Tea and Vodka in Red Petrograd

[JEDCJT]

Long time ago, there was a meeting between Tsar Mikhail I and the British King. What looked like a promising meeting, however, seemed to peter out, and relations between Russia and Britain was left in something of a diplomatic limbo for some time to come. 

 

As soon the United Kingdom reformed, Markov had instructed the Foreign Commissariat to send a message to London, expressing interest in the resumption of the aforementioned meeting. When this received a positive response, the Soviet government would begin the necessary preparations for the upcoming visit of the British envoy, and notify London of that. The historic Winter Palace in Petrograd would be chosen as the meeting place, and would be decorated accordingly. The Honor Guard Corps would be required, under the pains of death, to memorize and play the British anthem correctly.

 

The diplomatic section of the Leningrad International Airport would be cordoned off from the rest of the airport, while a diplomatic team would await the arrival of the British envoy and transport them to the Winter Palace.

[Centurius]

For a visit to a country that had so many historical ties to the United Kingdom only the highest officials were proper. In line with this, at the request of William, the Prime Minister would make his way to Leningrad by plane. Along with him would be various officials from the Foreign Office as well as the Cabinet Office.

[JEDCJT]

At the head of the waiting delegation stood Premier Boris Vorshevsky and Foreign Commissar Lev Gromyko, who would give warm greetings to their British counterparts. The rest of the delegation did the same. The Honor Guard Corps would play the British anthem perfectly, after which Vorshevsky and Gromyko would escort their guests to the waiting limousine that would take them to the Winter Palace.

 

After a brief yet informative tour of the Winter Palace, the British delegation would be escorted into a large conference room. At the head of the table, First Secretary Imran Markov stood up and strode over to Prime Minister Urquhart.

 

"Welcome to Russia, Mr. Prime Minister," he greeted in perfect English as he extended a hand of greeting. "Thank you for taking the time to visit our country. I trust your flight went well?" He would greet the rest of the British delegation as well.

[Centurius]

Francis very much enjoyed the tour he and his delegation were being provided, history had always been of interest to him and the previous ties between Russia and the United Kingdom could very much be seen here still. Upon the conclusion and the greetings from the First Secretary he responded with a firm handshake. "Thank you for having me First Secretary, my flight went great and I do look forward to seeing what we can achieve here today"

[JEDCJT]

Markov smiled as he led his guests to the conference table and took a seat. "I look forward to that as well. Before we proceed to business, do you want anything to eat or drink?" He would be prepared to have aides bring the British whatever they wanted.

 

A while later, the First Secretary would open his mouth. "As you are well aware of, the British and Russian peoples have had cordial relations for much of their history, and we look forward to maintaining such a positive relationship in this time and age. The discussions our predecessors held centered on a common understanding of European affairs, particularly the maintanence of peace and stability in the Continent.

 

Put it another way, it is my hopes that our countries can work together to maintain the peace, or at least minimize conflict and discord, in Europe."

[Centurius]

"A cup of tea would be splendid" Francis responded before taking his seat at the table. He nodded as he listened to the First Secretary speak. "I do agree the prosperity and peace of the European continent is of enormous importance and as it is we are close to reaching that place. Sadly however governments remain with claims on land that they can in no way consider their own. It is my fear that until this gets resolved Europe will remain an area of conflict"

[JEDCJT]

Markov would have an aide prepare a cup of tea for the British Prime Minister. He listened before nodding.

 

"Europe has always been a bastion of peace as well a cauldron of conflict for centuries, sometimes at the same time, and will always be that way until the end of time. With that said, I would like to propose a treaty that incorporates non-aggression, trade, and intelligence-sharing clauses. This would serve as a stable foundation for which Anglo-Russian relations could be built and expanded upon."