Pelasgian Press Association

[Rheinbund]

Kanzleramt
Trier, Eiffelland

We reassure the Association of Israelite Communities of the Southern Tiburan Empire that Eiffelland will do its best to take up Trivodnian refugees. Indeed, Tiburia cannot do anything else but prioritising the care for Tiburian refugees of the Civil War. Therefore, we will take the burden of the Trivodnian refugee crisis off of Tiburia's shoulders.

Dr. Stephan Röpke, Chancellor

 

[Pelasgia]

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VIRT Web Radio - the Voice of Tiburia at 9420 kHz
Currently Playing: Breaking News - Explosion at the Kastellas Hotel

Normal programming is disrupted to bring you important news. Please listen attentively.

At around 12:10 AM today, September 28, an explosion cut through the Kastellas Hotel, which housed the negotiations between the two factions of the current Civil Conflict in Tiburia. His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Ioannes VII Laskaris, and His Excellency, Grand Logothete Lord Theophrastos Anastasiades were in the midst of a process conference on the decisive progress made with regard to a lasting peace in Tiburia.

It is yet unclear whether these two men are still alive. However, as most other leading figures of both factions were outside the hotel attending to other negotiating matters, senior leadership seems to have passed to the Patriarch of Cassandris, Theodule IV, for the Loyalists, and Lord Marshal Aristarchos Kavalaris, for the Nationalists. Both, alongside the Provisional Authority of Tiburia, the transitional executive organ approved by both factions in previous days, have agreed to designate Ecumenical Patriarch Damianos I of Propontis as temporary Imperial Regent, until the Emperor is found alive; in the most tragic and unlikely alternative case, he will resume his duties indefinitely.

The Regent has imposed Martial Law across the Empire, and has authorised a Decree calling on all irregulars and paramilitaries in the Empire outside the regular forces of either side to consolidate under government control in the Imperial Pelasgian Politofylaki (meaning Civil Guard or Militia), or face outlaw status. Forces on both sides have been consolidated under the Imperial Pelasgian Armed Forces, a compromise name until the Constitutional Question is settled. All civilians please be aware that a mandatory curfew is now in effect, pursuant to State of Siege provisions in the Constitution.

More updates will follow. The Imperial Broadcasting Company will keep you updated as the events unfold.

In Propontis, on Friday, 21 September 2018

HAH & HIE, Ecumenical Patriarch Damianos I of Propontis and all of Europe, Lord Imperial Regent of the Southern Tiburan Empire

The Provisional Authority of Tiburia
The President, the Members

Imperial Decree

Having taken into consideration the relevant provisions of the Constitution and the Joint Act for the Provisional Authority of Tiburia, and upon taking into consideration the manifest threats to public safety and order currently extant in the Land, We do hereby decide and decree that:

I. [...]

 

[Natal]

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Välisministeerium
Ministry of Foreign Affairs​

The Democratic Republic of Virumaa strongly condemns the terrorist attacks against the negotiating parties taking place at the Kastellas Hotel. The World Fascism strikes again as now, the Pelasgian Empire, living its own tragedy as the nations of the north, sees that evil is still one step in front of the honest people working for the main goal humanity now strives for: peace.

We home the culprits will be apprehended and that the Pelasgian Empire will find its own peace and return to what it has always been, a beacon of stability, calm and serenity in Northern Himyar and in the wider Long and Kalahari Seas region. We hope the voice of the people will be heard and the SQT will be respected.

The Democratic Republic is ready to send its own investigators from the RKT, which are currently situated in Cabaon, so help the Pelasgian people pass through this tragedy.

On behalf of the folk, labourers and
Viktoria Sokk,
Chairwoman of the SRC,
Kristijan Saar,
Minister of Foreign Affairs

 

[Pelasgia]

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Emperor and Grand Logothete pronounced dead! Accords signed before death!
Murderer yet unknown, four suspects apprehended; HIM & HE were to announce signature of Accords!
by Nikolaos Papademetriou

In a press statement released earlier today, the Imperial Astynomia (Cities Police) announced that its investigation into the explosion at the Kastellas Hotel revealed it to have been a planned explosion by an unknown culprit. Four suspects have already been apprehended, two of them being reportedly connected to radical splinter factions of the far-left. In a most tragic news broadcast, His Imperial Excellency & All Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch & Lord Imperial Regent Damianos I of Propontis revealed that both His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Ioannes VII Laskaris, and His Excellency, Lord Grand Logothete Theophrastos Anastasiades, died in the explosion, their remains having been recovered. Lord Anastasiades is to be buried in his ancestral home and titular seat of Dekhelia, on the isle of Kyparissos, while His Imperial Majesty is to be buried on the island of Prinkeponesos, amongst the ancestral graves of the Laskarid Dynasty. While the Patriarch would wish for a full ceremony in Propontis, the state of martial law and the manifest danger posed by events such as the explosion have made such an event impossible; instead, the closed coffins of both men will be displayed in the Ecumenical Cathedral of Holy Providence (Hagia Pronoia) at Propontis for a day, before being transferred to their respective burial places. The burials will include state funerals with full ceremonies. Grand Despot Antipas Laskaris, who is the currently designated Diadochos (Heir-Apparent) to the Throne of Southern Tibur, has been designated as the Imperial Successor by the Regent and the Senate, but the official appointment proceedings have been postponed for security and other concerns.

