Securing ties

[Amyante]

For a long time now, Zargathia and Cochin had had good relations with one another, though said relations had never actually been finalized in a treaty one would expect from two nations with strong economic ties to one another. The only actual official treaty between the two nations had been when both had been a member of the Dragon Bloc, and had not actually been renewed after its fall though both nations assumed it to be in place.

And so, a Zargathian delegation had ended up on a Zargathian [url=http://forums.cybernations.net/index.php?showtopic=70836&view=findpost&p=1911476]electrical passenger train[/url] heading for the Kingdom of Cochin with the intent of reestablishing official ties between them. Normally, Queen Amyante would have been with them, but Royal Secretary [url=http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/4281/348ac72166e38811a9d50ce.jpg]Rebecca Célentin[/url] would be leading the delegation in her stead. The train was scheduled to arrive a few minutes behind schedule, but given the distance that it had traveled it was well within affordable limits.

[king of cochin]

Rebecca Celentin would be welcomed at the Grand Terminal Station, Cochin City by KP Varma, Minister of External Affairs and along with the other members of the delegation escorted to the Hill Palace in a cavalcade of Rolls Royce Phantom sedans as the traffic at the time is too heavy for limousines. At the Hill Palace, KP Varma would conduct Ms. Celentin towards the King's Office where His Highness Kerala Varma, the King of Cochin is waiting to meet her.

"Greetings Ms. Celentin and welcome to Cochin City. We are indeed very glad to have visits from Zargathia after such a long time."

[Amyante]

Rebecca headed straight for the delegation flanked by two members of the Royal Guard, and shook hands with the official sent to welcome her. From her manner it was clear that she was looking forward to this visit; though she had been the Royal Secretary for several years, this would be her first actual visit to Cochin.

- "You and us both, Minister. The Queen is sorry she could not be present in person, but technology has not yet advanced to the point where one can be in two places at once, i fear, and a video conference lacks the charm of a personal visit, wouldn't you agree?"

Though she did not comment on the choice of car, it was clear that they had her attention as they were walking towards them. Though the internal would quite likely be as luxurious as the brand of the car implied, it would be taking some getting used to. Still, she decided to just lean back and enjoy the view.

[king of cochin]

"Of course, there is nothing more productive and fruitful than an interpersonal visit, the closeness and friendship that can be established through a direct contact can never be matched by the more modern telecommunication facilities which are after all designed only to facilitate and not replace interpersonal contact. As and when relations between our nations grow to such a stage as to warrant rather more frequent communications we fear, such teleconferencing may be the only alternative available.

Anyhow let us come to the matter at hand. How is Zargathia today, Ms. Celentin? We have been slightly worried over the prolonged periods of silence in geopolitics from Zargathia. As stable regional neighbors, your safety and security is always of great interest to us, so it had been with no little trepidation that we watched on when there were strains between Zargathia and Koryo, strains which we now perceive have been sorted out amicably between you two responsible nations," Kerala Varma said.

[Amyante]

Rebecca took a deep breath before starting to answer the questions. Though the Rolls Royces would likely have a small bar on board she would stick to non-alcoholic drinks as alcohol tended to make her carsick. Her friends had often joked about her being the designated driver, but she minded it less than being sick as a dog the day after.

- "Zargathia is well, thank you for asking. The period of silence was indeed regrettable: We got carried away and bit off more than we could chew, but we were fortunate that it was relatively harmless in itself. It will remind us to take care in the implementation of new technologies, regardless of how common they are in other nations."

She took a sip from a glass of apple juice before continuing.

- "As for Koryo... The [url=http://forums.cybernations.net/index.php?showtopic=88511]Manchurian Accords[/url] were signed during the height of tension between our nations. Though there is a considerable faction in Koryo searching to reunify the ancient kingdom of Goguryeo, they know that as long the Accords are upheld they will get what they want if either country falls. The odds of success for a full military campaign against us and our allies is simply too small to be a feasible option even to the radicals. They will get used to playing the Waiting Game eventually, as we intended."

[king of cochin]

OOC: The meeting is happening at the King's Office and not in the Rolls Royce. She would be taking to the King himself and not just the minister.

IC:

"We had been convinced by Koryo that they no longer hold any hostile intentions towards you, a promise that was fundamental for the signing of the Non Aggression Pact between Cochin and Koryo. Zargathia has been a valued friend for several years and that kind of stability and reliability are rare in today's world. It is thus most surprising that relations between two such close nations as ours are not formalized through any formal treaty. Does Zargathia have any suggestion on how we may improve our relations?", HH Kerala Varma, the King of Cochin asked.

[Amyante]

OOC: My bad, thought we were still in the car and she was talking to the Minister on the way there.

IC:

Rebecca nodded, making note of this new bit of information. Though she had faith in that the Acco0rds were going to be upheld, it was always good that there was a safety net present, even if they had not been responsible for it.

- "Ah, that's good to know. Either way, given that the relationship between us hasn't changed since the days of the Dragon Bloc, i would like to suggest a treaty of similar weight between our nations. How would mutual defense and intelligence sound?"

