Italian Rio de Oro

Following the Spanish American War, Spain offered to sell Rio de Oro to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. While the transaction was successfully negotiated, Hungary blocked the deal.

What if Italy, desirous of colonial prestige, got the colony?
 
Following the Spanish American War, Spain offered to sell Rio de Oro to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. While the transaction was successfully negotiated, Hungary blocked the deal.

What if Italy, desirous of colonial prestige, got the colony?

If somewhat the first Italo-Abyssinian war is butterflyed away or at least the negotiation of January 1896 are succesfull and the war end without Adwua, Italy will have enough resources and desire to expand her colonial empire to accept the deal, expecially if it to spite A-H.
If Italy get the colony she can become a more interested and active partecipant at the various Moroccoan crisis and France can see her as a rival in get the rest of Morocco...during a period that relationships between Rome and Paris are not optimal
 

Driftless

Donor
If Italy still held that colony before and after WW1, that possession would be part of war planning considerations by both the French and British. By mid June of 1940, that consideration has elevated to alarm, especially for the British. I don't know if there was much for port facilities there, but air bases for torpedo bombers could likely be built. Keeping those planes supplied with fuel would be a problem, but even the notion of Italian torpedo planes within minutes reach of prime shipping channels would be a call to action.
 
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