Kalistan

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Empress halts construction of 5th Fleet
Kalistan is out of the "World Police" business, says Empress
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
June 30, 5641


Her Imperial Majesty drops a bomb on the National Assembly

"It's time to change our destiny as an Empire," were the words from Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Mary I Ananto, as she began to speak from the floor of the National Assembly this week. "The legacy of the Black Empress is at an end, and Kalistan is officially in retrenchment mode as of right now." The pronouncement sent shockwaves through the political and military industrial complex communities in Kalistan.

The program Her Imperial Majesty announced in the legislature aimed at restoring more than ₭160 Billion to the national surplus this year alone.

"This comes from cancelling certain outlays, and being less open to non-Seleyan spending," said Her Imperial Majesty. "The first program to be cancelled is the 5th Fleet. Kalistan will not be building that fleet, and will consider reorganizing our assets to prioritize our home territory according to Kalistan's historic defense doctrine." She emphatically stated "Our Empire's days of being the world police are over. Someone else can carry that burden. And that expense."

The speech by the Empress was comparatively short for its weight. "After a significant and thoughtful evaluation of Kalistan's role in this world, it seems that Kalistan's adversaries would prefer we spend ourselves into the dustbin of history. They call for international norms and international institutions, but when it comes time to enforce those norms and build those institutions, they sit on the sidelines. These free riders happen to be the same people who would like Kalistan to spend itself into insolvency. This is manipulation of the highest order, and has a very certain foreign smell which is odious and intolerable in our capital. This reorientation is the first step in our effort to fumigate our nation of these corrupting influences."

The Empress said that she has exempted meaningful and profitable (to Kalistan) projects with friendly nations, such as the Frigate design program with Hutori. "Additionally, we will be evaluating our defense and foreign spending programs over the next few months, and those which net only prestige for this Empire will be abandoned." The Empress noted that there is nothing that will be outside of scrutiny. "It seems some idiot in some backward foreign nation always has something moronic to say, no matter what the Empire chooses, and to be honest, it is beneath us to have to tolerate that nonsense, so we may as well focus only upon what is in our own best interest, and let the rest of the world take care of themselves or go to hell if they prefer."

As soon as the Empress was done speaking she left the National Assembly, which waited respectfully for her to depart and then erupted in chaos. Deputies were asking the Chancellor what this proclamation meant. The Chancellor of the Empire finally regained order in the Chamber, on threat of adjourning for the day, and said "Her Imperial Majesty's Foreign Minister, Defense Minister and myself met with Her Imperial Majesty in Cliff House the other night, and she believes that Kalistan is being manipulated in taking moves that are not in its best interest by external actors. To be completely fair to this body, she is not accusing anyone of corruption or anything worse. She is convinced that the international structure is limiting her options in foreign affairs, and has decided to exit Kalistan from that structure to the degree that it is possible."

The answer by the Chancellor raised more questions, and the Chancellor tried to regain order once more before adjourning and ordering the chamber cleared. Discussions followed the clearing, and reporters descended on the Deputies. The Empress' statement had overall strong support from Orthodox Deputies, who mostly said that it was about time the Empress took the reigns of Kalistan's foreign policy. "It feels that Kalistan has been being led from one conflict to the next, and we have been waiting for her to cut the leash" said Deputy Wesley Overgaard from Vrassa City. "Whatever the effects this has on other nations remains to be seen, but it is good for Kalistan, and that is really all that matters."

Internationalists however were more critical. "Despite what the Empress thinks, this world is integrated," said Internationalist Deputy Allison Lembeck of Springfield. "Kalistan can't just choose to exit the global structure. What we would like to see the Empress do is making ties with other nations, even if it means we don't get all of the things we want. Sometimes domestic interests need to take a backseat to the global good, and keeping Kalistan in its place on top of the regional order is the only way to ensure that we can ensure both good for Kalistan and good for everyone else."

Kalistani Markets gave mixed responses: Those involved in defense spending and import related companies took a hit on the news as Investors expressed doubts about the security of foreign goods when other nations predictably came to punish Kalistan. "But that's more or less anything Kalistan does," said market analyst Dave Vinetti in Kaliburg. "If the Empress sneezes, someone is there to call us totalitarian, because Terran nations are petty like that. Most losses were offset by gains in export oriented industries and industries which cater primarily to domestic consumers." Over all, markets finished the week down 1.6%, and it is expected that markets will be turbulent for a while as Kalistan's new orientation toward the world is worked out.

"Kalistan no longer wishes to play by other countries rules, since they have no intention of playing by ours," said the Chancellor before dismissing the session. "Her Imperial Majesty would like to be the one to determine the course of our nation's future, not allow foreigners to do that."

@TheRepublic