Commonwealth Summit

[Imperator Azenquor]

[quote][b]To: President Petrov, Commonwealth of Buryatia
Fr: Prime Minister Svatek, Serene Republic of Vaule

Re: Commonwealth Summit[/b]

The government of the Serene Republic of Vaule hereby requests a high level emergency summit with the Commonwealth of Buryatia to address several concerns which have arisen recently. We stress the urgency of these matters, and the necessity of resolving these concerns as soon as possible.

Signed,
B. Svatek
[/quote]

[VigilantWatcher]

[quote]

[b]To: Prime Minister Svatek, Serene Republic of Vaule
From: President Petrov, Commonwealth of Buryatia

Re: Commonwealth Summit[/b]

We will attend this high level summit. I regret not notifying you of the closures and we wish to alleviate any concerns. We hope to avert a major breach in our diplomatic relations and hopefully resolve any fears expressed.

Signed,
Anna Petrov

[/quote]


The Presidential IL-96M Airliner with President Anna Petrov and the Minister for Foreign Affairs Vasily Staltev on board took off from Yakutsk for the Vaulian capital. President Petrov was nervously throughout the journey westwards. She was however hoping to solve the misunderstanding and prevent a diplomatic incident. As the aircraft came in to land, she steeled herself for the most important summit of her life.

Edited May 23, 2011 by Curristan

[Imperator Azenquor]

[b]**Sygh-Varthys International Airport, Serene Republic of Vaule**[/b]


As soon as the Buryatian President’s IL-96M Airliner touched down at the Sygh-Varthys Airport, the Vaulian delegation stood by to meet the President and her Foreign Minister. After the customary military honor guard and greetings, the President and her Foreign Minister were escorted to the Imperial Palace.


[b]**Conference Room, Imperial Palace, Serene Republic of Vaule**[/b]

As soon as the Buryatian delegation entered the conference room, the Prime Minister stood to greet them:

[i]“President Petrov, on behalf of the government and people of Vaule, welcome to the Serene Republic. I hope that we may use this summit to address some of the issues which have arisen between our two nations and strengthen the Commonwealth of Vauleyo-Buryatia further.”[/i]-PM Svatek

[VigilantWatcher]

President Petrov smiled and nodded. "Thank you for inviting us here. I am also eager to explain myself for the actions taken and to clarify certain things to put your mind at rest. I first will admit i was silly to not notify you then elaborate on what the actions would mean for the Serene Republic. I will be very open and even give you the relevant documents and orders detailing the actions so everything is transparent."

Edited May 24, 2011 by Curristan

[Imperator Azenquor]

[i]"Thank you for your frankness President Petrov. In order to gain a better understanding of the situation leading to your government's announcement of the closure of the Sea of Okhotsk in its entirety. Perhaps then we would be better able to explain our concerns. For example, if I understood your announcement correctly, the government of Buryatia is laying claim to the entire sea."[/i]-PM Svatek

[VigilantWatcher]

"We are not claiming the entire sea as that was not our intention. The military zone was set up to protect Sakhalin and the Kuriles, plus the zone would not infringe your territorial waters and EEZ. As both our nations being in the Commonwealth you would be automatically be in joint administration of it. I should have really discussed this will you prior to announcing it and i apologise for the misunderstanding. I would like to propose that we discuss the idea of a joint administrated monitored security zone in the Sea of Okhotsk. What do you think of this idea?"

Edited May 26, 2011 by Curristan

[Imperator Azenquor]

[i]”I must reiterate, President Petrov, that your public statement implied that the Sea of Okhotsk Military Zone constituted a closure of the entire sea. If it is that your government has taken the decision to close your territorial waters and EEZ in the area then we are concerned as to why the statement did not reflect this. If this is the case, then the sea is not quite closed due to the Vaulian EEZ in the east, and near the Kuril islands. As for the administration of the Okhotsk Military Zone, my government feels that it would not be necessary for our forces to participate.

Secondly, we would like to express concern about the current direction of the joint currency. As specified in the Commonwealth Charter, both our nations shall use the Vauleyo-Buryatian Rouble (B$) as a common currency. While we have managed to regulate the common currency relatively well so far, it is my belief that we should appoint the members of the Economic Council (EC). In these economic times, we feel that the necessary channels of communication should be established so that if an economic crisis emerges, our nations can take coordinated steps to defend the common currency.

