Meanwhile, the Germans waited for the French prime minister and president, who had both been visiting Russia (France’s ally), to leave St. Petersburg, at which point they rapidly pressed Austria to deliver an ultimatum that they knew the Russians could not accept. The news would arrive while the French leaders were at sea, and would thus find it more difficult to produce an effective and coordinated response.
与此同时，德国人静待当时正在俄国（法国盟友）访问的法国总理和总统离开圣彼得堡，马上通知奥地利发布他们料定俄国不可能接受的最后通牒。消息将在法国领导人跨海旅行时到达，因此法俄难以出台有效的合作应对措施。