Dundorf

[Drax]

NDZP, PIRATEN, GPP, TLD GOVERNING COALITION FORMED
 
ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER
 
Federal Chancellery, November 29, 5706 (Backdated): The Bundestag has approved a Bundeskabinett led by Chancellor Frieda Gimbel consisting of Neue Dundorfische Zentrumspartei (NDZP), Piraten Partei Dundorf (PPD), Grune Partei fur den Planeten (GPP) and Team Liberaldemokraten (TLD).
 
PPD’s Dr. Theodore Engel will serve as Finance Minister and Deputy Federal Chancellor, GPP’s Fraziska Niedermeyer will be Interior Minister and the TLD’s Gunther Krancke will remain at the Foreign Office.
 
ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER  sources in the Federal Chancellery indicate Chancellor Gimbel believes that it is possible the long standing hostility between PPD and NDZP can be held in check so that they can work together on a common goal, eliminating the deficit, but also believes that this could well be a daunting task.
 
The Ministry  distribution is as follows:
 
Gimbel II Bundeskabinett
Federal Chancellor – Frieda Gimbel (NDZP)
Finance Minister and Deputy Federal Chancellor – Dr. Theodore Engel (PPD)
Foreign Minister – Gunther Krancke (TLD)
Interior Minister – Franziska Niedermeyer (GPP)
Defence Minister – Bruno Steigerwald (NDZP)
Justice Minister – Hector Freilingsohn (PPD)
Infrastructure & Energy – Alexander Paulsen (GPP)
Healthcare - Friedrich v. Schirach (TLD)
Education – Walther Wagner-Pohl (GPP)
Labor and Social Services – Friedrich Grossman (PPD)
Environmdent, Tourism & Territorial Protection – Simon Osterhaus (GPP)
Agriculture and Food – Esther Schuurs (PPD)
Science, Research & Technology – Hermann Felder (NDZP)
Commerce & Industry – Magda Pflugbeil (TLD)


Federal Chancellery

[Drax]

DUNDOF NOT A CANDIDATE FOR MATO
 
ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER
 
Foreign Office, September 29, 5707:  After Foreign Minister Gunther Krancke chaired a meeting of Foreign Office senior staff on whether Terran history knowledge was a vital element to be considered in recruiting entry level personnel, ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER asked him if the Bundesrepublik would be pursuing membership in the Majatran – Artanian Treaty Organization now that Luthori appeared to be joining:
 

That is not in the works.  No one has approached us requesting we join. We have generally had much more of a neutrality stance than one inclined toward mutual defense treaties so we are an unlikely candidate for membership.
 
We want to continue to seek to be economic and trading partners with most nations whether MATO or not. That has not been and will not be a factor.
 
We do feel close to Luthori with which we have participated on the same side in two wars. And to the Triad republic with whom we have had a number of cultural, military and technical interchanges.
 
In the past it is fair to say we first tried to have mutually beneficial relations with our Artanian neighbors. Then during an extended period our closest ally in all respects was Lourenne.  Now we are trying to look more Terra wide for new partnerships. In Dovani, for instance we have only had two arrangements in the rememberable past.

 
Asked by ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER if the Bundesreoublik felt that MATO was dangerous to the peace of Terra or would revive unfortunate past disputes, Krancke replied:
 

Not at all. Our friends Luthori and the Triad Republic believe it is a good organization for them, and we have no reason whatever to doubt their judgment.  We are just not a candidate for MATO.
 
Since we are not purely pacifist but have fought in wars from time to time, let me be clear.  We may again someday enter a mutual defense treaty with another nation. But we would reach such an agreement as a  bilateral not a multilateral contract.

Foreign Minister Krancke

[TheNick]

An Exclusive Interview with Former President Lorena Oberlitz
October 5707

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Former President Lorena Oberlitz  joined the faculty of the University of Dunlake, following her retirement from politics in 5700.

