Kalistan

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Does Kalistan need its own carriers?
Some say it might be time
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
January 14, 5736


The hull of a new cruiser is laid in at Kaliburg National Naval Shipyards last summer

Opinion
We at The National are not afraid to speak the truth when it hits us in the face. The recent absentminded and poorly planned provocations by yet another unnecessarily aggressive imperialist state, this time the Empire of Luthori, have rattled the gates of Kalistani Naval Doctrine, known as Fortress Kalistan, once again. It would seem that the nations of the world do not take Kalistani warnings to stay away very seriously. Everyone feels the need to test Kalistani resolve in the Anantonese Ocean for no reason at all. So we will of course explicitly state that the Nationalists of Kalistan absolutely and unequivocally stand in support and solidarity with His Imperial Majesty, Emperor William II Ananto's swift response and unwavering resolve to maintain Kalistani power within our region.

This is our region, we would remind the Artanians. They have no business here, they were not invited here, and they are not needed here. We don't position aircraft carrier attack groups directly off their main forward bases. That is a direct and flagrant provocation to our Nation and to our people. It is a threat to our National Security. If Luthori was a valued ally, or hell... even a partner on any level in security, the conversation might be different. But Luthori is ambivalent, at best toward Kalistan. Is now and always has been. They have shown zero interest in partnering with Kalistan to work for a common cause for nearly 100 years. We would have to look back to the Kundrati invasion to see evidence of Kalistan and Luthori working together on anything at all, and then it was for Luthori's glory, not for any sense of mutual partnership or allyship.

That's fine. We don't work with Luthori on much of anything. We don't have any reason to. They don't seek our opinion on any matter, nor do they offer their own. Much to our Emperor's dismay: It is known that he did at one point look forward to the idea of closer relations with the country. Which makes this provocation, which comes clear out of the blue, so incredibly confusing in Kaliburg, and therefore alarming. When alien nations act in erratic ways, especially where naval power is concerned, and especially where the Anantonese Ocean is concerned, Kaliburg understandably gets jumpy. What are their plans? Why are they here? What is their long range goals? Without any kind of consultation, we have no way of knowing. Kalistan's response comes from a long history of Artanian disregard for Kalistan's position in the seas and the implicit and explicit threats inherent in the deployment of aggressive military weaponry into our neighborhood without any regard whatsoever for any possible response. Its this cavalier disregard for Kalistan that irks our government more than any thing else diplomatically and leads to so many conflicts our nation finds itself in. It is flippant disrespect for sovereignty at its core. A fine display for someone claiming to care about the stability of some imagined "international order" as Luthori does.

But Luthori's claims to be picking up some responsibility that was apparently Egelion's, but which they laid down as a result of their withdrawal from world affairs is ridiculous on its face. The Security of the Anantonese Ocean was never Egelion's problem to begin with, as the deployment of their forces demonstrated. Their focus was further south and in Dovani. Kalistan was, and still is, the dominant force between Keris and Indrala and the Canrillais states to the South. That has never been questioned or seriously challenged. We are now as we have been for centuries. So why is Luthori parking a nuclear powered Aircraft carrier Group right in active sonar range of Kalistan's main southern Fleet? What is the reason they are doing this and why are they doing it now, if their primary justification bears no water because it is based on absolutely ridiculous opening premises?

Who knows? Who cares. They do not bother to communicate anything to Kalistan. So. It is what it is. And we are left to respond. And what then would be a legitimate response? Should the Emperor just allow our navy to be tested in this fashion? Some nationalists are saying no. Prominent nationalist scholar and President of the Port Swedes Nationalist Club, Dr. Martha Crenshaw says perhaps it is time for Kalistan to begin building its own aircraft carriers and answering provocation for provocation.

"In Foreign Policy, its called tit for tat. You do this, I do something similar in response. Its a risky mirroring strategy that can lead either to war or to deterrence," says Crenshaw. "If you know I am going to respond to X action with Y response every time, you now have a choice to make with full information. If you are not sure what I will do, as in, my deterrence threat is not credible, you may try to test me. This is precisely what Luthori is doing right now. They clearly do not believe that Kalistan will respond. Kalistan's response is measured, but it is credible, and Luthori can ignore that to their own peril. But they shouldn't. If I was Fort William, I would have my highest level diplomats on a plane immediately to Kaliburg to try to smooth this out, because Luthori can be sure that Kalistan is deadly serious. And this is our backyard: We do not have to move material and ships across half a world to address problems like they must. They would have as easy a time fighting a sustained conflict in this region as they would on the moon."

Crenshaw has advocated that, sans a credible commitment by the Empire of Luthori to restore the fabric of stability that their unilateral moves have utterly ripped through, Kalistan should begin building its own carriers, to put credible threats into Luthorian territory. "Nations think that because they possess projection capabilities, that means 1) they are free to use them without any kind of cost to them whatsoever, and 2) they SHOULD use them whenever and where ever they want for no reason whatsoever. We saw this with the ultramilitarism in Egelion before it went quiet, and we see this with all world powers who have a pretense to being global guarantors of some imagined international order that they themselves are the author and sole beneficiaries of. Perhaps Kalistan should get into this game as well, even if it means answering direct threat with direct threat. Even if it means putting our aircraft carriers into international waters directly opposite Fort William in the Artanian Sea. To let them feel how Kaliburg feels when their carriers get to close too our capital."

Crenshaw says that Kalistan could cynically exploit international norms to its own advantage if it wants. "There are international laws governing laws of the sea. Most of the Artanian Sea is international waters, where ships may sail unmolested as they please. Modern aircraft make those laws utterly ridiculous: They were made in the time of sail, for the age of musket and ball. But nonetheless, if Luthori is going to rest its claim on free transit of the international waterways and they feel that they should be able to discount the complaints of those who are threatened by their doing so, they have to accept that when others do it to them as well. There is no double standard in international law. No laws for thee but not for me. If you threaten others, its only fair that you feel threatened too. If you don't like it, stop threatening others and stay in your own water. As Kalistan has."

Granted, any Kalistani carriers produced would not necessarily produce equity with modern super carriers. "Modern super carriers are all nuclear powered. They are hugely expensive to operate and carry dozens of combat aircraft. The firepower of one carrier group is immense, but its per day operating cost is also extravagant, and grows exponentially larger the further it gets from home, even if it has supply bases locally. Kalistan has a prohibition against nuclear weaponry, including nuclear powered naval vessels, which of course, will put Kalistan at a disadvantage. The parity comes in other assets acting in tandem." But equity is not necessarily the point. "The point is more symbolic, I think: If you bring your military weaponry to Kalistan, Kalistan will bring their military weaponry to you. And if you claim liberal norms like International Law and International Order, just know that you will be expected to live by those same norms and rules when others apply them to you."

But also, added Crenshaw, "Kalistan has demonstrated in the past, most recently in Likatonia and Kundrati, that they do not believe international law exists, and do not feel similarly constrained to live by the laws others set for the world. It might not be so easy to ignore Kalistani deterrents when they are wasting civilian infrastructure, and there is no international body capable of restraining them or shaming them into compliance with rules set by other people."

As of press time, there are currently no plans to build an aircraft carrier in Kalistan, though if nationalists like Ms. Crenshaw have their way, that could change rapidly.

@TheNational