The New South

[Kaiser Martens]

Lord Martens' plane arrives to Cape Town after a very long journey, having taken off from South Germany with an obscene amount of fuel. When he steps down, he already seems displeased, not used to being in a different environment, a warmer environment. He keeps his cap and sunglasses on to be shielded from some of the sun, and adjusts one of his several medals before entering an ancient yet well kept vehicle. Transvaal was in some serious need for modernization, maybe this would be the right chance.

[i]"I believe your General is waiting for me."[/i]

[Manetheren]

Lord Martens driver promptly sped away from Ysterplaat Airbase in the heart of the city. Around a half hour later, the old, 600 Series Mercedes pulled up to a large, modern mansion in the foothills of Lions Head in the luxurious Camps Bay neighborhood of Cape Town. The venerable German leader was given a few hours to refresh before being picked up and whisked away to the location of the meeting with General van Haesten.

Saluting, van Haesten greeted Martens and offered refreshments (whiskey of course).

"Welcome to Transvaal, Lord Martens).

[Kaiser Martens]

"Might you have some beer? I feel that having whiskey now combined with the rising sun will eventually be my undoing. I'm used to the other corner of the world, Herr General."

He salutes and shakes his hand afterwards.

"I feared that there might not have been a Transvaal ever again. But I see you were all able to get your act together after all. This is a new beginning for yourselves, but also for us: We are not going to restrict ourselves to Europe any longer. We should have been here to support you."

[Manetheren]

"My apologies Herr Martens, the only stiff drink I can offer is whiskey. I have coffee in the next room, and shall call for it if you would like?"

Van Haesten motions towards the door as he continues to speak.

"Herr Martens, we Tahoans had to live through the death of our homeland. We could not call ourselves men and let our adoptive homeland fall too. This is the last refuge where we can be free. We are Transvalers now. Meine ehre heisst treue as we say now."

"Do not feel guilt for not standing with us publicly. This was a private matter for Transvaal to settle among itself. The future of Teutonic-Transvaal relations depend on what we do now, not the past."

"We are desperate need of assistance in reconstruction, as well as rebuilding our economy. Beyond that, we must have a strong military and face the demographic crisis. Far to many whites were killed in the nuclear attacks. I know there are tens of thousands of Nordic-Tahoans that moved to Germany following the collapse of Tahoe, and though many will stay, I intend to recall them to their new homeland, as well as encouraging immigration from Germany to Transvaal."

[Kaiser Martens]

"Coffee will do just fine." He says, walking to the door with his arms folded behind his back, looking around somewhat critically, militarily. He removes his leather gloves quickly, finding them most unsuitable for the continent.

"The Tahoans. A blessing and a curse. They have made exemplary citizens in the Union, but at the same time it is nothing but regrettable that they were forced to come due to the fall of their Fatherland. It shouldn't have been that way. And then, before we knew it, Transvaal was too in trouble. We were certain that after the high European casualties, Transvaal would simply cease to exist altogether."

He thinks for a moment...and continues. "The problem with that is...complicated. This land has always been complicated. Sure, they might move back. But what warranty do they have that they will continue to exist? That is, that in five, ten, fifteen generations their sons will continue to be European, when surrounded by a sea of foreigners, or in this case, natives? What if the government simply changes and turns their backs to them? We have seen it happen time and time again all over the world in many "colonies" but to some degree in Europe proper. At the same time, they do not want to have to be the bad guys and have a government that, like some historical ones, had overreacted and found only bloody solutions. You understand what I mean? Coming to this land is...it is a bet to them. You have got to make them feel safe in the long term, and you have got to improve the land a lot - its technology for example had always been lagging behind. Hmm."

[Manetheren]

Van Haesten called for an aid, who shortly poured Martens a cup and left a pot of black coffee on a counter-top near the door.

"Immigration of Europeans to a new continent is not without precedent, Martens. My own people left their homelands hundreds of years ago, creating new states around the world. To be sure, these settlers fought with their lives to create a new life but what they found was often preferable to their homelands. Those darker days of Europe are over, but I cannot believe that the German people are so comfortable with their current lives to not risk something better. This is a new land, fresh and rich with opportunity, yet it is not like the colonies of old, when people set forth into the darkness. Look around you, Cape Town is a modern city of glass and steel, at least as wealthy as any city in Europe."

