Kalistan

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Jacob Maxwell Assassinated in Kaliburg
Maxwell's wife  dead, AYIC Lt. seriously wounded in public slaying
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
December 23, 5692


Jacob Maxwell, with AYIC Lt. Martin Kauffman (left) and Jeanette Maxwell moments after release

Moments after Anantonese Yeudi Interest Committee Director Jacob Maxwell was released from police custody following a lengthy stay in jail, a gunman appeared before the crowd assembled to greet Maxwell and opened fire, killing Maxwell and his wife Jeanette, and seriously wounding his second in command Martin Kauffman.  The Gunman, later identified as Luca Borowitz, was immediately engaged by Kaliburg City Police who were in the immediate vicinity to act as crowd control and the resulting shootout left Borowitz dead.  Three other AYIC members were injured in the assassination as well, and two uniformed Kaliburg Police officers also suffered injuries from the gun battle.

The events leading up to the attack are still under investigation, but Kaliburg police chief Kurt Mitchell said "We believe Mr. Borowitz, now deceased was a hired hitman working for the Undzer Shtik Mob based in Sulari.  We are certain that Mr. Maxwell, also deceased was the target of a hit in retribution for his recent cooperation with the Bookmakers Probe.  Maxwell has been cooperating with both Sulari Police and now Kaliburg Police following his implication, and the implication of his organization with Yeudi Organized Crime, and specifically the indicted criminal defendant Julian Levinson last summer."

According to Mitchell, Maxwell offered to cooperate fully in the investigation in an effort to clear the name of his organization, the Anantonese Yeudi Interests Committee.  He, Mrs. Maxwell and Mr. Kauffman were in Kaliburg to answer questions about questionable donations the organization had received, but Mr. Maxwell was the only one of these three victims who was being actively questioned at the time.  Mrs. Maxwell and Mr. Kauffman had just met him after he had been released, when Borowitz walked up and opened fire.

Police have not released the names of the other AYIC members who were injured in the attack, because their families have not yet been notified yet.  Police officers Kayley McLauchlin and Michael Hardaway were both injured in the shootout.  No other bystanders were injured.

The Chancellor of the Empire loudly condemned this killing.  "Mr. Maxwell was a long time supporter of this regime and he has not been indicted in any crime to date.  He was cooperating with the state as we were trying to do our job in investigating this violent and criminally minded individual, and he paid the price for his willingness to step forward and tell us what he knows.  Our nation has been deprived of a tireless fighter for Yeudi Interests not only here in Kalistan but across all of Seleya and worldwide, and he was killed by one of his own.  This violence must stop now, but we are not ending this investigation and this prosecution against these criminals:  to do so now would be to betray Mr. Maxwell's memory."

An outpouring of grief from the Yeudi community was immediate following the news.  "Farvas habn zey im gedarft hrgenen?" demanded Rachael Youngman, of Kaliburg.  "Why did they have to kill him?  He only ever fought for our people.  He was our voice, he was our face.  He was the kindest and most dedicated man I ever met!  And his poor pretty wife...  Zol Gott farsholtn ver es hot dos zey geton!" 

Others, including Yeudi activist Miguel Spinoza, from Sulari, said, "I intend to double my efforts for AYIC.  Maxwell killed!  Oy Gevalt.  I never thought I would live to see this day."  AYIC spokespeople said their phone lines were flooded with people asking what they could do to help.  "People just want to do something," said AYIC spokeswoman Natalie King.  "Some wonder if there is a memorial they can send money to, others would like to volunteer.  It is an overwhelming response to this great tragedy for our community.  We tell them to just join with their family and friends and grieve, and also to pray for Mr. Kauffman."

AYIC says that the late Jacob and Jeanette Maxwell will be buried in Kaliburg, in accord with Yeudi customs against embalming that would prohibit their transit back to Sulari.  The Kaliburg Yeudi community said they will handle the arrangements, but it is notable that House Ananto has made a private donation to the Kaliburg Yeudi Synagogue to help offset expenses for the funeral and burial.  Her Highness, The Princess Regent Nicolette Ananto-Collins has called for the Nation to observe a seven day memorial period for the Maxwells, to acknowledge Yeudi Shiva traditions.

Mr. Borowitz' remains are also being handled by the Kaliburg Yeudi community.

Mr. Kauffman remains in critical condition following emergency surgery, but all reports are that the procedures have saved his life, and his prognosis is positive and improving.

@TheRepublic

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"Month of violence" in Sulari as Police Raids kill 25
Civil Rights Advocates loudly criticize "Qualified Immunity Law"
Sulari, Duchy of Suldanor
February 5, 5693


Nighttime raids against suspected Mob establishments have Kalistanis wondering about civil liberties

The war of the police against the so-called Undzer Shtik Mob seems to have hit its peak this week as the nightly raids into neighborhoods, businesses, and in Sulari's streets appears to be abating. Since January 5th, following the controversial passage of the "Qualified Immunity Bill" in the National Assembly, which codified impunity for Sulari's Special Investigations Division in their war against organized crime, passed with a vote of 42- 35- 2 (one of the abstentions was from The Chancellor of the Empire herself, even though she introduced the legislation) the Sulari police force has been out and about arresting people from their homes and businesses who are alleged associates of the Undzer Shtik Mob in Sulari. Simialr arrests were made around the nation, but by far the major amount of the activity has been in Sulari.

"It's like, once they killed Maxwell, the Government had decided it was no longer playing," said Tomas Suarez of Sulari. "We have learned that once the sun goes down, it's like hunting season for these cops and we just stay off the streets. We lock our doors and we say our prayers."

Civil Rights advocates have loudly protested the heavy handed police tactics, and the confrontations have themselves occasionally turned violent. "Two weeks ago, in the Sun Coast neighborhood, protestors pelted police with bottles, stones and food," said witness Roger Howard. "And the cops lost their minds, fired tear gas into the crowd and dispersed them, and... then just sort of carried on with their raid." Four people were injured in that exchange, and were all treated at local hospitals, but were released without charges.

"We say we have a country that is based on law, on the rule of law," said Civil Rights activist Marcia Nelson of Sulari. "But are the people these police are taking into custody, are their rights being acknowledged? The people being picked up off the street? The people whose businesses are being raided and then in a couple instances burned by the police? This is insanity. The police force has gone wild. And who protects us from you?" Numerous civil rights organizations said they intend to file suit on behalf of 19 individuals who were extrajudicially killed in Sulari in three separate shootouts with police, which they argue the police themselves instigated. "We intend to see to it that civil rights and due process are protected and people who did this are held accountable: Without those we the people don't have much left in this nation."

Her Highness, the Princess Regent's office issued a short statement on the police violence last week.

"These criminals, who feel that they themselves are free to act with absolute impunity, exist, by their own admission, well outside the law. Why would they then demand the protections of the law when they are rounded up and held to account for their outlaw behaviors? You don't get to be a criminal and then scream about how your rights are being violated when you are arrested for your criminality. That's insane. We all have a duty to this society, and most people do their so they can enjoy the benefits of society. We pay for our freedoms by preforming our civic duties and maintaining public order. But these people spend their days and nights abrogating their duty, and yet still expect to enjoy the benefits of society. That is absurd. They have a mob, that's fine. But we are the State. If they wish for peace for themselves and their families, let them turn themselves in peacefully, let them stand trial for their criminality, and let them be judged, by the law. If they wish to live outside the law, they do not deserve the protection of the law."

