Kalistan

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Her Imperial Majesty Makes Final Argument for Rossfadda Deal
"We are realistic about Kalistan's Chances," said Empress at National Assembly
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
December 23, 5612


Empress addresses Deputies in Kaliburg, and throws her support behind Bianjie should Kalistan's offer be rejected by New Englia

For her last address of the year, before the National Assembly was adjourned for the New Year's holiday, Her Imperial Majesty Empress Carolina II Ananto spoke about Kalistan's bid for the Rossfadda Oil Formation in New Englia, Dovani. Here is the text of her speech.

Friends, thank you for your indulgence of our request to address you. We are aware that the National Assembly does not possess much independent power, but one power they do have is to refuse to allow us to address them in this chamber. We are cognizant of your time and will not much delay you from your recess.

We felt it incumbent for your benefit, as well as the benefit of those constituents you will visit while at your home this next month, to restate our position on bidding for the Oil Formation in New Englia. We, and by we, we mean our Chancellor, has been fairly peppered this last year with questions about the bid this Empire placed in that bidding process. We should note, for general information, that bidding over some issue is the way democracies and liberal capitalist nations auction off their national resources. They sell the rights to the bidder who brings the most beneficial agreement to them. It is not always the one who puts the most money on the table. Sometimes it really doesn't matter how much money you put on the table, you can be outbid by One single peso if the person who is taking the bids prioritizes other things.

So Kalistan is not unrealistic about our chances of securing the rights to develop, or in our case, to not develop that oil field. Few nations in the world have even acknowledged our bid, while fully acknowledging other nations' bids. This tells us the seriousness that others view our offer to leave the fields undeveloped. Nonetheless, Kalistan's bid is likely worth more in monetary value than other nations' bids. We have offered a total sum of $150 Billion Imperial Pesos, to be paid out over 100 years. We have already raised $15 billion from both public and private sources, including KPO, Bank of Kaliburg, and several major private institutional investors who back the National Government's push for ethical use of that resource. This amount itself would cover the first ten years. In addition, Miramar has been authorized by its board to underwrite the entire amount at need. So the money on our part is not an issue. When Miramar enters funding, the project tends to have no problem raising what is needed from additional investors.

The issue is not money. The issue is whether imperialist nations get the right to pollute the entire world's environment. We do not mean New Englia--They can hardly be faulted for wanting to sell their natural resources. Our bid offers to take the entire lot off their hands and leave it put. If they wish to burn fossil fuel in their own country, let them take the money we would send them and buy oil on the global market as they did before these particular oil fields came on line in 5709 and then subsidize it for their people. $1.5 Billion a year for doing nothing gives them the freedom to do a lot of something else.

No, we are referring to those capitalist nations who seek pure profit, and will dump Millions of tons of pollution into our atmosphere for the sake of their profit. Kalistan is not a socialist nation, but in this sense, the socialists have it correct: A nation like Xsampa has it correct. They engage in ethical production, because they have values that extend beyond the crass and base desire for profit. This country or that country may try to dress up their naked exploitation of New Englia's resources up in fancy garland, but in fact, all that is is so that they can make their own exploitation of Englian resources for their own parochial profit a little more palatable to the Government of New Englia.

Kalistan does not expect that it will prevail in this process. Attempting to compete with pure naked capitalist exploitation when a nation is not capitalist is pretty difficult. In this sense, we will have $15 Billion Imperial already raised that we can simply dedicate to projects that further our national goals: it will be spent one way or another, and we suppose New Englia gets to choose where it is spent. But for some, money is not the final factor to consider. Kalistan cannot fault New Englia for refusing to take a stack of money to do nothing, when Kalistan wants to hand it a stack of money to do nothing. We are not, however confused about the game we are playing in New Englia, and we do not think the other bidders are either.

Should New Englia refuse to accept Kalistan's bid for a clean environment and an alternative energy Future for New Englia and North East Dovani, we certainly at least hope that they do choose the least imperialist of the alternatives. We have heard Bianjie argue that Dovanian oil should remain under Dovanian Control. Of all the bids we have heard about, this is the most reasonable bid from a Kalistani perspective. We have long argued the same regionalist position for Seleya. So this is the argument we would hope would resonate loudest in New Englia as well.

We are realistic in that New Englia is very unlikely do the ethical thing and close that field down, no matter how much we offer. The money really doesn't mean anything at the end of the day. We do hope they will, but nations look out for themselves, and they can, and should do only what is best for them. Being exploited by a foreign empire is not ever good for a developing nation. The other bids, as far as we can ascertain, come with strings. We won't bother to name them. Even Kalsitan's comes with strings: If New Englia takes the money, they forget that oil exists and then cash the check and spend it on whatever they want. But they can't develop that field.

Bianjie's may have strings too that we are not aware of, but at least focuses on regional development. We cannot join a union of Dovanian states, but we are sympathetic toward it nonetheless. A Dovanian union of some sort would serve as a major counterbalance toward the growing power of a united Artania and Majatra, and as such is in the interests of a nation like Kalistan. If that oil must be a filthy, greasy, and we shall add, unethical source of profitability, let it profit Dovani rather than the imperialists of other nations. Should Kalistan's bid be dismissed, a very real probability, if Bianjie were to need more capital to push their own bid over the line and outbid other capitalists, Kalistan would be happy to help.

We could take consolation from the balance.

And we could do it too, because we have already raised a tenth of our own national bid, Miramar has underwritten and guaranteed the entire amount, and unlike Captialist nations, our capital serves our national interests. Because in this sense, Bianjie is correct: If we denied the opportunity to direct that oil to the service of the universal good of a clean environment and alternative power generation in North Eastern Dovani, we would much rather see it benefit the Dovanian Continent than individual investors in the West who seek to exploit New Englia and pollute the entire world's atmosphere to serve their own personal individualist interest.

We encourage New Englia to do the ethical thing, but if they will refuse to do that, they should do the smart thing. With that, we shall return the floor to our Chancellor of the Empire, Lady Melanie Alvarez-McLinn. We wish you a happy Holiday season, and a Happy New Year's Celebration with you and your loved ones. Madame Chancellor, the floor is yours.

As the Empress stepped down from the Rostrum and exited, the Deputies stood with their heads bowed in silence, and as soon as she departed, they erupted in cheers and applause for the inspiring and rousing speech. Shortly thereafter, the Chancellor announced that the Session is adjourned until late January, though committee work would be conducted beginning January 6th, and proforma sessions would be held daily until the end of the recess.

The Englian bid is expected to close in the upcoming year.

@TheRepublic