Kalistan

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Kalistani News in Brief: New Chancellor inducted into Order of Gray Smoke;
FM calls Xsampan Court Decision "regrettable"; Imperial Geographical Survey Office to issue new maps
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
April 4, 5724


Empress with Chancellor of the Empire John Mickelson in Eveari

New Chancellor Inducted into Order of Gray Smoke
New Orthodox Chancellor of the Empire, Sir Johnathan Mickelson, has been formally inducted into the Order of the Gray Smoke. The induction, which is traditional for Chancellors of the Empire, allows the Chancellor to skip much of the formal protocol points so that counsel and advice may be offered in a less mediated fashion. The Appointment is a lifetime appointment, and is reserved for Royal Family Members, their Spouses, major foreign figures who are close allies of Her Imperial Majesty, and major players in the Empire of Ananto and Kalistan.

The Chancellor himself had this to say, "Joining the Order is a rare privilege afforded to few. And there are a lot of things I have to learn about, and sort of just know. I'm not saying secret handshakes or anything, but the things that are done in Conclave all have meaning behind them. Even if you might be shocked by some of the things you see and experience there, which I am not at liberty to really discuss in any detail at all, it all has deep meaning. It's a transforming experience, let me just say that. Learning what all that means... its gonna take a while..."

The Order of the Gray Smoke is getting ready for its annual Order Day next month, which includes a large dinner and social for guests, and the main Order functions for the year, all of which remain entirely shrouded in mystery, though some have suggested wild theories about what happens behind closed doors, including anything from ritual disrobing, to ritual sacrifice, and everything in between. So far nobody has broken the secrets of the Order in its more than 400 year long history, and this is, according to the Chancellor strictly enforced, at all levels. "Secrecy is sort of what you trade for the privilege of being in the Order. And once you join the Order you remain in for life, because otherwise, there would be no way to enforce the secrecy of the Order."

FM calls Xsampan Court Decision "regrettable"
Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Carolina II Ananto called the decision to overturn the NDA and have thrown out the Custodian "regrettable" said Foreign Minister Miguel Ontiveros. "Communist Parties around the world are on the march," said Ontiveros. "Her Imperial Majesty is clear about her stance on communism and finds it quite predictable that the forces of communism, using democratic institutions as their cover, have overturned the one stabilizing element in place during the Xsampan Crisis. This is a truly regrettable development in the ongoing crisis in Xsampa." The Foreign Minister reiterated the Imperial Position that Kalistan will not let the Xsampan situation affect Kalistan's relations with the nation, though he did use the term "communist coup" again in the statement.

"The Foreign Ministry said that we wouldn't be honoring a blockade or an embargo against Xsampa, regardless of if they stuck with stabilization, or if they allowed a communist coup to overturn the law. It seems that this is a case of the latter, and to it can be added the term Judicial. But--that said, Xsampa is not Kalistan, and we traded with that nation when they were dominated by communists. It won't make a difference to us that they are controlled by communists again. Her Imperial Majesty likes the relationship; the ideology of the people running the nation, as long as it is not fascist in its nature, is inconsequential to Kalistan."

The Foreign Minister did note that other nations' communists are cheering for the collapse of the Custodial Government. "We can tell who is really on the side of peace and stability in Xsampa. And you can tell who is cheering for that stability's collapse in Xsampa. What I think the Empress finds saddest of all is the fact that so many came out in support of opposition parties who were intent on bringing down the Xsampan Government, and used every method they had available to do so. It goes to show the opinion of Communists when it comes to actually having a functioning stable government. We are predicting troubled times ahead for Xsampa, so its Her Imperial Majesty's sincere hope that the Communists worldwide who were cheering for this judicial coup d'état are still there to help pick up the pieces and set Xsampa back up right again as actively and gleefully as they supported its downfall."

Imperial Geographical Survey Office to issue new maps
Utilizing advanced software, the Imperial Geographical Survey has announced that they intend to publish a new set of maps for Kalistan. "It has been centuries since we have updated our maps," said IGS Director Derek Ignacio, at his office in Spencer, Sudanor. "Our previous maps were designed before Kalistan has access to more modern satellite mapping techniques. But that's not the case any longer, and it is high time we updated our library."

He said the new maps will be clean and clear and will represent a Kalistan more accurately than previous editions. "It's imperative that we have decent maps of our cities, our countryside, our infrastructure and our resources. Better maps will help us plan infrastructure, get handles on energy needs and efficiency, as well as find places where we are duplicating our services, or are missing key services in very vital locations. We rely on maps every day to get from point a to point b, but maps also help us organize our society better to allow the National Government to make policy which is more meaningful in peoples' lives for a vast plethora of things."

Ignacio said a new map of the Free City of Kaliburg- Port Davon is in the works, while Sulari is planned for the near future. "The issue with Sulari is, of course, that it is such a huge city, so we want to make sure we get it right. An accurate map of the city will help planners develop public transportation, infrastructure needs, and needs of the population, including zoning and amenities, so that is obviously a priority for us. And then from there, we want to map out our other free cities and smaller towns as well." He said the new set of maps will be provided free to all on the IGS' website and paper versions will be stored in public libraries for people to us.

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