The raids of 17-21 January were the most violent raids to date, leading to the deaths of some 45 Kalistanis, including 4 police officers in various shoot outs across the city. Most of those who were killed, according to police sources, were associates of the Undzer Shtik Mob, which suggests that many of those who were arrested earlier in the month were naming names and providing information. Overall, there have been more than 250 arrests in connection with the Organized crime investigation, nearly all of them happening in January and 85% of them occurring within Sulari Free City, and police say they are inspiring a siege mentality among the leadership of the organization.

Police raids overnight in Sulari have slowed way down within the last week. There have been no reported large scale police raids in the Free City since January 27. A recent poll of Sulari residents showed a solid base of support for the actions of the police, with 54% saying they either agreed or mostly agreed that these raids were necessary to push back against organized Criminality, while 27% said they either disagree or mostly disagree. Of those who agree, many of the reasons revolve around a sense of business and fairness: Many asked the question why should criminals have the opportunity to break the law and get rich doing so while non-criminals have to live more modestly, or by complaining that corruption and racketeering lead to higher prices because those involved have to pass on the corruption in the form of price hikes, to consumers. Those opposed complained mostly about civil rights and civil liberties being violated, and a somewhat large number also expressed fear that the power given to police would not be taken back when the crisis was over, and this is a slippery slope to totalitarianism.

@TheRepublic

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Bookmaker Chief Julian Levinson Acquitted in Sulari
Found guilty on one charge of falsifying records, Ordered to pay Fine
Sulari, Duchy of Suldanor
March 25, 5693


Bookmaker Julian Levinson, long thought to be link between Undzer Shtik and Bookmakers Association, acquitted on most charges

Julian Levinson, who was a senior Associate in the Sulari Bookmakers' Association, has been acquitted of his most serious charges in Sulari, marking the first major setback for the Sulari Special Investigations Division's wide ranging prosecution of corruption and organized crime in Sulari. Last week, a jury returned not guilty verdicts on more than 35 counts ranging from bet fixing in Sulari sporting events from 5671-5690, racketeering, conspiracy to defraud the Empire, and attempting to flee justice. He was found guilty on a single of falsifying records, a charge which is considered a non violent offense and for which he was sentenced to pay a punitive fine of ₭15,000 Imperial Rubles.

Levinson's defense team successfully argued that implication in these crimes is not evidence of commission of them, and much of the states evidence against Mr. Levinson failed to convince the jury of his involvement in any of the crimes. Levinson fired his original lawyer for failure to adequately represent him in pretrial motions and retained a team of lawyers led by Sulari's Talia Richardson, who went into trial and very fiercely defended her client's innocence.

"What the State has is evidence that a crime has been committed," she said in her closing remarks. "The State has not demonstrated conclusively that they have evidence that my client, Mr. Levinson, actually committed these crimes that they have been prosecuting him for for all these months. Instead we have demonstrated that signatures do not match, we have demonstrated that he was not in town during many of the alleged events, and from there, we were able to cast doubt on much of the rest of the case against Mr. Levinson, who is innocent, and remains innocent of everything, except a single instance where he misfiled a bank record for one of the operations under his management. One instance in twenty years? I would say he is more like an exemplary businessman than a criminal. And today, the jury vindicated his name and cleared him of all intentional wrongdoing. There is an impartial justice system in Kalistan, and Mr. Levinson's case has demonstrated that without question."

When asked by reporters how it felt to be cleared, Levinson himself said "Well, how do you think it feels? I had to sit in a prison cell while my friend Jacob and his poor wife were gunned down in the street in Sulari. I can finally mourn him as a free man. I can also still be happy to have my freedom returned to me." Asked if he would appeal the fine for the records charge, he said "No, I won't be asking for an appeal. Fact is, I did misrepresent how much my place had taken in. That is a hit against my reputation- money is money, but I suppose among those who trusted me, even if I win on appeal, it just means nobody will ever make bets with me again. So. I screwed that up, and like all law abiding citizens, I will take the ding. Its costly, but I earned the penalty."

When he was asked what he would do now that he was free, he answered that he will likely retire from bookmaking. "I had a good run. I was, in my time, the most successful gambler in Kalistan. I can't get into a poker game now. So, it is what it is. I do just want to say, I bear no ill will against those who locked me into a cell like an animal, or the City Government. I recognize the Chazerim were just doing their work. But I do have forgiveness in my heart, and say 'L'chaim' to them. Zoln eyere lebns zayn lang."

Levinson was specifically ordered by the Judge who tried his case and administered his sentence that he would serve supervised probation for a year along with the fine, and was forbidden from leaving the country. "They also told me that I could be called as a witness in future trials, and I should remain prepared to testify if called," said Levinson. "Obviously though, I cannot testify about something I do not know about. So we'll see what sorts of things they ask about."

@TheRepublic

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Chancellor responds to numerous news stories
Hutorian Queen's passing "troubles us the most", said Chancellor
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
May 1, 5693


Chancellor of the Empire, Lady Ericka Donahue answers reporters questions at her office in Kaliburg

Lady Ericka Donahue, the nationalist Chancellor of the Empire, took questions today concerning the Government's response to various news from around the world. Below is a transcript of the short Q&A that became something of a press conference.

Q: Lady Chancellor. Has the Government responded to the death of Queen Arianna of Hutori?

Donahue: This story has troubled us the most the Princess Regent and I have had a few conversations about this. House Ananto has privately contacted the Hutorian Royal Family. Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Carolina II Ananto, and both Her Highness Princess of the Empire Mary Ananto-DeLaurentis and Her Highness, the Princess Regent Carolina Ananto-Collins have expressed that they share the royal family's grief at this time. Queen Arianna was a close and personal friend of both Her Highness, the Princess of the Empire, and the entire Ananto Family. She held the privileges of an adopted family member, and her husband and grandfather of the new Monarch, King William, is Her Imperial Majesty's Cousin.

Q: It's known that the new Hutorian King has spent much of his life in Ananto.

Donahue: Yes, at Raven's Head where he now holds a hereditary title as Viscount and a Land title to the Barony.

Q: How will Kalistan engage with the young king, given that Hutori will enter a regency.

Donahue: We have made the formal offer for the young man to come to Kalistan to train for his future role with the Royal Family. Her Highness the Princess Regent and I have agreed to work with the King to give him first hand access to the Royal Administration. There are some constitutional differences of course, and the offer has not yet been formally accepted by the Hutorian Government, but Her Highness wanted me to stress that the young man is well liked among the Anantos and will be welcomed to move into Cliff House and train here as long as he likes to take over the reigns of the Kingdom when he reaches his majority. When Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Carolina II Ananto is released from National Service, he will be, I believe 15, and can want no better tutor than his older cousin--She kind of views the young man as something of a younger brother, especially given the loss of her actual brothers, and said she would be willing to act as a guardian of sorts to help him learn the ins and outs of Government. And of course, we will offer him plenty of opportunities to maintain his life and schedules in Hutori as the Government there sees fit for him. We want to be available to take some of the burden off Lord David Alvarez-Ananto, and let them know that House Ananto is happy to help raise its own.

Q: Lady Chancellor: What is Kalistan's response to Egelion's travel ban?