According to the Commonwealth Charter, the EC will be a 3 member panel made up of a Vaulian appointee, a Buryatian appointee and a mutually approved third candidate. I believe that while we have not yet encountered an economic crisis of the magnitude that would require action by the EC, it would be a show of confidence in the common currency if we took the preemptive step of appointing them.

If your government is in agreement, President Petrov, perhaps we may even use the summit to appoint the members of the EC.”[/i]-PM Svatek

[VigilantWatcher]

"I must admit i did rush that part of the speech which caused the misunderstanding and i will now officially apologise for that error plus promise it will not happen again. Despite what it looks to the outside i am having a rough time, but i shouldn't have made a drastic announcement.

I am definitely open to the creation of an Economic Council. Buryatia has had a slight dip in its growth recently due to the BLF insurgency and the lack of exports which the economic reforms are trying to rectify. A list of emergency measures would be beneficial as a sort of safety net if an economic crisis occurred. We would welcome the measures as we feel it is best that we both work together to tackle any issues that arise. We would nominate as our candidate Minister of Economical Affairs Stepan Razknov as he is well placed to make quick decisions being part of our government."

Edited May 28, 2011 by Curristan

[Imperator Azenquor]

[i]"We understand the situation and we consider the matter regarding the Sea of Okhotsk Military Zone to be resolved. We also wish to ask, does your government require assistance in dealing with the BLF situation or its wider impact. If so, we are ready and willing to provide financial, political and military assistance.

We acknowledge the appointment of Mr. Razknov to the EC and will likewise nominate our Minister of Finance & Development Mrs. Zhanna Lukanova. Mrs. Lukanova has several years of experience which will help her in this position, and she is also intimately aware of the economic positions of the Vaulian government. Now the matter of the third member of the EC who must be appointed by mutual approval. We feel that the situation may be approached in one of three ways. We could either put forward several candidates until we find one who is sufficiently non-partisan that is approved by both of us, or we could have the third position become a rotating Presidency of sorts, or if that is not appropriate we could nominate a member of the Imperial Family who is sufficiently non partisan, since the Imperator is the head of state of both of our nations.

What are your thoughts about these ideas?"[/i]-PM Svatek

[VigilantWatcher]

"We would like to advise that we know some BLF sympathisers may have slipped the net when we rounded them up after the insurgency failed. We feel that we may need more foreign investment to avert a potential crisis. Otherwise we may be looking at a major economical catastrophe that would probably cause a massive recession."

President Petrov thought for a moment before continuing. "We would prefer to submit two nominees, Mikhail Stanislov the head of Buryatia Oil and Natalya Petronka the CEO of Bastrala Tehcnologies, the company behind the new nuclear reactors. They are huge supporters of the Commonwealth and big investors in the Buryatian economy."

[Imperator Azenquor]

[i]"Regarding the BLF, my government would be willing to provide financial and military assistance. We could provide logistical support if you wish, or we could simply pledge financial support to deal with the aftermath.

I believe that due to their positions as major investors in the Buryatian economy, their nominations could constitute a conflict of interest especially in the event that the EC would be called upon to bail out a major company. Therefore we can not approve of the appointment of either candidate. However, as a potential compromise, we would be willing to consider supporting the appointment of Natalya Petronka as long as she is required to resign from all other positions and to surrender any shares that she possesses in any company or organization. She must also resign from any political party or organization that she is affiliated with.

If Ms. Petronka agrees to these terms, then I would be glad to endorse her for the EC."[/i]-PM Svatek

[VigilantWatcher]

"We would like to request a financial package of some kind to keep our economy stable while new measures are brought in. We hope that you may be able to help us get a firm foundation so the economy can recover.

I personally feel strongly that Natalya Petronka would be willing to resign from all other positions and surrender any shares that she possesses in any company or organization. She is in no political parties as she is not a fan of getting into any political issues."