The Regency Office revealed that a final draft of the Pyrgos Accords, fully titled the Peace and Reconciliation Agreement at Pyrgos between the Emperor and the Senate of the Southern Tiburan Empire, had been signed by all parties, with three copies being deposited for safekeeping in undisclosed locations a few hours before the bombing. The plan was to be revealed at the Press Conference underway that night, while a formal ceremony of a more elaborately decorated text was to take place the next day. Moreover, a Chrysoboule by the late Emperor was also revealed to have been signed, indicating His Imperial Majesty's Abdication in favour of His Son, Diadochos Antipas; the Grand Logothete had signed a resignation text, both of these documents being designated as taking effect 24 hours after the Accords were to be revealed. The two resignations were aimed at clearing the Empire's political scene in favour of a anew generation of politicians and leaders that could lead the country forward and away from division. The Pyrgos Accords and the Pyrgos Chrysoboule have been released in full by the Imperial State Archives Authority (AVAK) and can be found at the Authority's

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.

In other news
☞ (International) – Trivodnia surrenders; Trier Concord countries abandon embassies; Imperial Embassy still open due to neutrality; war rages on in Occitania and Germania; [page 3]

 

[Pelasgia]

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Murderers of Emperor and Grand Logothete members of radical faction connected to EKKP!
Names and photographs released by police; Senate mandates that EKKP surrender arms instanter;
by Nikolaos Papademetriou

The chief of the Imperial Astynomia, Lieutenant General Angelos Oreinos, revealed that the murderers of the late Emperor and Grand Logothete, alongside two hundred and thirty four other men, women, and children, were in fact members of the New Red Argonauts, a splinter leftist faction which was a member of the Working People's Liberation Front (AMEL), a broad coalition of leftist militant groups acting as the armed wing of the Internal Communist Party of Pelasgia (EKKP), a breakoff revisionist faction of the DKKP which left the Empire's main Marxist party due to the Party's refusal to join the Civil War on either side. The two men, who have been identified as Stelios Chroniaris and Athanasios Vafiadis, were employees of the Kastellas Hotel for over five years, and had belonged to the terrorist group for around six months, though they had long been active on Pyrgos's radical leftist and unionist scene. The two perpetrators reportedly blew up the hotel by concealing a large explosive device within the food hall under the conference room where the Emperor and Grand Logothete were speaking.

The two men have demanded a public trial to use it as a medium for their message, but the Imperial authorities have instead sent them to a Special Military Tribunal, which shall have restricted press coverage. Both perpetrators appear to be non-repentant for their crimes, including the murders of innocents, and are being held in an undisclosed and highly secure location. The Imperial Astynomia revealed that Mr. Chroniaris was a man of illegitimate birth who had repeated run-ins with the law for criminal as well as seditious offences, while Mr. Vafiadis held repeated convictions for illegal use and possession of narcotics. The two men were not staff members of the hotel, but worked for a contractor with very lax background checks, according to reports.

At the same time, the Astynomia's announcement has led the Senate to enact a Decree immediately ordering the disarmament and disbandment of the Working People's Liberation Front, stating that any refusal on the part of the EKKP or the AMEL itself will be considered an act of rebellion, meaning that all members of the party will be punishable under the Idionymon (Delictum sui generis) Law for political offences against the established order of the polity. A similar directive has been issued for the more radical factions of the Social Party which were closely associated with the AMEL during the war, leading the mainstream wing of the Social Party to quickly expel them and openly proclaim its respect for the rule of law and restoration of peace in the Empire. The EKKP has refused to respond, instead announcing a public protest against what it perceives as political repression, under the slogan "No to a Second Coup!" and "No to the Pyrgos Farce!", referring to the Pyrgos Accords.

The Regency Office and the Astynomia have noted that Martial Law is still in effect, making the protest illegal, issuing an arrest warrant for the EKKP's senior leaders, including Demetrios Vitsioris, the party's leader and founder, a former rising figure of the DKKP. The Regency Office has made it clear that these provisions do not include the law-abiding DKKP and the Social Party's lawful, moderate wing. The Secretariat of the Exterior did not respond to requests for comment on the alleged connection between Borovanger and the EKKP, and whether Borovanger was aware of the attack in advance.

In other news
☞ (National) – Melingian leader remains in Propontis to plead for greater autonomy following the passage of the Pyrgos Accords and the calling of a Constituent Assembly to enact them as the Constitution of the new Pelasgian Empire. Rest of Melingian delegation withdraws bitterly and pessimistically. [page 3]
☞ (National) – Fifth and final Constituent Assembly of the Southern Tiburan Empire called to draft and enact new Pelasgian Constitution based on the Pyrgos Accords and Pyrgos Chrysoboule. Work proceeding rapidly and with great enthusiasm, despite Melingian and radical leftist minority attempt at stalling. [page 5]
☞ (National) – Remains of Emperor Ioannes VII Laskaris and Grand Logothete Theophrastos Anastasiades transferred to Prinkeponesos and Dekhelia for burial ceremonies after day-long public display of coffins. Tens of thousands attend mourning ceremony at Cathedral, and millions mourn in parishes across nation. [page 7]
☞ (International) – Engellexian state media claims Borovanger authorities accepted responsibility for attack on Kastellas Hotel. Borovanger denies, Pelasgian Regency Office requests relevant information from Dulwich. Imperial News Agency claims to have records showing EKKP-Borovanger alliance since EKKP's foundation in its possession. [page 9]

 

[Rheinbund]

Schloss Charlottenburg
Trier, Eiffelland

We are shocked and saddened by the death of His Imperial Majesty Ioannes VII Laskaris during the terrorist attack on the Kastellas Hotel in Propontis. Our condolences to the Imperial Family, to the friends of His Imperial Majesty Ioannes VII Laskaris, to family and friends of Lord Grand Logothete Theophrastos Anastasiades, and to family and friends of all other people who died in this brutal attack. I will attend the burial of His Imperial Majesty Ioannes VII Laskaris to pay him his last honour.