"I plan on implementing policies that encourage immigration from European nations. Unskilled laborers, blue collar tradesmen and factory workers, investors, businessmen, doctors...all are welcome, all are needed. All would find homes here, provided by the government. All would find work."

"I am not asking you to fill a quota, but to consider what I know is true. The German people are brave and willing to risk it all for something better. Yet they do not have to risk their lives and livelihood coming here."

"As for your other concerns...about the possibility of being surrounded by the natives. That is exactly what I am trying to prevent. We must outnumber them by the end of the decade or face a long slow decline. They will never be able to take power back from us except if we surrender it. Our sons will have a better life."

[Kaiser Martens]

"Maybe I am being too conservative." He sips from the overly hot coffee. "Though then, some have suggested that since the time for European Expansion and Stabilization proper is over, we should look farther than the Old Continent. I might be able to have some policies to benefit your country in such a way, after all, our people just keep breeding like mad. But there's gotta do something we can do for you other than sheer manpower. I think you might benefit from having a series of new factories, don't you think? Our people are skeptical about investing in most countries, but if we put in a good word for your land, it can work out."

He nods. "I'm glad we're on the same page. The Land must not be lost. It is going to be a demographics war. We'll assist."

[Manetheren]

"More than just new factories, German direct investment in the economy of Transvaal, be it through service or industrial based corporations, is at this time critical. We can offer extremely favorable investment opportunities."

"Any German citizens making the decision to move to Transvaal will be invited to an immigration office I would like to set up in Berlin. Based on their education, job experience and family, we can offer them free housing, be it apartment, condominium or single family home, as well as arrange a job for them. Transportation costs, education in English and Afrikaans and other costs associated with moving would be provided by the government."

[Kaiser Martens]

"Alright. We will mobilize both the private and state sectors in order to do what is needed. At the same time, that will provide many work positions for the immigrants from all over the Union. It will all function like a well-oiled mechanism once we get started. We do not expect to see profit for several years, although the day will come. I will give directions for our specialists to contact you. Which kinds of Industries would you like to see established?"

[Manetheren]

The Economic Development Council has drawn up a proposal for German investment in the following industries:

[b]Automotive[/b]
Component Manufacturing
[list]
[*] Braking Systems
[*] Chassis/Frame
[*] Cooling Systems
[*] Electrical Systems
[*] Engines
[*] Lighting Systems
[*] Lubrication Systems
[*] Suspension and Steering
[*] Wheel and Tires
[*] Springs
[*] Transmission Systems
[*] Exhaust Systems
[*] Fuel Supply Systems
[/list]

Transvaal's aim is to become an automotive investment destination of choice. Modernisation and upgrading of key elements in the automotive industry are required to keep pace to achieve international competitiveness. Interest rates are currently at historic low levels, reducing the cost of investments. The outlook for the vehicle industry is bright in terms of both exports and the domestic market. A key challenge will be to raise local content, particularly in the vehicles now being exported in large volumes.

[b]Chemicals[/b]
Two noticeable traits characterise the Transvaal chemical sector. Firstly, while its upstream sector is concentrated and well developed, the downstream sector - although diverse - remains underdeveloped. Secondly, the synthetic coal and natural gas-based liquid fuels and petrochemicals industry is prominent, with Transvaal being world leader in coal-based synthesis and gas-to-liquids (GTL) technologies. Therefore, investment opportunities

[b]Information Technology and Electronics[/b]
Investment opportunities lie in the development of access control systems and security equipment, automotive electronic subsystems, systems and software development in the banking and financial services sector, silicon processing for fiber optics, integrated circuits and solar cells. There are also significant opportunities for the export of hardware and associated services as well as software and peripherals.

[b]Textiles[/b]

The Transvaler textile and clothing industry has a powerful vision. It aims to use all the natural, human and technological resources at its disposal to make Transvaal the preferred domestic and international supplier of Transvaal manufactured textiles and clothing.
Though the textile and apparel industry is small, it is well placed to make this vision a reality. Due to technological developments, local textile production has evolved into a capital-intensive industry, producing synthetic fibres in ever-increasing proportions. The apparel industry has also undergone significant technological change and has benefited from the country's sophisticated transport and communications infrastructure. The Transvaler market demand increasingly reflects the sophistication of First World markets and the local clothing and textile industry has grown accordingly to offer the full range of services from natural and synthetic fibre production to non-wovens, spinning, weaving, tufting, knitting, dyeing and finishing

[Kaiser Martens]

"Alright. We will have some of our famous automotive firms compete for the opportunity. Big names like Porsche will want to have part of the opportunities here offered, that will go a long way modernizing things already. The costs of building here should be low, therefore not all of the production will be destined to internal Tranvaaler consumption."