Donahue: We are studying the matter right now. It is indeed very troubling and hits us at the start of the Tourism season when we frequently see an uptick in regular travel across the sea. Our diplomats were not warned that this was coming at all, and to be honest, we were kind of blindsided by this. I can't honestly say I am surprised: Egelion frequently conducts its foreign relations as if Kalistan doesn't exist. And perhaps we don't to them. But Her Imperial Majesty's Foreign Minister, Sir Thomas Harney, is working with his Keris team right now, and they are trying to figure out whether this is a prelude to something else, or if its just an advisory to travelers that we are in the middle of a war with organized crime in Sulari. It was interesting that they put the advisory out for the whole nation. When really, it mostly Yeudis shooting other Yeudis in Sulari. And reciprocity is kind of funny: they do something to us, we have to do something back to respond, they decide they need to ratchet it up, we respond, tit for tat, that kind of thing. That's silly. And childish, especially when its your supposed friends...

Q: Do you have any immediate things you are working on?

Donahue: We had initially kicked around an idea of a Visa for Egelians to come to Kalistan, but usually those are used to reduce inflows of people... And we don't want them then to put a visa requirement on Kalistanis who still can travel freely to Egelian. So we decided that their Foreign Ministry urging Egelians not to come to Kalistan sort of takes care of that problem for us. They don't want to come here? Let them stay home where its cold and miserable. Not a problem. If we have tourist related businesses who struggle because of lack of Egelian visits, the Government can and will step up to ensure that Egelian foreign policy doesn't affect Kalistan's economy in any long lasting way.

Q: Lady Chancellor, how about the recent comments coming from Tel Bira. What is the Government's take on the fact finding missions that are uncovering Beiteynese complicity with Kundrati?

Donahue: We welcome that. It's long past time someone acknowledged the role that Beiteynu played in the run up to that war. In covering up the evidence of concentration camps which undermined the Kalistani case for war globally, in supplying them technical know how for the weapons they used to kill 40,000 of our people including Yeudis here in Kaliburg, Port Swedes and Eshar, and the smear campaign they ran to discredit Kalistan's war efforts to attempt to contain the Legion. Yes, we welcome that indeed, and look forward to the final report. It can't happen soon enough.

Q: Do you think a report will improve relations with Kalistan?

Donahue: I absolutely do 100%. That stuff happened almost 80 years ago. In many cases much longer. All of the people involved in those decisions are all dead by now. Will a report bring them back to life? No. But will a public admission help Kalistan get past it? You better believe it. Kalistan has always stood on the truth, and to be called a flat out liar by one of the great powers of the world when we told the truth was a hard pill to swallow. To know it was done to further some cynical foreign policy goal is even more unconscionable. But I think I, and I know Her Imperial Majesty would be willing to accept a mea culpa to clear our reputation. It doesn't even have to be a big deal. The report will suffice.

Q: How about Tel Bira's offer to accept all former defendants of the Organized Crime Investigation who wish to relocate?

Donahue: Let them go. We won't lose a single night of sleep over the matter.

Q: The Government is not concerned about capital leaving the nation in that event?

Donahue: Many of those assets in our banks have already been frozen. This just happened late last month: I don't even think the papers have reported on it, so maybe I will break some news here: We've frozen assets totaling more than ₭250 Billion Imperial Rubles in the Bank of Suldanor and the Bank of Kaliburg, our nation's two main commercial banks that are associated with a list of known and indicted members of the Undzer Shtik Mob. Raids over April have also netted another ₭23 Billion in hard cash from store rooms across the Empire, leading to a recovery of more than ₭300 billion total during this entire operation. We also captured 4 Hoyptmen in Sulari that are associated with the mob, and they will have their day in court, along with dozens of Lieutennants and associates, in addition to the ones we captured or killed in February. We have picked their bank accounts clean and have decapitated the organization, and now we begin the long arduous process of trying all these people.

Q: Was the government acting on some tip that has led to this sort of success?

Donahue: We gleaned a lot of this information from those who are currently serving sentences on Kings Rock, which is on the verge of being over populated during this process. I can't name names publicly, due to the desire to protect the identity of the informants, but lets just say, we have negotiated several lower prison sentences and parole arrangements from that lot and from other interviews we've accomplished.

Q: Has the Government been in touch with Julian Levinson?

Donahue: To my knowledge, Mr. Levinson has been maintaining the terms of his parole, has abstained from Gambling, has reported to his parole officer once a week since his conviction, has paid his fines and is otherwise at liberty. He is paying off his debt to society which he incurred in his conviction, and that's as far as I know.

Q: Some report that he was seen in Kaliburg Airport in early March.

Donahue: I know this may surprise the press, but as Chancellor of the Empire, I don't tend to keep tabs on the citizens of this nation. I am far too busy for that. You would have to ask him about that.

Q: Would his travel to Kaliburg be a violation of his parole?

Donahue: I will say this: Mr. Levinson is a convicted felon. The crime he was convicted of was not violent. Of the other charges he escaped due to a sympathetic jury, or a timid Solicitor General, or whatever, we still do have... rule of law in this nation, and he was found not guilty of those charges. As long as he keeps to the terms of his probation and pays his fines, which he has, he is a free man to come and go within this nation as he pleases. And his wherabouts at any given moment are so far beneath my pay grade, I just would prefer to move on.

Q: Do you know if he plans to take Tel Bira up on their offer for his retirement?

Donahue: I haven't asked him, but if he does, good riddance. We'll get the rest of them.

The Chancellor ended the press conference then, and apologized that she needed to prepare for a meeting at the Foreign Ministry.

@TheRepublic

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Empress Discusses National Service and current affairs
"We are attempting to complete our degree" says Her Imperial Majesty
Geothermal Station 14, Green Mountains, Grand Duchy of Ananto
July 16, 5693


C1C, Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Carolina II Ananto is as studious as she is industrious

Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Carolina II Ananto, officially designated Conscript First Class in the NSP, welcomed The Republic to her station at Geothermal Station 14 high on Mt. Schmee in Ananto to discuss her plans for the next two years and beyond. Official protocols for addressing the Empress are for the most part waived by law during National Service, and in this environment, it seems Her Imperial Majesty was more relaxed than under the few normal informal audiences she has held since reaching her majority almost exactly two years ago.

(The Republic's) A(nnie) S(iboney): I want to make sure that I note for the record that Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Carolina II Ananto, has chosen to waive the House Laws on addressing Her Imperial Majesty. She has opted to maintain pronoun usage for herself, but has asked me to address her directly, as I would the Princess Regent. And throughout the remainder of the interview, I will address her by her NSP rank, which is Conscript Ananto, for the record, and not her informal style.

(Her Imperial Majesty, Empress) C(arolina II) A(nanto): Yes, this is correct, it is exactly as we have requested.

AS: Conscript Ananto, first of all, it is a treat to meet you.

CA: Thank you. Everyone tells us this. It is a pleasure to meet you as well.

AS: First I have to ask: You have not been in National Service for two full years yet. And yet you have been promoted, meritoriously, I believe, to C1C early. How did you earn your meritorious promotion?

CA: Oh well, getting promoted to C1C was a very proud moment for us. We were promoted just a month and a half ago, so, so we are just a couple months ahead. But in our case, we were promoted for setting an example for the other Conscripts regarding off duty education.

AS: Could you tell our readers a bit about that?

CA: As all your readers, over 22 we suppose, know, the National Service Program makes off duty education available for conscripts, who want to go to school while they do their national service. Most of the conscripts do not ever take advantage of that program. We believe they intend to either go to school after NSP, or not at all, or maybe they want to go learn a trade which is not related to their job or something. But it was always our intention to take credits while we did our National Service. We are attempting to complete our degree before we leave the Service, and up here, there's not a lot to do. So we have taken the opportunity to go to school when the work day is done and study on the weekends and are about done with 38 Credit Hours.