[Imperator Azenquor]

[i]"We therefore will support Ms. Petronka's selection as the 3rd member and de facto head of the EC. Regarding financial assistance, we are in the midst of an economic downturn, however we would be willing to provide B$2.3 billion in loans to support the Buryatian economy. The loans would provide a cash injection to help Buryatia, while giving your government some breathing room. The terms of these loans would simply be 0.5% interest and a 7 year repayment schedule.

If these terms are agreeable, we can sign the agreement at your convenience."[/i]-PM Svatek

[VigilantWatcher]

"These terms will be acceptable to us. We thank you for your offer of help and understand that you are also in the midst of an economic downturn. We would like to pay part of the repayments when started with equal currency worth of raw materials such as gold, silver and diamonds along with currency if this is acceptable."

[Imperator Azenquor]

An aide handed the Prime Minister a form, which he quickly filled out and handed to the Buryatian President:

[quote][b][u]Serene Republic of Vaule Loan Facility[/b][/u]

The government of the Serene Republic shall lend to the Commonwealth of Buryatia the sum of B$2.3 billion to support Buryatia’s economy. The sum shall attract 0.5% interest and have a repayment term of 7 years.

The Commonwealth of Buryatia shall be permitted to repay up to (but no greater than) B$1 billion of the loan using quality checked and value verifiable gold bricks. There shall be no penalty for early repayment of the above loan.
[size="4"][b]
TOTAL: B$2,300,000,000[/b][/size]

[b]Signed for the Serene Republic,[/b]

Bryon Svatek, Prime Minister
[b]
Signed for the Commonwealth of Buryatia,[/b]

[/quote]

[i]"President Petrov, I trust that you will find everything is in order. With the current situation regarding the sea closure resolved to our satisfaction, then we have no more issues to raise. If there are any issues of concern that you wish to discuss, please feel free to let me know."[/i]-PM Svatek.

[VigilantWatcher]

President Petrov scanned the form quickly before adding her signature to the document:

[quote]
[b]Signed for the Commonwealth of Buryatia,[/b]

President Anna Petrov
[/quote]

"I have no more concerns to raise as i think all the major issues have been dealt with. We would like to make an inquiry about the status of the islands you possess in between the Laptev Sea and the East Siberian Sea. We hope that you take no offensive in this request, its just we pick up not much in the way of activity there and we wondered what significance they hold."

[Imperator Azenquor]

The Prime Minister thought for a moment and carefully worded his reply to ensure that he did not mention the classified Biological and Chemical Weapons Research facility which was under construction on the northernmost island.

[i]"The islands are home to a handful of our citizens and also house one of our military bases. The islands also form part of a transit route to the Yuktobania Autonomous Community which allows us to bypass Buryatian airspace if we need to do so. They also form a part of our shipping routes to Yuktobania."[/i]-PM Svatek

Edited June 7, 2011 by Imperator Azenquor

[VigilantWatcher]

President Petrov nodded as her aide continued to scribble down what was being said. "Thank you for explaining, we will no longer dwell on the subject. I think that is all we need to discuss or is there anything you wish to ask us about?"

Edited June 7, 2011 by Curristan

[VigilantWatcher]

Suddenly a message from home was thrust into President Petrov's hand. She read it and her face turned grey. Shakily she spoke to PM Svatek. "I am sorry to tell you this but....it looks like a major economical disaster has occured in Buryatia. We have reports of civil unrest and the Buryatian military is on the streets trying to keep order."

She paused as she thought for a moment. Then she spoke with a determined voice, "I would like to ask for the Serene Republic of Vaule to take Buryatia back into protectorate status to prevent regional instability, especially with the civil unrest and potential loss of life. I will not reconsider my decision."

Edited June 9, 2011 by Curristan

[Imperator Azenquor]

The Prime Minister nodded, then replied:

"Given the dire situation, we will not sit idly by as Buryatia descends into chaos. President Petrov, I regret that we were unable to act quickly enough so as to avert this crisis. As requested I shall order a peacekeeping force to enter Buryatia to restore order."-PM Svatek



[b]***Slightly classified***[/b]

20,000 Vaulian soldiers and a contingent of 5,000 Riot Police officers are mobilized and sent across the border into the Commonwealth of Buryatia. A unit of Paratroopers from the OZ Aries division are deployed to Sakhalin (from the BSN) ahead of the advancing forces.

Edited June 9, 2011 by Imperator Azenquor