Kalistan

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Her Imperial Majesty Welcomes President Mendelev
Two Heads of State discuss rebuilding relations between two Northern Seleyan Nations
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
November 28, 5595


Likatonian President poses for a Portrait next to Her Imperial Majesty at Imperial Seat

The President of Likatonia was welcomed warmly in Kaliburg in a stunning turn of events which even 5 short months ago was thought to be impossible.  Bertram Mendelev, President of the United Republic of Likatonia, arrived in Kaliburg and was warmly greeted by Her Imperial Majesty's Foreign Minister, George Bennots and Chancellor of the Empire Dame Diane Bolton.  The trio of dignitaries posed briefly for photographs of this historic meeting, before escorting the President to the Imperial Seat for a formal audience with Her Imperial Majesty.

The dramatic face to face was only recently organized as Kalistan learned of the Likatonian High Court's conviction of former the former President and Prime Minister of Likatonia for corruption and accepting payouts in exchange for providing diplomatic cover for Kundrati Human Rights abuses.  Her Imperial Majesty's Government cheered the news publicly, and invited the sitting Likatonian President to Kaliburg in an effort to begin talks concerning repairs to the long estranged relationship between the two Northern Seleyan Nations.

The Formal Audience was held in private, and lasted for more than two hours, after which time, The Likatonian President and the Empress posed for photos.  Following the formal Audience, the Chancellor invited the President to Her Imperial Majesty's personal home at Wilson Point for an informal dinner with the Royal Family, where she hoped to discuss logistics about starting to repair relations between the two nations in a more informal setting.  Her Imperial Majesty also thought it would be a good idea to introduce President Mendelev to His Highness, the Minor Crown Prince Fredrick Ananto-Sandoval, who is almost 16 and is about to begin his first lessons on training to become the next Emperor with Her Imperial Majesty.

Meanwhile, the Foreign Minister was charged with briefing the press about the things that the two Heads of State discussed.

Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press, thank you for agreeing to cover this historic summit between Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Carolina I Ananto and President of Likatonia, His Excellency Bertram Mendelev.  We want to first thank President Mendelev for answering our invitation so enthusiastically.  Whether anything else comes from this meeting or not, this is a very encouraging step toward repairing our long strained relations between our two countries.

I have been instructed to brief the Press on the topics covered.  After the diplomatic formalities were out of the way, Her Imperial Majesty asked the President to describe the process that led to the convictions in the Likatonian High Court, so she could have a better understanding of the implications of the rulings.  She listened closely as the President listed the charges, and laid out the State's case against the former leaders.  Then she stated formally that there are no sanctions from Kalistan or from the Anantonese Empire in place against Likatonia, and the only thing left is to repair our relationship diplomatically.  Though that would take time, she is nonetheless committed to the project and will remain committed so long as Likatonia remains committed to.

To this end, she suggested the possibility within the next year of opening a consulate in Clovisport.  She also asked what the Likatonians would need from the Anantonese Empire for restoration of relations.  The President repeated Likatonia's several long standing grievances against Anantonese treatment of the Government in Clovisport, and Her Imperial Majesty listened, and finally acknowledged that she understood why Likatonia has a problem with Ananto's attitude concerning Likatonia, and answered that if Kalistan and Likatonia both made significant effort to restore relations between our two states, there is absolutely no reason that a formal Ambassador could not be dispatched to treat directly with the Likatonian state.

The President mentioned Athosia.  Her Imperial Majesty listened to the President's issues with Athosia, and attempted to reassure the President that Kalistan has not in fact ever annexed Athosia, and she is not sure where the President got the impression that we had annexed Athosia, but the source was wrong.  She said that she regrets that Kalistan ends at the Lucid River, which has been the Kalistani frontier since the early 20th Century, when Athosia was taken from Kalistan, but attempted to re-assure the President that Kalistan has never taken possession of Athosia.  She explained that if Ananto were to ever take possession of Athosia again, it would come about through the action of the people in Baltisia who opted to rejoin the Empire, as opposed to any sort of military aggression on Kalistan's part.

The President asked about the Title Duchess of Athosia, and the Chancellor restated the Empress' previous statements to say that Duchess is a Title, not a deed.  Her Imperial Majesty also claims the Kingdom of Karzon, a kingdom which has never in fact ever existed on any map ever, because it is the historical name for Kalistan's ancient colony in southern Dolgava.  This does not mean that the Queen's fiat extends to Dolgava, who themselves have a government of their own, currently nor would the Empress wage war or make any independent effort to take Karzon from Dolgava.  In fact, the Chancellor pointed out, doing anything to reacquire historic Kalistani territories unilaterally is forbidden by Kalistani Law.

Besides restoring relations and Athosia, however, most of the topics of discussion were more mundane.  The President talked about restoring rail service in the TransSeleyan Rail system, and some possibilities for Trade.  It was decided that this meeting was a first step in a long, possibly painful process, but it is one step more than the Empire and the Republic had made in years, and she was very encouraged by the meeting.  But this meeting also cleared out an important roadblock to other Constituent Nations' cooperation with Likatonia should they be so inclined, including Gaduridos' efforts to restart the SEC and Lodamun's efforts to coordinate Humanitarian Aid in Solentia, both of which Likatonia have expressed interest in in the recent past.

Overall, the President has been a very polite guest and is well studied on the protocol, which impressed Her Imperial Majesty greatly.  In turn, the Empress acknowledged the bravery of the President in taking the steps he had taken to bring the truth of the Kundrati situation to light, and his efforts to make the trip to Kaliburg.  She promised that Kalistan would reciprocate with a diplomatic mission, should the Empire be welcomed to do so, and someday, she hoped that relations between the two nations would be good enough for her to be invited to visit the Republic in person.  Both leaders seemed to be interested in this possibility.

Over all it was a good meeting, and I think one that is long overdue.  The may be the first step in a long path that lies ahead, and will require a lot of work, but it is one that was very necessary to move us away from the previous status quo ex ante that was more of a death spiral, and one that allows us at least to take a breath and listen to one another.

The statement was well received by the press, and the Foreign Minister took questions for about 20 minutes that elaborated on a number of the points that he had made.  The Likatonian President was providing with excellent lodging on the Grounds nearby Wilson House and he returned to Likatonia the next morning.  The Foreign Minister and the Chancellor of the Empire were at Kaliburg International Airport to see President Mendelev off, and both were optimistic about the visit and the potential for restoration of relations between the Anantonese Empire and its next door neighbor.

@TheRepublic