Albrecht von Dietz-Hadamar, King of Eiffelland, Grand-Duke of Retalia


Kanzleramt
Trier, Eiffelland

This terrorist attack shocked us to a high extent. Our condolences to the Imperial Family, to the friends of His Imperial Majesty Ioannes VII Laskaris, to family and friends of Lord Grand Logothete Theophrastos Anastasiades, and to family and friends of all other people who died in this brutal attack. Unfortunately, I cannot leave the country at this moment. Vice-Chancellor Fritschler will accompany King Albrecht at burial of His Imperial Majesty Ioannes VII Laskaris. The Eiffellandian Ambassador to Pelasgia, Armin von Walsrode, will attend the ceremony to be held for the Lord Grand Logothete Theophrastos Anastasiades, as well as any other ceremony to be held to commemorate the people who died in this cowardous assault.

Dr. Stephan Röpke, Chancellor

 

[Gunnland]

The Stone Chair + The Crown of Gunnland

I am dismayed by the act of violent terrorism that murdered His Imperial Majesty. It is my prayer that this time of great suffering for the Pelasgian people is now over. I should like to pay my respects by personally attending the funeral of Ioannes VII Laskaris.

Julian Regina.

 

[Pelasgia]

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Constituent Assembly approves new Constitution. Long live Pelasgia!
Near unanimous approval, despite fringe opposition. Mass celebrations follow.
by Charalambos Zenonos

With 2080 votes for and 33 votes against out of a total of 2113 members, the Fifth and Final Constituent Assembly of the Southern Tiburan Empire has affirmed the new Constitution of the Empire. With a single vote, after weeks of negotiations and delicate political deals, the history of the Southern Tiburan Empire, spanning over one and a half millennium, has finally ended, passing the torch to the newly declared Pelasgian Empire, described by some Pelasgian historians as the Third Empire, after Tiburia and the Empire of Anaxander. The Pelasgian Empire was welcomed with mass celebrations and a full fourty-two gun salute from the top of Mount Seraglion, the tallest of the hills of Propontis, where the Acropolis of the ancient Iopolis was once located. Soon thereafter, the Pelasgian Guards ceremonially took over their duties as the Imperial Palace, having replaced the eradicated Varangians, at least temporarily, while the new Imperial flag was raised over the city, featuring three stripes of blue, white and brown (the colours of traditional Pelasgian fishing boats, used as an unofficial flag for centuries). The state version features a yellow canton taking up the corner of the first two stripes with an Imperial Eagle in it, while the naval ensign features the simple tricolore as a canton of a black cross of Saint Nicholas.

With the passage of the new Constitution, Pelasgia has now become a Constitutional Monarchy, or, more accurately, a Crowned Republic, where the Crown only holds a ceremonial role, while most power rests neither with the bare commons, nor with a monarch, but with the Senate (now called Gerousia, instead of the Tiburan Synkletos). The new Pelasgian Empire promises to be a state of laws and not of men; to this end, the old legislature and executive have been dismantled and replaced. The Senate now consists of unelected lifelong Senators, including both Nobles and Hierarchs (High-Ranking Clergy members), as well as former provincial governors, metropolitan mayors, major diplomats, military and security service officers, retired legislators, cabinet members, and other such experienced statesmen, acting primarily as an advisory, executive, and appointive organ, that directs public policy through agenda setting and advisory decrees, rather than through activism, its Acts being aimed at being sparse. Most of the elected politics of the state now rest with the elected Legislative Assembly, which holds the power of de facto appointment of the Sakellarios (Chancellor, the Empire's Head of Government), the right to pass laws (though these will have to be reviewed by the Senate), and a veto over Senatorial Acts for extremely rare cases.

While the Judiciary remains largely undisturbed, the Executive has been reformed being comprised of three branches with three ceremonial heads, among which the former Emperor's powers have been divided. The Government, headed by the Sakellarios in his role as First Minister, falls under the ceremonial authority of the Archon Basileus, and handles a wide variety of executive departmental tasks, save for various largely administrative-bureaucratic duties and military duties. These fall under the Chancellery and the General Staff of National Defence, which are both de facto headed by the Sakellarios, and fall under the ceremonial authority of the Eponymous Archon and the Polemarch. Notable is the separation of the Emperor from the military, though the Archon Basileus does still hold strictly ceremonial power over the courts, statutes, and law enforcement. Also notable is the Basileus's separation from the secret services and a great part of the bureaucracy, which fall under the Chancellery. The Archon Basileus does retain the power to designate the Ecumenical Patriarch, holding considerable religious authority (though this is expected to be exercised in coordination with and at the advice of the Grand Holy Synod), as well as the power to choose his successor, the Diadochos, unlike the other two Great Archons of the State.

