Meeting for Two

[The Federation]

Preparations for the arrival of the Metsamaans had been made, schedules cleared, transportation routes planned, security arrangements made. Despite the arrangements the weather in Charleroi was the only factor that officials in the Federation could never count on. With an average of two hundred and thirty cloudy days out of the year and rain storms that could last for days, the beauty of city of Charleroi could rarely be enjoyed by it's citizens. Luckily enough the cloud decks kept away from the city long enough for the Metsamaan plane to make a safe landing. Luck ran out soon after as the storms came in off the bay blanketing the city in a dark rain.

The meeting would take place in the Howard F. Breckenridge building where the Department of State held it's offices. It was an ugly building on the outside of raw concrete and plate windows, a strange sight among classical buildings that housed other offices of the government. On the inside the stark architecture was accented with dark wood paneling and metal accents as if it was perpetually stuck in 1973.

Denton Graves sat in a windowless conference room with an aide deep within the building, the meeting wasn't necessarily a secret but the details of it would be kept close to the heart until the they could be hammered out and an announcement was scheduled. The idea of an alliance with the Metsamaans troubled him, it could stir serious tensions with the imperial powers these gothic peoples found themselves entangled with. Of course, unlike it's predecessor the Republic of Sylvania, the Federation was no stranger to entanglement.

The door to the conference room opened and in walked Minister Pärn, Secretary Graves stood up from his seat and welcomed the minister while escorting him to an open chair. "Welcome to the Federation, I hope the trip treated you well." Graves opened the conversation, his Westsylvanian accent apparent. "Now I know you Scanians don't like to waste time, at least that was what it was told, so let us get right down to brass tacks. We can start with your proposal while we wait for the coffee." He waved his hand at the aide to prepare the beverages, "anything you say here will be strictly confidential, even if we should fail to come to an agreement, so rest assured we can speak about many things here without worry. My aide is a trusted man."

 

[Hanseatic Republics]

Foreign Minister Pärn found the Federation an overwhelming place. Everything seemed so big! Charleroi seemed a beautiful city, but this building he found himself without windows might be the ugliest place he'd ever had a meeting done before. It reminded him of movies he had seen from the Federation where secret agents might meet. As the Secretary Graves told him everything would be confidential his observation seemed to match the thoughts in his mind and that somewhat amused him. Nevertheless, his face remained stoic as he shook Denton Graves hand and took a seat.

"Yes, of course we are not really a people very skilled in small talk. That said, I am happy to be here and believe we can come to terms on a greater agreement. First and foremost I'm quite sure you already know that we are in the middle of a recall vote referendum that is held in tandem with the possible election of a replacement. Despite this, whatever we agree to will carry forward with considerable weight. Whoever wins the recall election will receive what we arrange here on their desk as the first matter of business, and their approval in tandem with the political mechanisms of the Federation will finalize our negotiation." It was at that moment that the coffee arrived and Jaan thanked the aide and took a quick sip because it was too hot for anything more. That was fine, he usually lived on coffee while abroad.

"My proposal is quite simple. We agree to a military alliance with the framework to expand if necessary, and with the goal of specifically protecting our joint interests, but also the interests of other democracies when possible. It is also my goal to get a Federation military base on Metsamaan territory. Once that happens, our alliance could become public knowledge and Metsamaa would be able to unilaterally declare its independence from the Scanlaw. So this alliance is important to us in order to fulfill our own aspirations." At this point Jaan was entirely trusting Secretary Graves and holding him to his word of confidentiality. Such long term planning was outside of the competence of his office and his ministry. If this information went public he'd likely lose his job.

"You see Secretary Graves..." Jaan paused slightly to phrase this properly. "I am a patriot. I want to see the independence of my country and the Federation represents perhaps the best chance to achieve this. I will not sign an unfair agreement, but I do want to sign something that is mutually beneficial to the interests of both of our countries. I want us to be partners. I believe an old President of yours said something of a shining beacon on a hill. I believe our countries together could form a bond that could look like this to the world."

 

[The Federation]

"Minister Pärn, I appreciate your patriotism. I am a patriot as well and I understand your yearning for independence. With that said, I would be remiss to not mention the obvious that what you suggest may cost the Federation and your own people dearly in blood." Secretary Graves' face and demeanor was very serious.

"A military base alone cannot secure independence for a nation surrounded, It would take a considerable amount of Federation troops and military equipment to secure that. We could potentially sneak Federation assets into Metsamaa without nations in the Gothic Pact knowing, but what of the other nations in the Scanlaw? If we were found out, we could find ourselves in a multi-front war with Tarusa and the Franks as well as a quasi civil war within the Scanlaw itself. Forgetting the two empires you're entangled with, how would the rest of the Scanlaw react to a breakaway Metsamaa?"