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Nordenhaus, Dunlake - Former President Lorena Oberlitz agreed to sit with our newspaper for an exclusive interview, the first one she is releasing following her departure from Karlottenberg Schloss in 5700. We have covered several issues, starting from international relations, the DSDP, the current state of Dundorfian politics and her post-politics personal life.

Interviewer, Jonas Schumann: President Oberlitz, thank you for sitting with the Zeitung for your first post-presidential exclusive interview. We will cover several issues, and your opinion is still central for many Dundorfians.

Former President Lorena Oberlitz: Thank you Jonas, I am happy to be here and thankful to the Zeitung.

JS: Let's start from international developments. You joined the University of Nordenhaus as a Full Professor in International Relations and ever since you've grown your reputation as our nation's top foreign policy expert. An ally to Dundorf, Luthori, has stepped towards the new MATO organization, and previously, another ally, Narikaton and Darnussia, did the same. The Federal Government clarified that its intention is not to join. Did they make the right call?

LO: I think that the Foreign Minister, my friend Gunther Krancke, released a good statement and I fully endorse it.

JS: Why is that?

LO: As I stated when I was Foreign Minister, we're a pragmatic nation committed to friendship and cooperation and we do so on the basis of commerce and cultural exchanges throughout Terra, mainly through bilateral agreements. We entered multi-nation blocks in the past, like the AU, but since the 5600s our strategy has shifted on these bilateral agreements. Thanks to them, wee entertain very good relations in Artania with Luthori, N&D, and Kundrati. But we also do with countries outside this hemisphere, such as Xsampa and Egelion. I believe that this situation is coherent with our past and with our modest international role and I think that the Federal Government made an excellent call in this matter.

JS: Talking of Federal Government, your party, the DSDP, just entered opposition status after 16 years in power. In these 16 years, the DSDP kept losing votes and parliamentary weight. Some say that the era of the DSDP-NDZP duopoly is effectively over following last November's election. Do you share the view that your party is losing its prestige and with it, its power?

LO: I think that after all these decades since the party system was revolutionized, our country is finally maturing politically. There are benefits and disadvantages: on one hand, more parties and more fragmentation mean that there is increased representation for all the different political opinion and sensibilities. On the other, we saw increasing difficulty in forming cabinets, previous political coalitions becoming obsolete and polarization. My party is the oldest in Dundorf's political scene, and prior to the complete change of the party system we used to reach results lower than 10%, in the 5400s, so this situation where we stayed as a top political force is actually an historical anomaly. Same goes for the NDZP. Our two parties being a duopoly, as you called it, was a natural reaction of the Dundorfian electorate to the sudden change of the political system: they chose stability and found a 'safe option' in supporting this country's two oldest parties. Now that the other parties such as the TLD, the Greens and excetera are becoming more and more institutional it's only natural that the newer generations and the electorate are becoming comfortable in supporting these parties. I think that the DSDP still has a lot to offer to this country, and that our leader Renate Reinhardt did a fantastic job during the last campaign to retain as many votes as possible, I think that after a term in Opposition we will be reinvigorated.

JS: The decline happened mainly during former Chancellor Matthias Werner's watch. Do you blame him?

LO: Absolutely not. I would like to point out Chancellor Werner served for sixteen years and won this party four Federal Elections in a row. He was transformative to the country, being the first gay Chancellor, and promoting important reforms. He probably slowed the decline DSDP would have otherwise had for the reasons I stated previously.

JS: The Pirate Party promised to disrupt Dundorfian politcs and bring "real change". They now joined two Federal Cabinets and the party is normalizing relations with almost every party, exclusind DRF and KBP. Do you think the Pirates were successful in disrupting Dundorf's politics or they're becoming like the 'old' parties they promised to topple?

LO: [chuckles] I feel like I have no right to comment on another party's doings.

JS: You must have a personal opinion.