With the Constitution's approval, elections have been proclaimed and are expected to take place next Friday, with the Nationalist Party, the People's Party, the Social Party, and the DKKP having so far announced their participation. The reform of the Civil Code of the Empire and the Imperial Criminal Code are also expected to start during this year, while both High Courts, namely the Court of Cassation (or Areopagus, as the Imperial Praetorium has been renamed) and the Council of State, being back in session from the beginning of next week. However, the far-left continues to reject the Constitution, calling it a betrayal of the United Front. In practice, however, since the Forum Ambush and the Midnight Massacre, the hard left if hardly capable of a political campaign, let alone a violent one, to stop the Constitution's process. With but a few sporadic shots being fired in the outskirts of Propontis and Pyrgos, the EKKP's last militants are expected to surrender their arms by the end of the week. The Melingians, on the other hand, have a much higher chance of a prolonged resistance. The Melingian leader is set to appear before the Regency Council tomorrow to demand autonomy, while the situation in Melingia itself is tense at best, as the 1st and 2nd Armies have moved one Army Corps each in the immediate area. Whatever the outcome, however, the war at large is over, and the Pelasgian public has good reason to celebrate. Throughout the country, all day long, the cries of "Long live the Constitution!" and "Long live Pelasgia!" were heard; one can only hope these wishes will be answered.

In other news
☞ (International) - Former White Virumaan leader flees country, brings news of oppression and tyranny one the other side of the Red Barrier. Desperate fabrications or disturbing truths? [page 3]
☞ (International) - Trivodnian government officials form government-in-exile, despite Head of State's surrender to the Kadikistani military. Will the war in Germania go on? [page 5]
☞ (International) - Radical leftist coalition wins election in Auraria, with six of fourteen parties electing legislators. Despite promises of anything from more handouts to "gender neutrality", radicals do little to address country's grave socioeconomic problems. [page 7]

 

[Elben]

Königreich Elben
Ministry of Foreign Affairs​

Communique 2018-09-26/01
Marked: General

It is with great sadness that His Majesty the King observes the end of another proud monarchy. Not just any monarchy, but that of ancient Tibur. It was the peace of that empire that allowed the Gospel of Our Lord to spread rapidly to the four corners of the known world. And now it is no more.

Sic transit gloria mundi.

 

[Rheinbund]

Kanzleramt
Trier, Eiffelland

We congratulate the people of Pelasgia with the new constitution. May Pelasgia emerge from the civil war and continue to prosper. May the very cordial relations between Eiffelland and Pelasgia continue.

Dr. Stephan Röpke, Chancellor

 

[Pelasgia]

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EKKP surrenders arms; Army units begin withdrawal from major urban areas

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Vehicles of the Pelasgian Army pass by the Great Walls of Propontis while exiting the city, heading towards their base in Selymbria.

Following a week of desparate urban combat the EKKP has finally announced its unconditional surrender, surrendering the arms of its remaining troops at Hagios Simeon. In exchange for a partial political amnesty, EKKP militants have given up their desperate fight, with the group's renaming leaders being brought under custody. The EKKP itself never recovered from the Midnight Massacre and the Forum Ambush, as the coordinated attack of the Special Security Detachments on its forces earlier this week, and the violent suppression of an illegal march were respectively named. Small pockets of the EKKP fought a largely desperate and isolated fight in some barricaded or run-down areas of the port district of Propontis, and those of three other major cities. However, by September 26th all remnants of the AMEL, the armed wing of the EKKP and its far left allies, outside of Propontis and Therme had been eradicated. The final nail in the coffin came a day later, when the EKKP's remaining leaders, consisting of three members of the original General Committee of the party, finally ordered the AMEL to surrender. Negotiations followed, and the EKKP was able to secure a partial pardon of many of its lower members and some junior leaders for political, though not general offences. However, many prominent EKKP members found themselves under Imperial custody, while the party and its armed wing were forced to permanently dissolve and surrender their weapons.

With the issue of immediate security in the Empire's major urban areas having been resolved, the Armed Forces have begun withdrawing therefrom, to their normal peacetime bases. Many such units were greeted by cheering crowds during their withdrawal, a sight of particular note being the large crowds which gathered near the historic Great Walls of Propontis to greet the departing troops of the First Army Corps. Slowly, the Empire's cities have been regaining the pace of normal liveliness, while security duties have been taken over by the Imperial Astynomia (Cities Police), the Imperial Politarchy (a Gendarmerie equivalent), and the recently-constituted Imperial Civil Guard. Elections are expected to be held normally in the next week, alongside the Coronation of Grand Despot Antipas as Basileus, and the Propontis Stock Exchange opened its doors for its first day of normal business since the start of the Civil War today. The Bank of Pelasgia has announced its preparation to issue a new series of banknotes and coins to mark the end of the Tiburian Hyperpyron and the issuance of a new Pelasgian currency, which wil lde facto continue to have the same value, mechanisms, and function as the old currency, the change largely being symbolic.

At the same time, the last attempt of the Melingians for peaceful resolution of their grievances ended in failure today, as the Melingians' leader, the Mayor of Nymphaion, failed to convince the Senate to make any meaningful concessions of autonomy for the Melingians. The small minority-populated region near the Hiberian Marches now finds itself on the brink of another conflict, with 6,000 rebels facing off against 50,000 troops and accompanying air and artillery support of the Pelasgian Armed Forces. Lower Melingia, which is largely flat has been abandoned by the rebels in favour of more mountainous areas, while Upper Melingia is effectively being sieged and cordoned off by government forces. The Melingian leader has not yet left the Imperial capital, thought whether this is of his own will is unknown at the time.

In other news
☞ (National) – Senate nominates Nationalist Marshal Aristarchos Kavalaris as Polemarch, and Loyalist diplomat Leon Akrivos as Eponymous Archon. Both candidacies pass committee stage, expected to gather support of whole body in formal vote tomorrow, signalling the beginning of Reconciliation. [page 3]
☞ (National) – Early election polling shows a clear majority victory for Nationalists, with People's Party coming second. Social Party and DKKP expect minor representation in legislature. Nationalists cause a social media storm with electoral ad stating "Without the Nationalist Party, there would be no Pelasgia!" [page 5]
☞ (International) – Bloody clashes between pilgrims and state forces in Virumaa, as self-proclaimed government in exile led by anti-Communists calls on Catholics to revolt. Virumaan state media decries Catholic expatriates and their supporters as fascist trouble-makers. [page 7]

 

[Pelasgia]

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Grand Despot Antipas Crowned Emperor Isaakios I & V Laskaris of Pelasgia - Long may He reign!