@Metsamaa

 

[Hanseatic Republics]

"Minister Pärn, I appreciate your patriotism. I am a patriot as well and I understand your yearning for independence. With that said, I would be remiss to not mention the obvious that what you suggest may cost the Federation and your own people dearly in blood." Secretary Graves' face and demeanor was very serious.

"A military base alone cannot secure independence for a nation surrounded, It would take a considerable amount of Federation troops and military equipment to secure that. We could potentially sneak Federation assets into Metsamaa without nations in the Gothic Pact knowing, but what of the other nations in the Scanlaw? If we were found out, we could find ourselves in a multi-front war with Tarusa and the Franks as well as a quasi civil war within the Scanlaw itself. Forgetting the two empires you're entangled with, how would the rest of the Scanlaw react to a breakaway Metsamaa?"

@Metsamaa

Jaan nodded and replied bluntly, "Of course it is impossible to know the future, much less know precisely the responses of others. I think there are some things that keep Metsamaa in a safe place for the immediate future. First, Metsamaa will not be withdrawing from the Gothic Sea Pact. It is my belief that to leave the Scanlaw and leave the Pact would be suicidal considering the exact scenarios of extreme disaster that you have imagined Secretary Graves. Next, is the fact that Metsamaa is the most loosely aligned Scanlaw member. We do not vote in their politics. We voluntarily join their military exercises and actions. Metsamaa is not merely a passenger, but a post-delegationist polity that decided to join the Scanlaw as an associate. Our departure has always been possible, but I believe the Scanians always hoped that the other possibility would be joining on a more lasting integrated and permanent basis given enough time. Unfortunately for them, not enough time has passed and too many mistakes have been made."

He took another sip of coffee unsure if he had totally answered the question. There were ways to explain around the problems and avert disaster, but nothing of course was bulletproof. The Metsamaan strategy was to gain enough backers that independence would not be questioned as nothing would rock the boat too roughly. Unsure if he'd convinced the Secretary of State, Jann continued briefly, "I think I want to highlight the strategy we are attempting. I want to leave the Scanlaw formally will foreign backing to make sure it will be accepted by all parties. Continue our current commitment to not... I believe your old Sylvanian saying describes it best, to not rock the boat. So to stay committed to the current power structures until we can be sure that we will not succumb to them."

 

[The Federation]

Secretary Graves sat back in his chair and stroked his chin for a moment. "I believe I understand as you said there is a certain amount of risk in any venture, especially one such as this. The game you play is a dangerous one and to stay committed to the Gothic Sea Pact will be something certain interests in the Federation will only tolerate for so long. Our preference is that your people make friends more aligned to our mutual ideals, your partners in the GSP are not that, but we understand why that choice was made."

Graves sat up, back straight. "With that being said, we want an alliance regardless of these issues. The specifics to be hammered out by bureaucrats in secret sessions of course. The military base will need to support land, sea and air assets, large enough to support a significant air defense force and capacity to support a carrier group if need be. Costs will have to be shared, the Federation's purse strings are not as loose as they once were, but the split will be favorable to your country. Intelligence sharing is something we would also ask be part of this deal, we believe there should be no secrets among friends."

 

[Hanseatic Republics]

Secretary Graves sat back in his chair and stroked his chin for a moment. "I believe I understand as you said there is a certain amount of risk in any venture, especially one such as this. The game you play is a dangerous one and to stay committed to the Gothic Sea Pact will be something certain interests in the Federation will only tolerate for so long. Our preference is that your people make friends more aligned to our mutual ideals, your partners in the GSP are not that, but we understand why that choice was made."

Graves sat up, back straight. "With that being said, we want an alliance regardless of these issues. The specifics to be hammered out by bureaucrats in secret sessions of course. The military base will need to support land, sea and air assets, large enough to support a significant air defense force and capacity to support a carrier group if need be. Costs will have to be shared, the Federation's purse strings are not as loose as they once were, but the split will be favorable to your country. Intelligence sharing is something we would also ask be part of this deal, we believe there should be no secrets among friends."

Jaan replied quickly, "All of these points are absolutely correct. To be quite honest, if we could leave the Gothic Sea Pact, have our independence, and be allies tomorrow, then I imagine life would be too easy. Instead Metsamaa must engage in these more delicate pullings of string in order to achieve our goals. I will invite representatives of your nation to conduct flights and surveys across Metsamaa so that we can together find a good location that meets the needs of the Federation. Costs are not an issue, it may even be possible to get some funding from the Scanlaw if we do not depart immediately and are vague enough with our military base goals. Intelligence sharing is a given, and Metsamaa's unique position allows us to be able to see everything that comes and goes from the coast of Tarusa. Surely an important asset to the Federation... do you have any further questions or concerns for me? Or shall we name our secret alliance?"