LO: Well, one can't say they didn't disrupt Dundorfian politics, can they? Since they became a political force, the traditional center-left and center-right coalitions became obsolete. Surely, the Pirates of today are a lot more willing to compromise that the Pirates of fifteen years ago, but that's often the natural evolving of a protest party like theirs.

JS: Should we expect a Pirate entry in the old center-left coalition?

LO: Ask Renate Reinhardt and GPP/DRF,  I am just a Professor!

JS: Let's move on to the final question: how has your life changed following your departure from Karlottenberg Schloss seven years ago?

LO: When my term ended I was sad for a bit: I liked being directly involved in politics whether it was as a Bundestag member, Foreign Minister, DSDP Leader, Chancellor or President. I decided a year and a half after my "retirement" that I still had it in me to do something: after a chat with my husband I decided that I would apply to become a Professor at the Nordenhaus University, and by fall 5702, I moved to this beautiful city. I am happy with what I'm doing now and I enjoy attending dinners at Karlottenberg Schloss with current and former Federal Presidents.

JS: Thank you very much, President Oberlitz.

[TheNick]

Interior Minister Franziska Niedermeyer Announces Formation of Dundorfian Olympic Committee
November 5707

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The new 'Dundorfisches Olympisches Sport Büro' building in Dundorf.

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Dunburg - The Interior Minister, Franziska Niedermeyer, announced on Saturday that her Ministry has formed the  Dundorfisches Olympisches Sport Büro (Dundorfian Olympic Sports Office) in order to allow Dundorf's partecipation in the upcoming Olympic Games to be held in Valruzia, in 5710. The move did not require Bundestag's approval because the new organization will work within the structure of the Interior Ministry, which will lease an adjacent building (pictured) to the DOSB. 

The DOSB will support athletes in the Federal Republic and will fund sport facilities, training and mainteinance for the next three years. Mrs. Niedermeyer said that she intends to present an offical Act to Bundestag in order to make the DOSB a permanent independent agency of the Federal Government with its own funding, so that Dundorf's sports are continuously funded and supported. The idea was generally well-received by all parties, and a spokesman for the Minister said that Dundorfians should expect the passage of that Act before the current legislative term ends.

What's important is that for the next three years our athletes will receive the support they need through DOSB and will be able to compete in the Olympics representing our country.

[Drax]

NUCLEAR POWER GENERATION EXPANSION DELAY
 
ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER
 
Federal Chancellery, December 15, 5708: ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER sources in the Federal Chancellery indicate Federal Chancellor Frieda Gimbel met with Science, Research and Technology Minister Hermann Felder, Ministry officials and Nationales Konsortium fur Kernenergie (NKK) executives to discuss nuclear generation plants.
 
Gimbel pointed out she was well aware that the last nuclear reactors built in the Bundesrepublik were near Radulfshagen and Volzhaus in 5468.  The long term plan of two nuclear power stations in each Bundeslander has not yet been completed.
 
While we do have in addition to those built in 5468 plants in Unterschloss, Oberegg, Nordenhaus, Lutzenkamp, Neukirchstadt, Sudschloss–am–der-Czimnetz, and Fuchstal, there is omly one in Chontalen Bundeslander.  And building one is long overdue.
 
But Gimbel indicated the Government would cooperate with the Piraten Partei Dundorf’s Finance Minister Dr. Theodore Engel in debt and deficit reduction; and, accordingly, budget surplus for now would not be used for the considerable expense of a nuclear power facility in Chontalen but rather for debt and deficit reduction.

Gimbel reiterated that, while nuclear power has never been planned as our sole source of power in the Bundesrepublik with augmentation by wind and solar energy and to some extent hydroelectric power always anticipated, nuclear power is and will be our primary energy source.