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Soldiers, sailors, and airmen of the Pelasgian Armed Forces wait outside the Imperial and Patriarchal Cathedral of Holy Providence during the Coronation ceremony of Emperor Isaakios V Laskaris.

At long last, following two weeks of uncertainty and regency rule, the skies of the Imperial capital were rocked by the sound of cannons, as the I Imperial Artillery Brigade delivered a 21-gun salute from the peak of Mount Seraglion, the tallest of the Nine Hills of Propontis. Immediately after the sounds of brass bands joined with massive cheers as the recently crowned Isaakios V Laskaris, Archon Basileus of the Pelasgian Empire, exited the Cathedral of Hagia Pronoia, in the central district of Propontis. Cheers of "Unto many years!" and "Hail thee Saint George!" filled the air, followed by a deep bow and the sign of the cross being made by all, including the attending honour guards. Bells across the Empire, regardless of time zone, struck at once and 21-gun salutes were delivered, the festivities extending even as far as the Exarchate of Tephanon, the Empire's furthermost holding. His Imperial Majesty waived at the assembled crowd, before kneeling and looking up to the heavens, thanking the Virgin Mary, Saint George, and Christ for his coronation, and begging that he might prove worthy of their benevolence. The recently confirmed junior Archons of State, Eponymous Archon Leon Akrivos and Polemarch Aristarchos Kavalaris, followed the Emperor, while his wife, the recently crowned Empress Helena Kamatere, stood by his side, slightly albeit clearly with child.

The coronation ceremony itself lasted over three hours and was attended by twenty thousand notables, from both Pelasgia and abroad, being headed by the Ecumenical Patriarch himself, who delivered the famous Polychronion ("Unto many years") chant for the Emperor and the Empress himself. At the same time as the coronation service was being held, all the other Patriarchates in the land were holding prayer services for the newly enthroned Sovereign. The ceremony itself consisted of a long blessing, followed by the Patriarch placing crowns on the Emperor and Empress's heads as they knelt before God, followed by a joint prayer and bow by all those attending. The Imperial couple was flanked by palms as they entered and exited, as Jesus Christ was when he entered Hierosolyma. The ceremony had been preceeded by the ceremonial confirmation of the Emperor's enthronement by the Senate, while following its completion, the Imperial motorcade headed to the Grand Imperial Palace. There, the Emperor accepted the resignation of the Lord Regent, Ecumenical Patriarch Damianos I, before thanking him for his exemplary service, and awarding him the Grand Collar of the Imperial and Military Order of Saint Valentian the Great, the Empire's highest and oldest decoration. The Regent's standard was then lowered from the building, being replaced with that of the Emperor, a square white flag with Saint George and the Dragon, surrounded by a red and a blue stripe, as well as golden ornamentation of the edge of the cloth. The Imperial 1st Fleet then delivered another 21-gun salute at the harbour of Propontis.

The coronation ceremony is widely considered by many to be a return to normality for the Empire, on both a symbolic and institutional level. Elections are expected next week, meaning the last branch of government not filled will soon be so, as the Senate, Great Archons, and Judiciary are already in operation. Until then, the executive is headed by the Chief Justice of the Court of Cassation, Lord Christodoulos Polyzoïdes, as transitional Chancellor (Sakellarios). The Varangian Guard, which is still recovering from its massacre during the Capture of Propontis, is now being largely reconstituted as a strictly personal guard for the Imperial household, family, and palace, including the role of both an honour guard, an actual protective service, and a palace police. The conservative People's Party took advantage of the Coronation, broadcasting a message of expanding the Emperor's ceremonial powers to absorb those of the other two Archons, as well as many of the ceremonial and semi-ceremonial functions of the Senate under the slogan "Unto many years!". Pelasgian embassies across Europe are holding ceremonies to celebrate the event, in accordance with Imperial tradition, while local Nobles and Judges across the Empire have pardoned various offenders in their respective areas, and creditors have forgiven debts.

In other news
☞ (National) – Melingian leader charged with high treason, facing loss of noble title after refusing to recognise new Emperor as his Sovereign Lord. Melingian National Council refuses to acknowledge coronation and fires upon Politarchs coming near Melingian towns to announce coronation. Army responds with artillery fire. [page 3]
☞ (International) – Trivodnia falls under complete Kadikistani occupation following surrender. Future left uncertain as white flag replaced by Kadikistani flag over Amstov. Embassy of the Pelasgian Empire to the Free State temporarily renamed to Pelasgian High Commission in Amstov, mirroring uncertainty of Germanian country's present and future status. [page 5]
☞ (International) – Virumaan national army issues ultimatum to communist regime in Virumaa to surrender and disband state, replacing it with refounded Kingdom. Many fear start of new civil war in Far North as chances of SRP regime surrendering are slim. [page 7]

 

[Pelasgia]

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Pelasgia freezes Trivodnian assets, seeks debt repayment and investment returns

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The Trivodnian Embassy in Propontis, which was served an official notice by a bailiff concerning its assets being frozen