AS: So Your Majesty was promoted for completing so many credits?

CA: Oh. No. We guess being so remote as we are up here, conscripts like to waste their off time doing things that are kind of harmful to morale, things like getting drunk and gambling their winnings and fighting and things like that. But Station 14 is special: We were acknowledged for having 95% of our base's conscripted and enlisted strength enrolled in off duty education. We were able to convince our other conscripts and also our shop Commissioners to take classes. And now four of us conscripts are on the path to complete our degrees before we even get out of the Service. That's pretty unheard of. The Battalion Commander was so impressed with the enrollments and the numbers that he not only promoted us, but also began requiring one off duty course every six months of all the Conscripts.

AS: Conscript Ananto, what will you get your degree in?

CA: We are excited to report that we will have a bachelors' degree in Philosophy when we complete the NSP in just about two years, if we can pass our classes.

AS: I am sure that will inspire a lot of people coming through the NSP.

CA: That is our hope. We were blessed with a good mind and have no desire to waste our time. There are numerous responsibilities waiting for us when we are mustered out of Service, so even though we work very hard each day, both at our job, and also to keep up with our studies, this will be the easy part. The hard work starts when we leave service.

AS: For our foreign readers, can you tell them the difference between a C2C and a C1C?

CA: Sure. We all enter Service at the rank of Conscript Second Class. We go through basic training, where we learn a kind of modified regimental discipline and professionalization. All the soft skills that will serve us not only in our National Service, but out in the world. Things like how to keep our areas tidy, personal hygiene, how to report to meetings on time, how to endure through things that are just hard and will make one want to give up. We also get the opportunity to practice confidence and discipline to overcome obstacles and challenges that they put in front of us. We learn to think as a unit, we learn to get rid of our individuality, we get broken down through physical conditioning, and we get built back up into a sense of community and unit cohesion. This not only serves us in the NSP, but also forms the basis of our society. We move together, we eat together, we sleep together, we shower together, we suffer together. All to build the notion of a unit and devalue the notion of the individual. Everyone is the same rank, everyone is miserable together and fails or succeeds together.

Most conscripts will remain C2Cs throughout their time in and that's fine. The C1Cs are kind of our bosses: They work with the Shop Commissioners, and execute directives. They get to lead maybe 14 Conscripts. Most C1Cs pick it up after 2 years, but the most recent 365 days has to be incident free. This teaches attention to detail and discipline and meticulousness in execution. And it is pretty easy to mess up and get an incident. Nobody is perfect, and most people get an incident pretty quick: they're late for something, they miss something, they break something, they don't ask questions or take responsibility... those are all difficult to avoid. It doesn't really count against their service, they just don't end up with 365 days of no incidents, and each time they have an incident, they start the promotion clock over again. After 1 year, the clock starts, and then if they have a year of "good behavior" or no incidents, they will pick up C1C.

We get about 50 Imperial more a month and C1Cs don't have to share a room in the Barracks, but there is also more responsibility, because while the C2Cs have two Conscripts per room, that means there are 2 people to clean, while C1Cs not only have to clean their own room weekly and have it be spotless, but also oversee the C2Cs' cleaning and the oversee the common areas cleaning as well. This is what the NSP asks of its leaders. And the Weekly barracks cleaning has to be done before we can secure for the weekend. The Commissioner will come through and spot any little problem and then, that's an incident... We gotta fix the problem and whoever got the incident, the clocks starts over for them... The C1Cs can get incidents too, but when it comes time to muster out, the only people who can go career are the C1Cs who have another year before their muster out date of no incidents. So the Commissioners are the best of the best... it's really very strict.

AS: Yeah, well, as you said, you almost can't screw up at all or you stay a C2C. If you are never interested in getting promoted, that's fine. I never got promoted the entire time I was in the NSP. And I got out a slick collar.

CA: No shame at all. We were not expecting to be promoted our own selves. But this sort of life really is just a game really, and we figured out how to play it so we can do our time and get on with our lives. But if we didn't have another job waiting for us, we might consider going career. But this is really good work up here. We do our job on our shift, and then we go home. There's nothing like what we hear of other regiments doing where they have to do their shifts are weird hours or have to work out in the elements year round, or work in hot kitchens. Working up here, the only problem is that is it freezing cold and icy and snowy about 4 months of the year and can be thick fog any day of the year. But we work inside and the walk between work and the barracks and the messhall is thankfully very short.

AS: Conscript Ananto, I am sure you have been following world events even up here on the Mountain. Do you have any comments on things that are going on in Kalistan Proper or the world in general?

CA: We are very pleased at the work that our Government is doing with regard to the criminals in Sulari and in Port Swedes. Perhaps you can confirm: was that fellow who was stealing whole shipping containers full of stuff in Port Elga, and selling what he found out the back of a truck, was he ever caught?

AS: Danielovich...

CA: Yes him. We were particularly interested in that case.

AS: Madame, he was just convicted yesterday as a matter of fact.

CA: Ah, yes that guy was quite bold. We can easily see a day in our Nation where the movie companies make movies about some of these exploits. It boggles the mind how much these people were stealing and just getting away with, for so many years...

AS: Do you endorse the methods they have employed in fighting crime in Kalistan Proper?

CA: We would like our Aunt, the Princess Regent, to let up on the more harsh policing methods they are using in Sulari and Port Swedes. Some of the violations of civil rights some of the activists are complaining about are troubling. But we have, we think, correctly left that timing and the quickness to roll back the qualified immunity provisions to the Regent and the Chancellor: They have a better idea of what the situation is on the ground, and they are working with the Sulari Free City Government to determine which of those police powers are appropriate to roll back and when. While we are in National Service, we are willing to trust those who are governing in our name and doing our work for us in Kaliburg, because they are more experienced and have much better information than we do.

AS: Conscript Ananto: I can tell you the people of Sulari would appreciate it if you communicated your reservations about the police powers directly to the Chancellor and the Regent. I have heard the word "tyrant" circulating among some I've interviewed for different stories: Like, you are up here kept incommunicado while your government is trampling on the liberties of your people, and I think a direct statement from you would be very welcomed.

CA: We understand what you are asking us, Ms. Siboney. And we are troubled by this, but we also wish to state that neither our Aunt nor our Chancellor should be referred to as a "tyrant". As you know, the gangsters who were responsible for this crime wave which has been plaguing our nation for years now, acted with complete impunity, and we felt that our Chancellor wasn't going far enough to effectively combat that. This is not a nation where our citizens may violate the law with impunity, and yet, these same people who were doing that were abusing their freedoms to do so. Civic Order and observance of the law is a priori to freedom and liberty. You do not get the latter without strict performance of the former.

We are not some liberal shipwreck of a state where people are supposedly born with rights that are "inalienable", supposedly handed them by some invisible and absentee deity who himself is conveniently the only one they will allow themselves to be judged by, but he will never happen to be around to judge them while they are still here ruining everyone else's lives. In Kalistan criminals can and do very easily alienate themselves from their rights: We all know this. So if our Government is repressing law abiding citizens, that is a problem. They paid for their rights with their performance of their civic duties and their observances of our Law. That would be tyranny. Nothing our Aunt or Chancellor have asked our nation's people to endure rises to that level.