[Drax]

NUCLEAR POWER BUDGET WILL NOT BE REDUCED
 
ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER
 
Science, Research and Technology Ministry, March 15, 5709: After Science, Research and Technology Minister Hermann Felder held a meeting with senior staff on medical research grants, ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER asked Felder if the governing coalition’s budget reductions would affect Nationales Konsortium fur Kernenergie (NKK) electricity pricing for the Bundesrepublik citizens, and he replied:
 

As it stands now no. As Chancellor Gimbel has pointed out, there will be no additional nuclear power plants built for the time being from budget surplus.
 
NKK is a government corporation overseen by several Ministries including mine. It has a budget for repairs, replacement equipment, maintenance, labor, construction and fuel components particularly uranium, and other costs and expenses which do rise as power plants grow older.  Since Nationales Bergbaukonglomerat, also a government corporation, supplies the uranium, that cost fluctuates little.
 
To a large extent utility bills fund the budget to pay those costs.  There is an appropriation to NKK by the Majlis which can be used to cover shortages should they occur or rolled over to a subsequent year if there are none.  Accordingly there is unlikely to be a need to raise utility bills simply because we are not building a new nuclear plant.  Including those which are subsidized for lesser income citizens.
 
NKK also is involved in sponsoring courses leading to a Master of Nuclear Power Engineering degree at Karl Ulrich Universitat in Unterscloss, Stadtuniversitat Lutzenkamp, Oberegg Universitat, and Stadtuniversitat Sudscloss-am-der-Czimnetz which will qualify recipients in all aspects of construction and maintenance and for that matter repair of a nuclear power station including the reactor, the steam generator the steam turbine and electric generator.  Proficiency in shutting down and reactivating in a safe manner is also taught whether done as a temporary measure meant to be safely undone or as a permanent closure.  An engineering degree is a prerequisite as well as courses in mathematics, chemistry and physics.
 
Additionally, there are training courses for NKK technical staff at Karl Ulrich Universitat and Stadtuniversitat Sudschloss-am-der-Czimnetz conduct their Schools of Engineering.
 
The programs for the Master’s Degree and the technical training are partially funded by tuition but interest on an endowment fund established through NKK many years ago pays for the bulk of the expenses associated with those programs.

 
Asked by ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER whether either NKK or the mining conglomerate are likely to be privatized any time soon thereby making higher bills more likely, Felder Responded:
 

The uranium and diamond mining by our mining conglomerate is done with subsurface drilling and mine shafts in accordance with the law of the Bundesrepublik.  This is much more environment friendly but much less profitable than open pit mining. Make no mistake, the conglomerate is solvent but the profit is not such that any venture capital is being attracted to the mining process itself.
 
As to NKK, the current plan calls for review and recommendations to the Majlis upon completion of the tenth power station of possible privatization perhaps in the form of partial or total conversion to private ownership. The current thinking to date is to allow preferred shares to be sold but not common stock.

 
Nuclear power plants are thermal power stations with the heat generated by nuclear reactors.  Fission in a reactor heats the reactor coolant which goes to a steam generator and heats water to produce steam that will drive a steam turbine connected to a generator of electricity.  The condensed steam is captured in the cooling tower and pumped back into the steam generator.
 
The fission in the reactor produces radioactivity so that a protective shield is necessary around the reactors together with a concrete layer to help contain the radioactivity and protect reactors from unexpected impacts.


Federal Minister Hermann Felder

[TheNick]

Vögelberg University Becomes One of Dundorf's Top Educational Institutions
June 5709

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The main building of the University of Vögelberg.

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Vögelberg, Dunlake - The University of Vögelberg, for a long time considered just a minor local University, made headlines today at the yearly Nationales Hochschulgremium (National Board of Higher Education) meeting because of its slow but strong rise in educational rankings, driven mainly by the growth of its social sciences department. The Chancellor of the University, Dr. Jörg Dreher, said that the rise in the rankings is a 'direct result' of the state of Dunlake's investments in higher education, which allowed the University to expand its budget to hire qualified faculty, build newer structures, and raise the wages of the researchers working on campus. The University had an intuition five years ago, when Dr. Dreher's mandate as Chancellor started: boost its social sciences department (while guaranteeing funds to all other departments) in order to increase its standing in the academic community, taking advantage of an increase in young people's interest in social sciences. That effort, following today's meeting of the National Board, seems to have paid off, and the University will earn a ranking of top three nationally, overtaking Lutzenkamp  and gaining four positions compared to last year. Just five years ago, it ranked eleventh in the whole country.