The de facto collapse of the Germanian country of Trivodnia has brought complications across Europe. Across the Long Sea from Gallo-Germania, however, Pelasgia seems to be more concerned with the country's evident failure to pay back the remaining installments of debts granted to it in past decades, especially the late 1950s, in order to boost its economy, military and defence industry, as a part of the then-prevalent policy of Kadikistani containment. Investments made by Pelasgia alongside other members of the Trier Concord starting in the mid 1950s, based on various agreements, seem to equally unlikely to be returned in the form of compensation for the relevant Pelasgian companies. While the era of containment has long since lapsed, the last installments of the considerable, particularly for their time, economic aid programmes, have little chance of being paid back; the Free State itself has surrendered to a Kadikistani occupation unconditionally, with many fearing its looming annexation and permanent end, while Pelasgia has shown no interest in recognising a government in exile which only seeks to prolong a war, with little chance of said self-proclaimed government paying the country's debts to the Empire, and with only harm to foreign relations, particularly those with Kadikistan, and to Pelasgian neutrality in the war possibly resulting from such a recognition.

The majority of these investments and loans came from subsidiaries and banks of the Pegasus Group and the Polydoras Group Memphis, two of the large homīloi (corporate conglomerates) which dominate multiple sectors of the Pelasgian economy. The considerable clout of the two homīloi, combined with the Pelasgian state's own interests in seeing these matters settled, has led the Imperial authorities to the issuance of an Executive Order by the Ministry of Justice, which has frozen all Trivodnian public and private assets in Pelasgia or its dependencies. This move comes as a result of a formal petition to the Ministry jointly filed by the Crown, Pegasus Group, and Polydoras Group Memphis, which requests the immediate payment or the provision of proof of the ability to pay all standing liabilities of the Trivodnian state to the three parties. The freezing order is essentially one step before the complete seizure of the assets, which is expected to take place if the Trivodnian state seizes to exist, or continues to exist after the war's end in some form, but refuses to pay or lacks to the means to do so. Two incidents of particular note took place today when a bailiff formally delivered a notice to the Trivodnian Embassy in Propontis, informing the Trivodnian government, and the authority itself, that its assets and those of its private citizens and companies in Pelasgia, were being frozen; this included the embassy itself, on whose exterior door a relevant paper has been attached. A similar event took place at the offices of Lebowitz and Co. Inc., a major Trivodnian house appliances company in Pelasgia, were a similar notice was delivered, and a similar announcement was posted.

While the buildings have not yet been seized, meaning that their occupants can continue to use them, a seizure seems increasingly like an eventuality, and the occupants themselves seemed to be far from optimistic. Adding to the notices is the general thawing of ties between Pelasgia and Trivodnia, or what remains of it; the Empire's refusal to join a the Great War to defend the Free State, coupled with the explicit statement of the late Grand Logothete in the Senate that Pelasgia was "not going to save Trivodnia from its repeated errors once more at a grievous cost" certainly pointed an increasing abandonment of the former ally, as the Empire moved beyond the policy of Containment, thanks to the Status Quo Treaty guaranteeing its own peace with Kadikistan, and Propontis' frustration at the apparent inability of the Gallo-Germanian powers to keep themselves from provoking Kadikistan, necessitating repeated Pelasgian diplomatic interventions in previous years and decades. Concern gripped the Trivodnian community in Pelasgia less than a week ago, when the Empire announced that its Embassy to the Free State in Trivodnia was renamed to the Pelasgian High Commission for Amstov, with no reference to a full embassy or Trivodnia itself in the mission's title and new objectives. Calls by the Trivodnian community leaders for comment went largely unanswered, and fears were dismissed with the reply that this move simply reflected the reality of Kadikistani occupation of the Free State. It seems that these fears have finally been confirmed. In Propontis, however, the newly reopened stock exchange was more than happy with the rise in the stocks of the two conglomerates following this manifest move of support by the Crown.

In other news
☞ (National) – Lord Ioan Avdela, leader of the Melingian National Council, found guilty of High Treason and War Crimes by the Special Tribunal for Melingia. Crown strips Avdela and descendants of noble title, and Senate votes to permanently eject him. Tribunal sentences Avdela to death by hanging. [page 3]
☞ (International) – Eiffelland to ready recognise fate of Trivodnia and outcome of the Great War, according to Chancellor. Kingdom still denies the validity and legality of Kadikistani invasion, a fact which is unlikely to change. Will Trier seek peace treaty? [page 5]
☞ (International) – Massive advance by Catholic and Royal (White) Army in Virumaa. Communist Democratic (Red) Army surrounded and driven on multiple fronts as the Whites keep up the pressure of the offensive. Reds seize island and express hope to join Kadikistani Union. Will Kadikistan intervene? [page 7]

 

[Polesia]

Alliance of Overseas Trivodnian Community Organisations

The Pelasgian government is penalising private Trivodnian citizens and businesses to make up for its own risky lending and recoup some of the losses from its own internal conflict. We will challenge this draconian action wherever possible.

 

[Pelasgia]

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Pelasgian Empire
Ministry of External Affairs​

Public statement - for immediate release.

To whom it may concern,

The Government of the Pelasgian Empire is following perfectly legal and standard procedure for the freezing and potential seizure of property due to a failure to pay debts. Trivodnia, as a sovereign state, recognised its complete and total liability for the debts incurred and investments materialised through the relevant treaties with the Empire and the pertinent dully considered and lawfully signed contracts. It is an evident and general contractual principle that a failure to uphold one's obligations leads to complete liability to the injured party.