AS: Conscript Ananto, I don't mean to argue this point with you, but I do have to ask: Do you feel that arbitrary arrest and extrajudicial killing in shootouts is not a violation of people's civil rights to due process?

CA: There doesn't need to be any argument, Ms. Siboney. We appreciate your question, and we know it was asked in good faith, so we will answer it in that spirit. The answer to you is no. We have asked our police force to do something that is very dangerous, and that is to remove criminals from our streets so our people may live in peace without gang members blowing up cars. Our society expects this from our police force, and the police do that for them. So when some criminals start shooting at the cops to avoid capture and to prevent our police force from doing its job in the service to our society, to all of our citizens, you had better believe we would like our police to fire back. If those criminals will not come peacefully, they will come unalive. One way or another , our law always supersedes the freedom of criminals.

As we said: We do not live in a liberal society. Kalistan requires the people themselves to perform civic duty as a prerequisite for their liberties. And if they opt to not perform their duties and follow our laws, they do not earn their liberty. If they do not like our laws, they may petition us to change them. But this quid pro quo at the heart of our social contract is not going to change, as long as an Ananto rules this nation. It just is not: without it, our society just turns into some weird lawless dystopia, and people are free to get up to whatever nonsense they set their hearts onto, without regard to anyone or anything else, and with no way to effectively protect our society from those anarchists.

AS: I am sympathetic to what you say here, Conscript Ananto. Of course.

CA: Let's hope the Gangsters themselves choose to end the war and surrender, because they will not win. We can not allow them to do so, under any circumstance. And then we can talk about how your friends may feel less oppressed by our government.

AS: Very well. Can I ask for your comments on the Hutorian situation, with the new King?

CA: You may know this, but Prince James... please excuse us, that was an error. Now we suppose he will be called King William, King William has spent a lot of time in Kalistan. He has taken regular residency at Ravens' Head in Green County (If you go over to Station 5, and climb the rise behind the station and look to the south, you can almost just barely make out the manor home on Ravens' Head). He's also been a regular guest with us in both Eveari and Kaliburg when we have been in residence at Cliff House. We have always seen him kind of as another little brother, and then when we lost our brothers, he filled that role even more for us.

He's a teenager, you know, and the loss of his mother and now his grandmother, thrusting him into this role: It's something we know something about. And so our Aunt has made the offer that he is welcomed to come and stay with her in Kaliburg for a while to train as the future King of Hutori. And then when we leave National Service, we will take up his training, whatever of it he and his family decide to do in Kalistan, ourselves. His Government will be under a regency for a while until he can reach his majority, and his grandfather, while an excellent golfer will have a lot on his plate with trying to train this young man when that was never originally intended. David is a good man, and with help, he will make an excellent regent. But we feel that Kalistan, the young Monarch's home away from home, will be an excellent opportunity to prepare him for his own patrimony.

So, our Aunt forwarded the offer to the Government of Hutori to consider. The young Steuart is welcomed in our home and wherever we are for as long as he would like to stay, and as a matter of fact, when he reaches his Majority, due to his title as Knight Commander in the Ancient Order of the Gray Smoke, he will formally hold the status of an adopted sibling to us, and will serve his Barony as the Viscount of Ravens' Head. We hope the Hutorians say he can come stay with our Aunt and then remain to finish his training while he is still a minor. Even so, if he is not able to train with us in Kaliburg, we still wish to see him and grieve the loss of the Queen with him, and we are planning to take leave in September to visit Hutori on a personal visit.

AS: Well, Conscript Ananto, it is 1730, and we are about a half hour over time. You have been more than generous with your time this afternoon, but I know your weekends are very important, with your studies.

CA: Well, tonight, it was different. They are serving pepperoni pizza in the Messhall. The NSP makes their pepperoni out of turkey, and We have eaten the pork kind before, but the turkey has less salt in it, and I think its way better because the pig kind, that's just all you taste, you know? We don't have that very often, so pizza night is always a very popular night, and we would like to make it to the messhall before they stop serving supper at 1800.

AS: I've never had pork on a pizza before. That sounds like it might be a bit much.

CA: We suppose its an acquired taste. We had it when we went to Valruzia. It is far more common there. Now, lamb sausage, that is perhaps our favorite.

AS: I happen to like chicken alfredo and garlic on my pizza.

CA: Also delicious.

AS: I'll let you get to it, Your Imperial Majesty.

CA: Thank you for talking with us today.

AS: It was a once in a life time honor.

CA: Please... (She laughed). You know, since you're up here, you should come with us to the Messhall. Nobody will stop you, you are with us. We can talk more, off the record.

AS: I would like that, Conscript Ananto.

@TheRepublic

[Doc]

Robert Kaplan named new Head of AYIC
3rd Kalistani Yeudi Leader vows to "clean House"
Kaliberg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
August 18, 5693


Kaliburg prosecutor Robert Kaplan named to head AYIC

The Anantonese Yeudi Interests Committee, or AYIC, has named the replacement for slain leader Jacob Maxwell. Their choice is Mr. Robert Kaplan, Esq., a Kaliburg prosecutor who successfully tried members of the Undzer Shtik Mob last year, and a committed reformer. Mr. Kaplan, in his opening address to the AYIC board, said, "I appreciate the nomination, and despite my best efforts to decline the position, the Board was quite insistent, and so, I agreed to leave the practice of law and take up this far more important and more honorable position at AYIC."

Kaplan vowed to root out whatever corruption there might have been in the organization. "Its widely held hat Mr. Maxwell himself, shlum zol zayn aoyf im, was not above doing things that might be good for our organization, but might not necessarily be legal, strictly speaking," he said. "I don't want to speak ill of the dead: he was my great friend and I admired the work he did on behalf of our community in this Empire and on behalf of Yeudis across Seleya and the rest of the Diaspora. What I mean to say here is that this is an opportunity to clean our house, to move beyond reproach, to make our organization blameless in the eyes of the law once more and to restore our reputation at home and abroad. This will be my task, and I ask for your help in doing this."

Kaplan said that AYIC had gotten too close to money and did not often ask inconvenient questions. "If Jacob had one failing, it was that he took money and help from whoever would offer it. It didn't matter if it was a ₭25 Ruble donation from my bubbe and zayde or a a ₭25 million ruble donation from some gangster, he didn't care. If he thought it would help our people, he took it and didn't ask a lot of questions. But that got him into trouble, because his loyalty ultimately was to the Empire, and when they started asking him questions, he was maybe too honest for his own good. We won't be repeating that mistake again. The money has to be clean or we can't take it. We don't put people on our board who make large donations: You can't buy your way on anymore. Those days are over, they have to be to keep undzere mentchn safe."

Besides internal reforms aimed at transparency and ending ties to illegal activity, Kaplan also said his goal was to promote Yeudi culture in Kalistan. "The Yeudis here represent between 2.8 and 3 million people, which is about 3%. While most people just identify as Kalistani, the Yeudis are different--We may be the largest explicitly ethnic minority group in Kalistan. We share in the larger culture: We grow up speaking Vrassan or Egelian. But among our own, we have our own culture and tradition that is quite foreign to what most of the Kalistanis do, which we hold on as a connection to our older world brothers and sisters. We have our own holidays and observances that we celebrate in addition to the Kalistani ones. We often dress differently. We are certainly a distinct cultural minority that is recognized by the Imperial Government and acknowledged in broader society that enriches life in Kalistan."