Other top academic institutions include the University of Nordenhaus, the University of Lutzenkamp and the State University of Dunburg, all dating older than Vögelberg, and with a more established history. Each University has roughly the same educational and academic offer, but they all have a top department distinguishing them from the rest of Universities: the University of Nordenhaus prides itself for its Natural Sciences Department, with some of Dundorf's top scientists working there. The Polytechnic of Fuchstal has a strong vocation on Engineering, The University of Lutzenkamp is known for its Humanities department and the University of Dunburg has a top-notch Law department. These top four Universities are now joined by Vögelberg, and the new ranking of Dundorfian Universities, according to the National Board, is the following:

1) Dunburg Universität (University of Dunburg)
2) Polytechnikum Fuchstal (Polytechnic of Fuchstal)
3) Vögelberg Universität (University of Vögelberg)
4) Julstochische Staatliche Universität - Lutzenkamp (Julstoch State University - Lutzenkamp)
5) Nordenhaus Universität (University of Nordenhaus)

Vögelberg's ambition doesn't stop here: the department of Sociology is planning to launch a regular survey to research Dundorfians' attitudes and opinions on a set of questions regarding politics, leisure, family, work, and so on. The project will be called DUSW (Dundorfs Umfrage zu sozialen Werten), the Dundorf's Survey on Social Values, and its scope will be to aid the Sociology researchers (and other) to understand better how our country thinks and how our society behaves. Chancellor Dreher stated that the results of the first wave of the DUSW will be made publicly available in 5712.

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In other news...

• Bundestag passes bill to make DOSB a permanent agency of the Federal Government, separating it from control of the Federal Ministry of the Interior.
  
• Lutzenkamp chose as host for the next FOMAT, to be held in June 5711.
  

[TheNick]

President Hans Meyer Re-Elected in Landslide
March 5710

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Karlottenberg Schloss, official residence of the Federal President.

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Dunburg - President Hans Meyer has been re-elected in the first round of voting with over 57% of the votes, defeating the DSDP candidate, Jannik Klein, and DRF candidate Gerda Kempf with a sizeable margin. This represents the first time that a candidate wins the Presidential Election without needing a runoff since direct Presidential elections were re-established in 5690. This result was expected: President Meyer had the backing of the entire Governmental coalition (TLD, GPP and PPD) plus the KBP which decided to support the NDZP President once again.

Mr. Klein and Mrs. Kempf promptly conceded the race to the President, but noted that despite the very large coalition backing him, only about 57% of the Dundorfian people decided to actually vote for him, the remaining 43% splitting their votes between DSDP and DRF. Some DSDP backbencher members, who wished to remain anonymous, slammed the Greens' decision to back Meyer's second run calling it a 'betrayal' to the center-left coalition. Even the Pirate base was reportedly unhappy with the PPD's decision to not field a candidate for President: some local chapters boycotted the decision and instead instructed their members to either vote for Gerda Kempf or leave a blank ballot.

At the NDZP HQ, on a totally different note, people were very happy about the result. We interviewed Gertrud Anne, a 71-year-old party member who was attending the Meyer election night watch party: "I am so happy! We united the country behind President Meyer and had the support to do so from the left to the right. In a single move, the President stabilized an otherwise litigious-prone government coalition and ensured stability!" A small celebration took place also at the TLD headquarters, where fireworks were lit and younger party members put on a banner: "Meyer zerstört den Sozialismus!", which means "Meyer is destroying Socialism!". 

