a market-driven behavior. Currency itself is a kind of commodity that must adhere to the rules of the free market.

Unless, like the Federation, they can provide enough gold reserves, weighted national power output and other floating parameters, it is generally not recommended for any currency to have references.

This would have terrible implications for both parties. If one becomes malicious, then the people on the other side will suffer.

Of course, sometimes forming a bloc might be an effective approach, but this only applies to the special political needs of particular times and phases. It cannot always be that way as that would be an abnormal currency relationship.

With the discussion reaching this point, there wasn’t much left to cover. After addressing some detailed questions, the meeting concluded.

It was merely a simple mobilization. Each diplomat has to go back and discuss with their political entities before giving a definite response.

How to participate, the extent of participation, all need discussions to yield results.

A little past twelve, Lynch and Mr. Truman stepped out of the Ministry of International Affairs building together, drove for a while, and then stopped by a restaurant that hadn’t closed yet in the city center.

An ordinary restaurant.

Bupen has too many night workers, apart from those girls there are many regular clerks and the like.

They need to quickly prove their value in the office so they work late into the night.

As midnight approaches, hunger sets in, and they desperately need a meal.

These little restaurants are prepared for these people, thanks to Bupen’s relatively better public safety compared to other cities—limited to the city center here.

Outside the city center, it is still advised not to leave the house after eight p.m., but the city center remains lively and relatively safe even at night.

Some stores are still operating.

Lynch had the car stopped, looked through the car window at the restaurant by the roadside, and turned towards Mr. Truman, "A bite?"

Mr. Truman hesitated for a moment, "I’m trying to maintain my figure, my wife said I’ve gained weight..."

"There’s barbecue, I saw the menu."

Mr. Truman paused for a moment, then opened the car door, "What are we waiting for then?"

Lynch also got out of the car with a smile.

The restaurant is run by a foreigner, appears somewhat... shabby, not upscale, presumably early immigrants.

"Two beef ribs, one pork sausage each, anything else?", Lynch asked Mr. Truman.

The latter looked at the menu, hesitated for a moment, "Some vegetables too. We should maintain healthy eating habits."

"Then let’s add a serving of vegetables!", Lynch said while pulling out his wallet, "How much?"

"Eighteen dollars."

Lynch paid twenty dollars and indicated no need for change, before choosing a table by the side.

Two Darkstone Security employees entered the shop, headed into the back room, ensuring no tampering during cooking and securing the back door.

Special Agents from the Security Committee were watching the entrance, ensuring complete safety. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Do you think Gafura might cause trouble?", after lighting a cigarette, Mr. Truman asked.

Still holding the cigarette, Lynch was trying to put a lighter in his pocket, making his answer somewhat muffled, "Of course they will, they absolutely won’t stand by seeing us establish an alliance."

"Yet, we needn’t overly worry, as soon they’ll lack time and energy to focus on us."

Mr. Truman was somewhat surprised, "What happened?"