The Trivodnian Community's Associations, or the Trivodnian Embassy itself, are free to challenge this administrative act in a Pelasgian court, though it is doubtful they could somehow convince the learned judges that such a cut and clear failure to uphold a contract was somehow lawful. As for the comments of the European Trivodnian Community, it is well known that a state, as the protecting and guaranteeing power of its citizens abroad, is not entirely divorced from them. If a state declares war on a country, its citizens will be expelled. If a state fails to pay its debts, its businesses will bear the cost not covered by its own assets. Unless, of course, Trivodnian immigrants and businesses now claim to be stateless.

With respect to the comments identifying Trivodnia as a dangerous and irresponsible place to invest in, and an unreliable country to give loans to, we feel the fact that such sentiments were expressed by the country's own diaspora is all the comment we need to make about Trivodnian reliability, in fiscal or other terms.

Signed and sealed,
Emannouel Avgeros
Minister of External Affairs
Government of Pelasgia

 

[Pelasgia]

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Nationalists achieve massive electoral victory, gaining absolute majority in legislature

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The New Senate Building in Propontis, which houses both the Pelasgian Senate and the Pelasgian Legislative Assembly

The first Pelasgian election since the end of the National Schism and the passage of the new Constitution of the Pelasgian Empire has proven to be sweeping victory for the Nationalists, who now hold an absolute majority in the Legislative Assembly, alongside considerable influence in the unelected Senate. The Nationalists won 848 seats in the Legislative Assembly, dominating most regions in the Empire, save for southern Philistaea and Memphis, with 54% of the vote. The People's party emerged as the formal opposition, with 424 legislators (or 27% of the vote), largely concentrated in southern Philistaea, Memphis, and the Hiberian Marches. The Archipelago seemed to be somewhat split between the two largest parties, while the Social Party came third with 16% of the vote, earning 251 seats, having lost almost a fourth of its electoral support in the wake of the Kastellas Hotel Bombing and the resulting denunciation and suppression of the hard left. The Internationalist Communist Party of Pelasgia (DKKP) has seen no change to its electoral support, with 3% of the vote, maintaining its 47 seats. The new Legislative Assembly is to be sworn in on Saturday at noon, with the new government which is expected to take shape immediately after the first session being appointed by the Emperor and sworn in and blessed by the Ecumenical Patriarch on Sunday. So far, the makeup of the soon-to-be-announced proposed government is known to include Lord Themistoklīs Notaras of Hagios Demetrios as Chancellor, Emmanouīl Avgīros as Minister of External Affairs, General Andreas Kalogeropoulos (Ret.) as Minister of the Military, the Constitutional Jurist Evangelos Mousourakīs as Minister of Justice, and Lord Spyridо̄n Dionysiou of Stolos as Minister of Public Order.

The election reflects the large-scale dominance of the Nationalists among the urban centres in the Empire's northern coastal areas, where a more modernised and nationalistic outlook has started to replace the traditional religious-feudal loyalty to the Crown as the connecting element of the Empire. Beyond this support, the Nationalists seem to draw backing from the provincial nobility, often called the Low Aristocracy (as opposed to the High Aristocracy of Propontis), the professional political class in the Senate, the bureaucracy, the major business conglomerates and shipping magnates, and the rank and file military below the higher officer ranks, at least outside the Naval Forces. Combined with sociopolitical reform, the free-market and free-trade economic reform of the Nationalists promises to expand the revenues and growth of these classes. The People's Party has largely drawn its support from the provincial populations and the peasantry, who wish to maintain the stable, protective corporatist and traditional framework of the Tiburian Empire, many of them belonging to minority ethnic groups or lacking the Pelasgisation that urban non-ethnic Pelasgians in the cities have gone through. Additionally, the hard traditionalist High Clergy and the High Aristocracy, alongside the older high-ranking officers of the armed forces, especially the Navy have largely supported the People's Party, granting it considerable sociopolitical, though not equivalent economic influence. For their parts, the Social Party and the DKKP seemed to have drawn support from a comparatively smaller faction of the urban population, namely a portion of the lower middle class and working class segments, as well as some few agricultural votes. Overall, it is clear the Left is sidelined, and a factor of tertiary importance in the Empire's politics, at this time.

In other news
☞ (National) – Association of Trivodnian Communities in Pelasgia files court case against freezing of assets to the Propontis I District Court; Crown nationalises Trivodnian debt to Pegasus and Polydoras Groups, files counterclaim demanding immediate liquidation of assets. Court to hold preliminary hearings of both cases tomorrow. [page 3]
☞ (National) – Execution of Ioan Avdela at Selymbria High Security Prison sparks protests, riots in Melingian-populated regions. Heavy politarchy forces deployed to pacify towns, skirmishes expected at mountainous villages to the west in coming days. [page 5]
☞ (International) – Referendum to be held on annexation of Kranislavian territories of occupied Trivodnia by Kadikistan. Jews barred from voting, clear victory expected. Historically Crotobratislavonian cantons expected to be annexed by neighbouring country, as future of Trivodnian statehood seems increasingly bleak. [page 7]

 

[Azraq]

Wasaarada Arimaha Dibada
الخارجية‎ وزارة
Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Empire of Azraq congratulates the Nationalist Party on its victory and looks forward to working closely together on issues of shared interest.

 

[Rheinbund]

Aussenministerium
Trier, Eiffelland

We congratulate the Nationalist Party with its victory and look forward to a fruitful cooperation with the new government of the Pelasgian Empire.

Rüdiger Zimmermann, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Vice-Chancellor

 

[Ebria]

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Ministry of Foreign Affairs​

Esteemed sirs,

We are delighted to see peace and stability to return to our northern neighbour. With this victory, we can say that the people has truly spoken and that the destiny of Pelasgia genuinely stands in Himyar, not in foreign wars in Gallo-Germania.