"DONG Energy from Jutland has been for a long time looking for areas that might allow new investments, since to some degree one can say that Germany as is is maxed out until new technologies are created altogether. They will modernize and improve what you already have, and then maybe find more. Shell is likely to develop interest in off-shore quests."

"However, the Information Tech and Electronics proper will be handled by us directly. What better technology than the government-created technology in this case? What we normally use for war, we will refine and mold to fit peacetime. Fancy, fast computers will only be the start."

"We also think that the Textile side is quite the chance. We will grant a loan to a number of medium and small textile companies which are looking for modernization. They will bring the new technology here, as it will be cheaper for them to settle in this territory."

"Yet there is another thing. Kettenheim and Nordlandische Waffenwerke would like to establish together a large weaponry complex to supply Transvaal with military technology - Anything short of weapons of mass destruction. They can indeed make the weapons that Kettenheim and our own Government currently have, save for certain special items, but they can as well have their design offices create something to fit your Land and its Budget."

[Manetheren]

"These are all more than acceptable to us. The billions of marks invested in the Transvaler economy will in turn create billions of rand to rebuild and rearm our population. I should say, Germany will be quite popular in Transvaal from now on."

[Kaiser Martens]

"We wouldn't have it any other way. So it's been for a long time, so it will be."

A month later, the first large cargo ships would arrive. Such ships would become regular visitors, and months later as the first industries and business are ready to run, the immigrants begin to show up, almost always finding that they are overdressed for the weather. They'd get used to it soon enough, and almost all of them had the basics of what they consider to be the local dialect down, having studied a bit before leaving. In some cases, those who arrive in fact are people who had left in the disaster and have decided to come back.

The first produced item of the first factory to have established, the Nordlandische Waffenwerke, is a tank, a German Leo IV MBT, only with orange decals and chrome finishing on the outside, drawing a lot of attention and reflecting the sun much. It is ceremonially handed to the Transvaaler government.

[Manetheren]

General van Haesten was at the Nordlandische Waffenwerke factory, established only months ago in Struandale, Port Elizabeth. As the factory workers, many recent immigrants from Germany, looked on, the General shook hands with the factory manager and stepped up onto the first tank produced at the factory.

After inspecting the tank, he was handed a microphone and while standing on the tanks turret, addressed the crowd.

"On behalf of the government of Transvaal and the Transvaal Defense Force, I salute the workers of the Nordlandische Waffenwerke, who have, in record time, established a production facility [i]and[/i] delivered their first tank. We take possession of this piece of modern military technology knowing it was produced with the highest possible level of attention to detail, skill and technological prowess."

"In the months to come, as this factory and others, including the Volkswagen facility across the street, come into full operation, both the economies of Germany and Transvaal will move forward, together, bringing a new age of prosperity for all. Thank you and God Bless."

[Kaiser Martens]

Soon after those events, the Transvaaler government received an offer to enter a MDP with the Germanic Union, which covered optional aggression as well. It was a pretty standard text by Germanic Union standards, and it already carried the signatures of the three Triumvirate Lords.

[Manetheren]

At this time the Republic of Transvaal does not have the military or economic capabilities to uphold a mutual defense treaty. We can only agree to an optional defense treaty at this time, though would certainly like to upgrade to a fully operation mutual defense pact in the future. We also invite the German Government to submit its bid in the Transvaal Ministry of Defense Arms Acquisition Program for fighter aircraft.

[Kaiser Martens]

"We understand. Logistics can make things complicated, given our geography."

An ODP is submitted instead. In the meantime, a proposal passes in the Althing to offer the Union's aircraft to Transvaal.

[Manetheren]

After duly considering an optional defense pact, the Government of Transvaal has found it wanting and thus rejected it.

Instead, a mutual defense and optional aggression pact has been approved by Transvaal, firmly cementing an alliance with its oldest friend, Germany.

[Kaiser Martens]

For a second, the authorities at Berlin had been more than dissapointed. Then, they read the next line and lightened up.

An agreement was reached. Mutual Defense, Optional aggressive assistance. Martens sent out the signed document with the next large ship that sailed southwards, alongside with many machine-tools for the factories that were still popping up everywhere.