... Bosporus Straits for her grain exports. Bismarck still feared the consequences of a great power conflict in the Balkans and hence aimed to build an alliance structure that provided more security than the loose and vague agreements of the early 1870's. Bismarck's first such structure, just as his second in the later 1880's, was built around a number of characteristics and it set the foundation for international relations in this period. One of the most striking characteristics about the system and the way it was constructed is that many of the decisions were dependant on Bismarck's insecurity and fear of a number of threats to Germany, many of which had little basis in fact, or what basis they had was provoked by the Chancellor's own actions. In 1879, for instance, faced with the imminent resignation of Andrassy from the Austrian foreign office, Bismarck illogically expected the appointment of a pro-Slav ...

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