Mr. Meyer won an outright majority in every state except for Chontalen, where he only got 48% of the votes, confirming Chontalen's status as the most left-wing State in our Federal Republic. On the contrary, Meyer obtained almost 70% of the votes in conservative Julstoch, breaking a local record in votes, also thanks to the KBP's endorsement.

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5710 Dundorfian Presidential Election:
- Hans Meyer (NDZP, endorsed by: TLD, KBP, GPP, PPD) - incumbent: 51.587.859 (58,5%) | Re-Elected
- Jannik Klein (DSDP): 23.745.433 (26,9%)
- Gerda Kempf (DRF): 12.854.959 (14,6%)

Turnout: 78,7% (-2,8%)

[Drax]

PRESIDENT MEYER BELIEVES ELECTION SHOWED DESIRE FOR STABILITY
 
ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER
 
Presidential Residence, March 25, 5710 (backdated): Asked by ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER if he thought his recent reelection by 57% of the electorate was a personal endorsement or an endorsement of his party, Neue Dundorfische Zentrumspartei (NDZP), Federal President Hans Meyer replied:
 

Not really as such.  I do think our citizens showed they were generally happy with the centrist direction the Government of the Bundesepublik is taking and were voting for continuity and stability. And there is no widespread dissatisfaction with our efforts.
 
I do very much appreciate the support of a solid majority of our electorate and pledge to faithfully serve all the citizens of the Bundesrepublik which is the nature of the office of Federal President.

Federal President Hans Meyer

[TheNick]

Dundorf Elects 5710: NDZP and DSDP Incredible Tie for First Place
November 5710 (backdated)

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Campaign posters in a suburb of Nordenhaus.

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Dunburg - The 5710 Federal Election to renew the Bundestag will result in a tie between the NDZP and the DSDP, separated just by a decimal point and on track to win the same number of seats in the legislature. This is the closest result in the history of the Federal Republic, and comes as the DSDP ends a powerful campaign to win back the first place in Dundorfian politics. It seems that this campaign led by Leader of the Opposition Renate Reinhardt has closed the gap with the Hosian-Democrats, but for one decimal point, the party of Chancellor Gimbel wins again. 

The other stories of this election include a new fall for the KBP, the conservative ruralist party, which reaches an historical low under 8% of the votes and remains locked out of the threshold in the states of Dunlake and Chontalen. The DRF, a democratic socialist party, rises to third place and win 88 seats in Bundestag, a growth that led the party leadership to demand President Meyer to enter in the next Federal Cabinet. The Greens and the Pirates, currently serving in Government with NDZP and TLD lost a point and a half, the latter have been particularly criticized by their own base following their party's endorsement of President Meyer in this spring's Presidential election.

The ball is now on President Meyer's yard: the current cabinet has preserved its majority status (363 members) despite some losses, but a more traditional Grand Coalition with NDZP, DSDP and TLD would enjoy more support in Bundestag (368) and more internal stability. It appears very unlikely that the Red Front will be able to join any Federal Cabinet: a center-left coalition of DSDP-GPP-DRF only controls 299 members out of 316 required to elect a Federal Chancellor.

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5710 Federal Election:

New Dundorfian Centre Party (NDZP): 20.254.894 | 22.2% and 144 seats (+0.7% and +6)
Social-Democratic Party of Dundorf (DSDP): 20.092.407 | 22.1% and 144 seats (+2% and +16)
Dundorfian Red Front (DRF): 12.256.440 | 13.5% and 88 seats (+1.3% and +11)
Team Liberal-Democrats (TLD): 11.344.832 | 12.4% and 80 seats (+0.6% and +5)
Pirate Party of Dundorf (PPD): 10.435.109 | 11.5% and 72 seats (-1.5% and -10)
Green Party for the Planet (GPP): 9.657.382 | 10.6% and 67 seats (-1.4% and -10)
Conservative Federal Party (KBP): 7.012.599 | 7.7% and 35 seats (-1.7% and -18)

Turnout: 91.053.663 (81.3%, +1.1%)