Though the Dragon Bloc had technically been an MDIAP, the gap between Zargathia and Cochin in terms of military prowess and simple reach would make assisting in a war of aggression impossible, what little assistance they would have been able to give likely doing more harm than good in terms of overall efficiency. Thus, an MDIP would be what she would be aiming for.

[king of cochin]

"A Mutual Defense and Intelligence Pact would truly be in our better interest. When we sold you fighter aircrafts for your air force there had been great closeness and interoperability between our nations. We should try to rekindle that through Combat exercises and more flag visits between our two armed forces. Perhaps Zargathia would consent to join the Divisional battle exercises we conduct every year for various terrain related combat environments?

Anyway do you have a draft document in mind for the treaty?" Kerala Varma asked.

[Amyante]

- "An interesting proposal. Though your level of technology far supersedes ours, Zargathia boasts an excellent infrastructure, so we could even host the exercises to some degree. We have training bases in the Gobi desert, the Greater Khingan mountains and several mixed forests offering a variety in terrain, with good timing even a monsoon would not be unthinkable. Not to mention, having us be the hosts on occasion would provide a change of scenery as well."

Rebecca thought on the locations a bit more, determining which bases would be the better candidates if they were to host Cochin's war games. Sea based combat would of course be impossible due to the limited amount of coast Zargathia had, but other than that it held every type of climate aside from Antarctic conditions. She was fully confident that the Zargathian infrastructure was up to Cochinese standards, the roads and trains followed the laws of the land rather than the intentions of the people that built it, making it highly reliable in the worst of conditions. Still, even though she would have liked to see Cochinese troops being trained in Zargathia in return for the Zargathian pilots trained in Cochin, all she could do was make the suggestion, it would be up to the King to accept or not. Speaking of...

- "Yes, we do happen to have a draft, a slightly modified version of the treaty we hold with Rebel Army. One moment please..."

She rummaged through some files in her briefcase, until she eventually found the document in question, and made some added notes based on what had been discussed. There would always be room for changes and improvements of course, but that was the purpose of negotiations.

[quote][center][b][size="5"]Cochin Zargathia Defense Treaty[/size][/b][/center]

[b]Preamble[/b]

The undersigned nations of Zargathia and Cochin, recognizing the bonds of friendship between the two, hereby enter into a bond of mutual defense.

[b]Article I. Non Aggression[/b]

Zargathia and Cochin hereby agree to non-aggression. Neither signatory will launch military, political, or covert operations against the other.

[b]Article II. Trade[/b]

The undersigned nations also agree to work towards increased economic cooperation.

[b]Article III. Mutual Defense[/b]

An attack upon one signatory will be considered an attack upon both, and will be treated as such.

[b]Article IV. Intelligence[/b]

Zargathia and Cochin agree that in the event that should one of them obtain information pertinent to the security and/or well-being of the other, said information will be immediately shared with them.

[b]Article V. Military cooperation[/b]

Cochin and Zargathia will hold regular joint training exercises in both nations in order to improve cooperation and coordination between their respective armed forces.

[b]Article VI. Cancellation[/b]

Either signatory may cancel this treaty at any time, provided that they inform their counterpart of their intentions at least 72 hours in advance. This treaty will still be in effect during those 72 hours.

Signed For Zargathia,

(scribble)

Rebecca Célentin
Royal Secretary of the Crown of Zargathia
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary in absentia


Signed For Cochin,

Sd,

His Highness Kerala Varma,
The King of Cochin

[/quote]

- "This would more or less be what we had in mind. Would this carry your approval?"

Edited November 25, 2010 by Amyante

[king of cochin]

"Of course we look forward to doing exercises in Zargathia too, it would be a welcome change for our armed forces. Also I find the draft treaty to be acceptable so I sign this gladly,"

[quote]Sd,

His Highness Kerala Varma,
The King of Cochin[/quote]

[Amyante]

Rebecca took the document and placed her own signature under it, a pleased grin appearing on her face. This could not have gone any better, and she was already anticipating where her next trip would be taking her.

- "Excellent, now all we need is a name. Personally, i was thinking of something with a reference to the Dragon Bloc where our relations started out, but i understood that an event in your nation concerning the Dragon Cult would possibly give that a negative undertone... Would you have any suggestions?"

[king of cochin]

"It would be better if we do not reference the Dragon Bloc. The legacy of Dragon Empire is still sore in our minds and the actions of its descendants, particularly the attempted nuclear attack on Bangalore is very much fresh on our memories. We would rather not resurrect any reference to any sort of muthical winged fire breathing creature. As regards a name for the treaty how about "Cochin Zargathia Defense Treaty"? "

OOC: Sorry, not very creative this early in the morning,

[Amyante]

- "Understandable. The Cochin Zargathia Defense Treaty it is then."

Rebecca decided against bringing up the topic of the Dragon Cult any further. Though the events that took place in Bangalore happened during the time Zargathia had still been under blackout, a large part of the Zargathian population believed it to be an incident by extremists only loosely connected to the Cult, if at all. It had led to some arguments, though nowhere near the top of the ladder: The government had no wish to start playing Thought Police, and believed it to be for the best if the people found out by themselves.