Kaplan also made a pitch for revitalization of the ancient Artanian language known as Redn which is spoken in Yeudi communities and has recently been heard more often in the broader press, given the focus on the Undzer Shtik mob and Yeudi organized criminality. "Sometimes we will also speak Redn, which we got from our Dundorfic and Darnussian Ancestors who migrated here and founded the Yeudi community in Kalistan. We used to write it with the Yeudi script, but now you will also see it transliterated into the Selucian script too. Anyway, its a totally different language that we Yeudis also have access to and will often drop into while we speak Vrassan. I'd like to see Redn more widely spoken and written by Kalistani Yeudis, and promoted across Seleya as our own thing. Redn has, for the most part, died out elsewhere in the world, so why not revive it right here? And if it can also spread to our Yeudi brothers and sisters in Valruzia, that's great too. I cannot tell you how much it warms meyn harts to see AYIC posters with Redn on them, and its certainly something I am sure we could generate more interest in, not only among Yeudis but also in the larger population."

Kaplan said he also wants to continue Maxwell's political activity and promotion of Yeudi interests continued, especially where Amudim is concerned. "AYIC will remain an Eastern organization. We will continue to speak for Yeudis outside of Amudim, wherever they happen to be. And we will continue to promote the interests of the Diaspora. But toward the end of his life, Maxwell was also instrumental, I think, in opening doors between Amudim and Kalistan which had been locked for decades. I think it is important for AYIC to act as a go-between: because we can speak both languages--We can speak to both sides. We have one foot in Amudim given our Yeudism, and one foot in Kalistan, and can maintain those important cultural, and I should also say, financial channels with people who are willing to work with us, like Tel Bira, for example. That connection is very important for both sides and it gives us a raison d'être to continue to act on the international level."

Kaplan kicked off his administration by announcing the creation of a small business foundation aimed to offer grants to Yeudi small business owners in Kalistan who want to start shops that cater primarily to Yeudi customers, but also which help share Yeudi culture with the larger Kalistani society. "Without trying to sound cliche, I can imagine this foundation being used to provide seed money for 1000 kosher delicatessens in Ananto and Kalistan. How amazing would that be?!"

Kaplan's first full day on the job in Kaliburg will be September 1st of this year.

@LaModa

[Doc]

Del Valle unveils Winter Couture Collection, featuring Alice Bjorksdattir
Royal Blue, soft feminine Silhouettes in fashion this year
Sulari, Duchy of Ananto
September 25, 5693


Alice Bjorksdattir showcases Del Valle's Winter Couture, from Maria-Elena Aguilar

Famed Kalistani couture designers Del Valle released their Winter Collection. The collection stars pieces created by notable Yoshimi designer Maria-Elena Aguilar and was shown in Sulari this week. "I am really attracted to this royal blue this year," said Aguilar at her studio in Sulari. "Its such an attractive color, and its so beautiful and versatile. You can put it on for a formal occasion, or you can wear it out for drinks with the ladies. And when properly fitted, it is meant to accentuate the figure of any woman."

Like most of Kalistan's winter couture, the primary fabric chosen is the ultra posh vicuña wool, which is annually imported from Gaduri sources at tremendous expense. "The wool is so soft and fine, and it is durable, but, it is also very expensive, so these dresses are meant to be worn when you really want to show off," said Aguilar. But of course, a woman does not buy haute couture to wear it to work. That would be silly." She said the pieces worn today were one of a kind, but based on pre-orders, Del Valle is prepared to produce replications from Aguilar's meticulous notes. "Today, the star of the show was the clothes, but also, the beautiful women wearing them. Including Ms. Bjorksdattir..."

Indeed, the top model on the bill this week was Alice Bjorksdattir, who is represented by Kauffman Modelling Agency in Sulari and was recently signed to a three year exclusive deal with Del Valle. "This show was her coming out party, so to speak," said Aguilar of the curvy 24 year old Kaliburg native. "She is such a natural beauty, but of course, she's has a little fuller figure than many of our models, she's a little curvier, and I think this just adds to her beauty for sure, but since she's not your run-of-the-mill model size, she allows me to be a bit more creative with the designs. For example, one of the dresses was mostly fishnet. It kind of required forced me to add some extra support which I wouldn't have to add for smaller ladies to make sure things didn't, sort of, fall out, when they were meant to stay put." Aguilar said that the trick was a stiffer net that held its shape better and turned into more of a "breast plate" rather than a loose pliable cloth. "She loved it. She said it was daring."

Bjorksdattir began modelling in her teens, where she was seen in commercials for everything from shampoo, to cosmetics, to becoming the spokesteen for the Dulnerstaad based youth oriented environmental non-profit, the Ananto Reef Restoration Project. Following her National Service, Bjorksdattir returned to modelling, and as an unsigned model, became a calendar girl for Dah Surf Company. "No, I don't know how to surf," said Bjorksdattir in 5692. "But the good thing is, Dah just needs good looking men and women to sell surfboards, wetsuits, wax, deck shorts and bikinis, not champion surfers. So I got lucky, by winning the good looks lottery and being blessed with a body like this."

Bjorksdattir is a distant relative of former Foreign Minister Christopher Bjorksdattir and the current king in Egelion as well, making her a member of one of the oldest political families in Kalistan. "I guess Port Elga is named after my 50th Greats grandmother," she said. "I think there is so little of that genetic material left after all this time that the name is more important than counting generations. Because for each one of those greats, there was some man or woman from outside the family who came in and mixed their family in with mine. So I'm probably more closely related to some guy named Smith than I am to the former President or some king somewhere or whatever."

The Del Valle Winter Couture collection by Maria-Elena Aguilar is currently available for direct order, and soon after the new year, clothes inspired by the collection will be available at retail outlets across the nation for the rest of us. To see the whole collection and photos from the Del Valle show, as well as an exclusive interview with both Sra. Aguilar and Ms. Bjorksdattir, check out https://delvallecouture.ks.

@LaModa

[Doc]

Kalistani News in Brief: Kaliburg Society gathers at Theater Premier
MoD announces Winter Exercises; Yeudi Mob Boss sentenced to 3 Life sentences
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
November 20, 5693


Del Valle Spokesmodel Alice Bjorksdattir meets Her Imperial Majesty at National Theater

Kaliburg Society gathers at Theater Premier
It was all High Society at the Kaliburg National Theater event this week during the premier event of the tragedy "Gilded Times", written by Tony Gregory, and performed by the National Company and directed by famed National Theater resident Marcia Valdez. The performance, which was technically a command performance of the play, given the attendance of Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Carolina II Ananto--who was finally able to take a postponed leave from NSP--as well as Her Highness, the Princess Regent Nicolette Ananto-Collins and The Chancellor of the Empire, Lady Ericka Donahue, was well attended by the full coterie of Kaliburg High Society, including much of the peerage and Society men and women, who sold out the theater's seating in a matter of an hour following the announcement that the Empress would be in attendance. Also in attendance were several high profile members of Kalistan's fashion, music and entertainment community, including Del Valle "It Girl" Alice Bjorksdattir who was introduced to the Empress briefly before the performance.

The play, which has already earned strong acclaim from Kaliburg Critics, examines themes of wealth inequality in Kaliburg through the eyes of a single family. The leads, Lucas Dante as "Pa" and Keeley San Martino as "Ma" raised their six sons to work hard and live thrifty, only to watch them one by one peel away from the family, attracted sometimes by the lure of quick gains through crime, or struggle themselves to start families. The entire play takes place over one week and viewers follow this family along as it collapses.

