Luthori

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The Saturday Evening Post

Egelian Monarch received in Fort William for State Visit; EcoDpt expects "good, mutually-beneficial" deals.

July 5606

Fort William, Luthori - The King of Egelion, Amadeo and the Queen of Egelion, Alicia (known as Alice in Luthori - her birth country) have recently visited the Empire as part of a wider international tour meant to increase the Kingdom's international outreach by reaching out to nations such as Kalistan, Dundorf, Luthori and even more surprisingly, Dorvik as well. Most of the tour's reception has been positive around the World, the King and Queen representing a "new" couple, glamorous and good-looking, their charm hasn't passed unnoticed in all countries that they've stopped by. For the Queen, this visit to Luthori was one of "reconnection", according to communications from a spokesperson of the Orange Palace, who stated that the Queen hasn't "stepped foot in Luthori ever since her marriage to King Amadeo", this trip was meant to be one where the Queen could finally meet out with her family and extended family here in Luthori.

The royal couple arrived in Fort William by plane, being received by the Foreign Secretary after leaving their plane at the Sourfam Airport, a private airport usually used by members of the Government or the imperial family. The three then engaged to go towards Darlington Hall, where the King was expected to be received by the Luthorian Parliament to make a speech before all Luthorian lawmakers. Insiders stated that this speech was meant to draw parliamentary support towards increased economic ties between Luthori and Egelion, questioned Egelian political analysts stated that the King "must have been quite stressed by the results of his speech", as while he is known as a known public speaker, usually making speeches during his visits and in Egelion domestically, the King's 'lackluster' Luthorian "must have been a worry for both the royal house, the Queen and the King himself.", according to Joseph Panadero, a specialist on foreign domestic politics and a known observer of foreign politics. Arriving at Darlington Palace, they met with the Speaker of the Imperial Diet, the Lord Speaker of the Imperial Senate and were brought to the Hall, where all Luthorian parliamentarians were present, Senators and Representatives alike.

There the King made his speech, focused around Luthori and Egelion's commonalities such as their shared monarchical status, which drew eyebrows from some [republican-minded] lawmakers, mostly members of the National Labour Party, albeit in the more radical wings of the Party. Regardless, the King continued his speech ment to draw support for increased Luthori-Egelian ties, by speaking of future economic cooperation and how that said cooperation would bring positive changes to both Luthori and Egelion. While the speech was commented to be "good", many analysts couldn't help but state the issues that the King found himself facing when writing the speech, Luthori and Egelion have few contacts traditionally, as both countries are far away from each other, do not even speak the same language and do not have any historical and/or cultural ties to base their relation on. Luthori and Egelion only developed a sense of interest in one another thanks to the marriage of the King [Amadeo] with the Queen [Alicia], a sense of interest which was emboldened by the Royal couple's visit in Luthori.

The King then, was invited to one-to-one meetings with both the Luthorian Prime Minister and the Luthorian Foreign Secretary, Queen Alicia was also present to both of these meetings to make negotiations run smoother than they should have if she wasn't there to act as an interpreter for the King and Prime Minister. The monarch and government officials' meetings most focused around economic deals between Luthori and Egelion, while also passing by some international events of keen interest for the King, such as the War in Alduria where the Luthorians only recently intervened into. The Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary both reassured the monarch that the Luthorians and Mordusians' aim in this War was to "restore a constitutional, democratic and respected" government in Alduria, sort of "turning back the clock" if you will. The Prime Minister stated that Luthori had "zero interest" into installing a monarch of its own in Alduria, as some Luthorian nationalists called for, although the Foreign Secretary was much more silent, yet ultimately supportive of the Prime Minister's position on the question.

What was agreed is simple, the Luthorian and Egelian Governments would begin working towards decreasing tariffs for each other's goods over the course of the next decade, according to the Department of the Economy, that agreement would be a "necessary" first-step towards the total loosening of tariffs between Egelion and Luthori in a later date. The Luthorians plans that in "at least 15 to 20 years", Luthori and Egelion would be "in shape" to sign a comprehensive free-trade agreement. Luthori also agreed to begin a program of sizeable investments into Egelion. The Department of the Treasury announced that a first investment package of £14.3 billion from Luthori to Egelion would be invested into Egelian infrastructure, transport, its booming tourism, music industries as a starter. Other industries are expected to see investments over the course of the next few years. Fort William is hoping to prop up Egelion's development in the hopes of securing an ally in the Anantonese region, a region where Luthori has been traditionally absent. Yet, this aid do not come without its cost, in exchange, Luthori requested that Luthorian companies be authorised to compete and thrive in the Egelian market, as the Luthorians are trying to secure a foothold in northern economies such as Baeguk or Egelion.

With this agreement seemingly worked out, there was nothing pressuring the King to not engage in the state dinner organised for him and his wife at the Orange Palace, where they would be meeting Alice's aunt, Empress Katherine, her parents and other family relatives alongside high-ranking members of Luthorian society. The Prime Minister, all Members of the Cabinet, high-ranking members of the Privy Council, Parliament, members of the aristocracy, business class which were carefully choosed by the Orange Palace for the occasion. Before the event begun, the Empress met privately with the King and Queen, holding a private meeting in the Orange Palace, while details of the meeting were not disclosed by the Orange Palace, we can only assume that some talks meant at facilitating the process of both countries towards securing good relations with each other. The State Dinner in itself was a normal affair done by the Luthorians for centuries, protocol was key in this dinner and was meant to bring a good image of Luthori to its esteemed guests.

This visit was stated to be a success overall. Finally, the King and Queen remained at Rottingham Palace alongside the Queen's relatives.

@TheEveningPost