Q&A ยท 1:44:05-1:44:26

A surviving Russian Empire at the Washington conference

A treaty counterfactual places a surviving Russia below the leading naval powers but inside the negotiation that structures their ratios.

Question

If the First World War ended in 1916 and the Russian Empire survived, what capital-ship ratio might it receive at a Washington-style naval conference?

Short answer

Russia would probably receive treatment closer to France than to Britain or Japan, which would create difficulties for Japan.

Notes

The scenario keeps the Russian Empire intact and still produces a Washington-style limitation conference. Russia would sit nearer France in the capital-ship hierarchy rather than share the standing of Britain or Japan. Even that lower ratio would alter the bargaining balance because Japan would have to account for another substantial fleet in its strategic environment. The answer is deliberately provisional, but it shows how treaty ratios expressed political position and regional rivalry as well as existing tonnage.