"We got positive early reviews from most reviewers," said the show's producer Jackie Randall. A few of the critics said that the author should have made more of a statement against inequality in the play, said Randall. "These critics said that the play missed its opportunity to make a real statement about inequality, or the irony that many of the people the play might be critiquing would be sitting in the Theater, attending as a society event. Instead, the author chose to extol working class values while relegating obscene luxury of the upper class to the world of dreams and punishing those who dare to dream, thus leaving the social order in Kalistan relatively unskewered." But the positive reviews praised the acting, costume design, and set design, saying it took them completely out of the theater and put it right into Ma and Pa's three bedroom walk up in Kaliburg. And the producer and director were quite proud of those reviews, though Randall also agreed with the reviews who blasted the production for playing it conservatively on the social questions.

The show is expected to open later this week to general audiences, and will run for four weeks in the Capital, before going on the road and playing in Sulari for another 3 weeks.

MoD announces Winter Exercises
Her Imperial Majesty's Ministry of Defense announced that the Kalistani Regular Navy will be conducting winter exercises in the Northern Anantonese ocean between the Northern Limit and Keris. According to Ministry spokesman Lt. Mike Schafer, "The exercises will primarily focus on logistics and troop transfers between the Naval Logistics Center at Luncasi Free City in the Tripartite Kingdom, and the Naval Logistics Center in Port Swedes. We will also be practicing amphibious operations at Bozo River that are supported by Logistics from Luncasi."

Schafer said the focus of the training will be all weather operations. "The Northern Anantonese Ocean, especially in winter, is quite dangerous," said Schafer. "As anyone knows, its not a stretch of water that is for the timid or the inexperienced. We don't get icebergs this far south, thank goodness, but we do get some major winter storms that blow up real quick and sustained winds frequently surpass 45-50 knots per hour, while wave height often goes over 25 feet. The sea is no joke, and so these captains and these sailors need experience at operating on rough seas like this, so that when Kalistan goes to war, as it will eventually, we are prepared."

Schaefer also said that the Kalistani Regular Navy will be conducting limited war maneuver during the exercises. "We aren't going to unnecessarily risk our sailors, of course," said the Lieutenant. "But if we find some days where the weather is not just automatically going to wash people overboard, we will may get in some war games. Submarine detection is a good thing to practice during rough seas, because that is when it is most imperative to focus on where subs are. No doubt enemy sub surface assets will attempt to exploit the weather to sneak their missile subs through the Strait, and our Navy needs to be highly trained in identifying foreign threats." The exercises are scheduled for the month of February.

Yeudi Mob Boss sentenced to 6 Life sentences
Undzer Shtik boss Paul Baum was sentenced this week to six counts of murder for ordering the death of Kalistani Citizens in association with business dealings that the Mob was involved with over the period of time of 5669 - 5692. Baum was captured as part of the large scale sweeps of Sulari last February that marked the worst of the violence between the Yeudi mob and Kalistani Civil Authority. Baum is operations chief of the Undzer Shtik mob and is second in command in the organization. His immediate boss, Hoyptman Ariel Cabessa remains at large, and it is uncertain whether he had fled the nation or if he remains in Kaliburg.

Baum was convicted of ordering, directing or participating in bodily crimes against dozens of members of the Undzer Shtick over his 24 year career. The particular crimes he was convicted of involved the killing of one squad who was involved in the 5690 Port Elga Robbery of more than ₭74 Million of cargo. In this massive crime, the Undzer Shtik stole, over the course of a month, dozens of shipping containers containing the cargo and sold it in Suldanor and Odufaray on the black market. Much of the cargo has not been recovered. It was believed that the mob associates were killed because they had not made payment to the central mob office for their theft, and the killing of these associates in 5692 was done to make an example of the people who Baum himself refered to as thieves, but clarifying that he meant people who stole from the Organization.

Baum will serve his sentence at King's Rock, which is currently at more than 115% of its capacity. "Well, on the Rock, there are people who have lived there and built and maintained the rock for decades," said Her Imperial Majesty's Justice Ministry Spokeswoman Elaine Monterey. "I can't imagine how they will take to too many more of these criminals coming to the Rock and demanding the things that those prisoners built themselves. But the rule on the Rock is that the prisoners work things out for themselves--Kings' Rock is a self governing community, and the current Administrator is a 54 year old trustee who happens to be a Regular Military Vet, and was put there for killing his family. So the newcomers will likely need to conform, and work their way up from the bottom as everyone does, regardless of the position and power and impunity they felt they were entitled to on the outside."

The Justice Ministry Spokeswoman said that The National Government has recently suspended Qualified Immunity for the Special Investigations Division, and reported that "Arrests are winding down in Sulari--Much of the mob has either been captured, killed or have fled and are in hiding, so there is no need for continuing the extraordinary police powers which the Sulari Police have used to such great effect." She said that the National Government will be working with the Bookmakers' Association to restore their monopoly over gaming following the implimentation of anti-corruption reforms in the organizational structure, and the Bank of Sulari is fully cooperating in its own anti-corrupt practices reforms.

@TheRepublic

[Doc]

FM Harney to travel to Xsampa and Kundrati in February
"We are ready to open Embassy and resume cultural exchange" said FM Harney
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
November 30, 5693


Sir Thomas Harney delivers Keynote at The Annual Banquet of the Council on International Affairs

"We are ready to open Embassy in Metz-Leonid and resume cultural exchange," declared Her Imperial Majesty's Foreign Minister, Sir Thomas Harney, KC, before the Annual Banquet of the Council on International Affairs, the Kaliburg based foreign policy think tank that regularly advises the Foreign Ministry. He was present to give the Keynote speech and announce that Kalistan was ready to open its Embassy in Xsampa, an effort that has been in the works for nearly three years. "We have secured a compound in the Xsampan capital of Metz-Leonid and immediately moved our consulate into that building while the rest of the offices are set up. Her Highness, the Princess Regent will announce an ambassador to Xsampa within the next two months, and then they will fly to the Dovani capital to present formal credentials as Ambassador Plenipotential and Extraordinaire to begin full diplomatic operations."

The Foreign Minister said that good foreign relations are important to Kalistan. "We have been trying to avoid playing the relative power game that so many past Kalistani monarchs have played, and which is the common mode throughout the world. One nation gets some advantage, their rivals feel they also need to do that to maintain the same level of relative power. We are watching developments across the globe which we are ourselves powerless to stop, but this doesn't mean we should let others drive our policy for us and distract us from our own goals, which are to reach out and find partners that will help us enhance our own defense and position in the world."

The Foreign Minister noted that the Embassy in Xsampa will allow Kalistan to have a direct line with the rising Dovani power. "Xsampa is perhaps the most important nation on the Dovani Continent at the moment, and certainly so from Kalistan's perspective. Having a direct line to the Xsampan government will make it much easier for coordinate things like direct sales of our goods and services and purchases of theirs, as well as the long sought after cultural exchanges which we have been looking forward to. I know that there is quite a lot of curiosity about Xsampa within Imperial circles, and the Regent having been there as a younger woman, also some experience. The Xsampan government, Her Imperial Majesty believes, maintains the correct ideological orientation in opposition of liberalism, and on these grounds we find a lot of commonality. Xsampa is a natural ally and partner, despite their communist ways. They are certainly someone Her Imperial Majesty's government should and wishes to work with."