With the end of the civil war, the adoption of the constitution and now the formation of the government at hand, we are happy to see that life in the north has returned to normal. From tomorrow, we will start again the suspended transportation links, namely the flights from Blackmere, Parow, Camp Hill and Harton to Propontis, Hiersolyma, Cassandris and Edessa, but also the Trans-Himyarite Express, the train service linking Harton to Propontis and also the ferries between Mzuzu and Arsinoe. We hope that the refugees that came to the Yao and Pondo Chiefdoms from Memphis to escape the war will soon return home.

Signed
on behalf of the Folk and the State President,
Ryan Mopantokobogo
State Secretary of the Federation

 

[Pelasgia]

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New government sworn in, new ministerial makeup unveiled

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Megaron Kantakouzīnou (Kantakouzīnos Palace), the official seat of the Sakellarios in the Quarter of Angels, in central Propontis

Having gone through the relevant ceremonies on Sunday, the new government of the Pelasgian Empire has formally taken up its duties, being led by Lord Themistoklīs Notaras of Hagios Demetrios as Chancellor (Sakellarios). The new cabinet has been revealed, including a total of seventeen ministries, all of which are filled by members of the Nationalist Party, except for those filled by Senators, who are constitutionally independent. While extraparliamentary ministers are still legal under the new constitution, the Nationalists hope to set a new precedent for stable parliamentarism by ensuring that all members of the new cabinet are also members of either the Senate or the Legislative Assembly. More specifically, the new cabinet includes:

• The Presidency of the Government under Lord Themistoklīs Notaras
• The Vice-Presidency of the Government under Mr. Emmanouīl Avgīros
• The Ministry of External Affairs under Mr. Emmanouīl Avgīros
• The Ministry of Colonial and Overseas Affairs under Lord Savastos Polydо̄rou
  
• The Ministry of the Military under General Andreas Kalogeropoulos (Ret.)
• The Ministry of Internal Affairs under Lord Nikolaos Kantakouzīnos
• The Ministry of Justice under Lord Spyridо̄n Dionysiou
• The Ministry of Finance under Mr. Iо̄annīs Leontidīs
• The Ministry of the Economy under Mr. Theodо̄ros Papamichaīl
• The Ministry of Tourism under Mr. Ambrosios Limberīs
• The Ministry of National Education, Research and Religious Affairs under Mr. Athanasios Kassandropoulos
• The Ministry of Labour under Mr. Tiverios Korakakīs
• The Ministry of Public Health under Dr. Tiverios Stephanopoulos
• The Ministry of Culture and Sports under Lord Theodosios Kalliergīs
• The Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy under Mr. Valentios Athanasiadīs
• The Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Islands and Fisheries under Lord Kritо̄n Rhangavaios
• The Ministry of Infrastructure under Mr. Andreas Papalambrou
• The Ministry of Agriculture under Lord Odysseas Kalliandrou

As per the Constitution, the new Sakellarios has also advised the Eponymous Archon, one of the Three Great Archons of State, concerning the makeup of His Imperial Majesty's Own Chancellery, an administrative cabinet-like body handling bureaucratic and other tasks not covered by the main cabinet itself. This advising process is essentially a mere ceremony, the advice having been accepted the same day. As such, the new Imperial Chancellery is thus made up:

• General Secretariat (under the Sakellarios): overall direction and control of the Chancellery
  
• First Section (under Lord Emmanouīl Porphyros): preparation of the Decrees and Orders, control over execution, gubernatorial and ministerial reports, central-provincial coordination, petitions to the Sovereign, state service and awards & decorations thereof.
• Second Section (under Lord Adamantios Cherzonitīs): codification of the Imperial Legislation, publication of the codes.
• Third Section (under Brigadier General Zephyros Xydakīs): state security, press duties, religious sects, aliens, Gendarmes, special duties.
• Fourth Section (formally under HIM, the Empress - normally administered by Metropolitan Bishop Eusebius IV of Therme): charity issues such as education of females, orphanage, disabled persons, healthcare.
• Fifth Section (under Lord Laonikos Kotziaras): labour issues, strikes, public servants, bureaucracy, internal oversight.
  
• Sixth Section (under Lord Antо̄nios Koressios) Far Southern & Internal Himyari civil matters and development, Sea of Buto matters.

The new government seems to have its hands full, but it also has much more freedom, both institutionally and in terms of power and freedom to set legitimate precedent, than any Pelasgian government in decades. The Sakellarios has already announced upcoming plans for International Trade, including trade agreements focused on Himyar, the Long Sea, and the world at large, Internal Development and Reconstruction, Economic Liberalisation, and Social Modernisation. More details on these plans are expected to come up in the following weeks, as ministries release their recommendations and designs on the Empire's future path.

In other news
☞ (National) – Government announces plan to provide major subsidies & tax reliefs for reconstruction of damaged areas, new infrastructure projects to link major cities to more isolated provinces. Ministry of Education announces upcoming plan for inland education citing "tragic" difference with cities. [page 3]
☞ (International) – New government shows commitment on strengthening Himyari ties by inviting new Azraqi government to negotiations over Tephanon, and accepting invitation for a Pan-Himyari Summit in Natal. Public statements show positivity between new governments of Pelasgia, Natal, Azraq. [page 5]
☞ (International) – Concerns grow over Stonecastle Finance's future, as historically fiscally strict Bergenheimer government moves to allow its takeover by any interested foreign firms. Bergenheim financial sector's poor performance due to Great War exposure leads to increasing fears of bailout need. [page 7]