Russia suffered a number of defeats, however Emperor Nicholas II was convinced that Russia could win if it fought on; he chose to remain engaged in the war and wait for the outcomes of certain key naval battles. After the hope of victory was quelled, he continued the war to preserve the dignity of Russia by averting a "humiliating peace". Russia ignored Japan's willingness early on to agree to an armistice and rejected the idea of bringing the dispute to the Arbitration Court at The Hague. The war eventually concluded with the Treaty of Portsmouth (), mediated by US President Theodore Roosevelt. The complete victory of the Japanese military surprised international observers and transformed the balance of power in both East Asia and Eastern Europe, resulting in Japan's emergence as a great power and Russia's decline in prestige and influence in Eastern Europe. The loss of life without victory and the humiliating defeat for the Russian Empire contributed to growing domestic unrest which culminated in the 1905 Russian Revolution and accelerated the disintegration of the Russian autocracy.