The Foreign Minister said the Embassy will contain the office of the Ambassador, a political and an economics section, a defense attaché, and an intelligence section that will help the ambassador make sense of things in the country and in the region. "We will need to negotiate the normal stuff, such as extraterritoriality of Embassy grounds and such," said the Foreign Minister, "and we can expect that Xsampans will want reciprocity for their own embassy here in Kalibrug, which of course, we will be amenable to. But a full service Ambassadorial post there in Xsampa will open that part of the world up to Kalistani participation and Anantonese Cooperation."

Sir Harney, while speaking about the new opportunities opening in Xsampa, also said a few words concerning Kundrati, as the example of a new bridge Kalistan has been attempting to build. "We would like to move forward with closer relations with the central Artanian nation and our old nemeses, but we have yet to ascertain the level of interest of this move from the Kundratis. We have opened the Consulate in Jildrati City on Etxea and have invested pretty heavily in their gold industry which has been yielding dividends for Kalistani investors, but in all honesty, we have not heard from the Kundrati government in just about 8 years since our Monarchs were taken from us in a plane crash, and this is rather dismaying. None the less, we keep trying."

Following the installation of the Ambassador in Xsampa, the Foreign Minister said he has been ordered to fly on to Etxea and then to Kasaema to see if the Kundrati Government is still interested in working on improving relations with Kalistan, or if they are satisfied with the Empire's maintained presence in Etxea. "Either way," he said, "I hope to resolve the mystery so I may make a report to the Chancellor."

Bilateral partnerships are the keystone to Kalistan's Diplomatic posture at the moment, and the Foreign Minister extolled their virtue. "Kalistan has found alliances in nations as diverse as Valruzia and Hutori, and growing partnerships in places like Istalia and Deltaria over specific issues. Other nations, sadly will never want anything to do with Kalistan. This is to be expected: There is nothing they will gain from even talking to Kalistan. But since national interests are the name of the game, even for those so-called 'liberal' nations who facetiously try to pretend that it isn't, we don't expect those who don't think they can gain anything from talking with Kalistan to try. And we don't fault them for that. In our case, working one on one, without the need of some intervening institution on the international stage, is yielding us the kind of relationships we want, ones based on mutual respect and shared benefit. Where neither side is a pawn in some great global game, but where the overlap in interest can be negotiated in good faith. Kalistan is doing things right, and we encourage other nations to follow our example in the foreign policy sphere."

The Foreign Minister received polite applause from the mostly academic and professional crowd. Many said later that they appreciated his informality and his down to earth attitude, but some, especially those associated with a hard nationalist viewpoint, said they found him a but too optimistic and conciliatory for their tastes, and would prefer someone who took a stronger stance against Kalistan's global rivals.

@TheNational

[Doc]

Chase Lawford named Ambassador to Xsampa
"Known to sympathize with Socialists", said Her Highness, during credentialing
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
March 1, 5694


His Excellency, Chase Lawford, the New Ambassador Plenipotential and Extraordinaire, Her Imperial Majesty's Ambassador to Xsampa and the Imperial Seat in Kaliburg

Long time foreign service officer and Assistant director of the Dovani Desk at Her Imperial Majesty's Foreign Ministry, Chase Lawford, has been tapped to become the newest Ambassador to the Republic of Xsampa. Lawford was credentialed by Her Highness, the Princess Regent Nicolette Ananto-Collins last week in Formal Audience, attended by both the Chancellor of the Empire, Lady Ericka Donahue and Her Imperial Majesty's Foreign Minister, Sir Thomas Harney at the Imperial Seat in Kaliburg. Following the hour long audience, Her Highness joined Ambassador Lawford in the lobby to offer brief statements to the press.

"Mr. Lawford has worked for the Foreign Ministry for 15 years, 7 of those at the Dovani Desk, where he rose to the level of Assistant Director," said Her Highness, the Princess Regent. "We are confident that he will represent Her Imperial Majesty's Policies toward Xsampa well in his new post." The Princess Regent also added, "We also can report that Ambassador Lawford's political sympathies lie with the socialists. This should allow him to speak with his Xsampan counterparts more effectively. He was tapped because of his experience and knowledge of the region and its players, but him being a socialist when speaking with communists will certainly work in his favor."

Lawford speaks five languages, including Standard Xsampan and Kunikata. He is known as a Dovaniphile, and has personally spent more than a year total over the course of his life touring much of Dovani. "Lawford's affinity for Central Dovani will certainly come in handy as he takes this post," said FM Harney. "With the opening of the Embassy, the Xsampan mission becomes Kalistan's most important diplomatic post in almost an entire hemisphere. The Embassy is expected to have additional desks for many of the active eastern Dovani nations, exactly as the Lourennais Embassy has desks for most Western Dovani Nations. The complex is quite large, and we expect it to be quite busy as our diplomatic attention begins slowly inching its way into Dovani..

The Ambassador said his early schedule will be incredibly busy, as he hires staff for the Embassy, as well as meets with important counterparts in the host nation. "I think the first year or so of Embassy operations in Xsampa will be quite hectic," said Lawford. "it will probably be the most important and consequential job I will have in my entire life, to serve Her Imperial Majesty and the Empire in this Capacity. I want to make sure I do things properly and set our diplomatic mission to Dovani up to succeed. Her Highness has expressed Her Imperial Majesty's feelings that Kalistan doesn't just assume that it has embassies in every single country in the world. We aren't like most nations: We reserve our Embassies for nations who we feel closest to in the world. So it is incredibly important that this is handled well, methodically, and deliberately, and that every decision we make is with the mind toward a permanent Kalistani diplomatic presence in Xsampa and in Dovani, an improved image of our nation abroad, and a method of easy and regular communication between our government and the Xsampan Government."

Ambassador Lawford said Kalistan's first priorities, besides fully staffing and fully opening the Embassy will be to encourage cultural exchange, and look for ways our two nations can trade. "Kalistan wants to ensure that trade is reciprocal, rather than one side or the other creating a surplus/deficit in a trade relationship," said Lawford. "We understand that trade liberalism necessarily always leads to the evils of trade imbalance, as capitalist nations tend to do whatever they possibly can to take advantage of the people who are supposedly their partners for the benefit of their capitalists. Kalistan thankfully doesn't operate that way, and neither, I think does Xsampa. Surely we both can engage in trade that contributes effectively to each of our national development and national economies respectively, without trade imbalances or one side ripping the other one off. I am committed to equity in trade, workers rights, and ethical production; I know Her Highness, the Regent is, and I am certain therefore that Her Imperial Majesty is as well. Armed with this, I am prepared to travel to Xsampa and make credible commitments on trade, culture and security with people who I can speak with far easier than-- and I mean no offense Madame Chancellor, but--our Head of Government, who has an unrelenting antipathy for the Metzist ideology to the point where she can't even stand to be in the same room with them. It's a good thing they have me. I am more than willing to sit down with Communists as a representative of Her Imperial Majesty, our Empress."

Ambassador Lawford will leave this week to take up his post, and he will travel abroad with Her Imperial Majesty's Foreign Minister and a skeleton staff who have already been hired and are relocating with the Primaries. There, the Foreign Minister will tour the consular facilities, arrange the presentation of credentials, and then continue on to Kundrati to discuss relations with Kundrati in Kasaema.

@TheRepublic