Quid pro Quo

[Socialist Commonwealth]

Diplomatic meetings in Rijeka, the capital of the Workers' Republic of Carentania, were usually unimpressive, quiet and sober. The Carentanians preferred the practical exchange of ideas and opinions over the pomp and gloria that often accompanied visits of politicians in other countries. Usually the population of the city not even noticed that a foreign statesperson had arrived in the city.

In that context, the greeting the Jurzani delegation received at the central trainstation of Rijeka was something special. Red flags had been draped in the corners of the main hall and a carpet was leading to several cars, waiting to bring the Jurzani to the building of the Commissariate for Foreign Affairs. The Commissar himself was standing in the middle of the main hall, surrounded by Carentanian press hoping to get a good shot, but behaving quite civil.

It was clear, the Carentanians wanted to make a statement that the friendship with the Jurzan was considered important. Carentania had clear economical and strategical interest in its southern neighbour, that was no secret. The fact that Carentanian industry needed Jurzani oil, coal and copper had been reiterated in every newspaper and talk show of the last weeks and the fact that a Jurzani ally could for the first time in its existance guarantuee a safe southern border to the Workers' Republic as well.

Carentanias position to strike some profitable deals with the Jurzani was good. No other country had done as much as Carentania for the Jurzani revolution. The Workers' Republic had even faced the Talemantine forces, throwing itself into the battle without hesitation. But there were worries amongst the Carentanians: could the upstart alliance SEEDTO interfere with any deal made between Carentania and Jurzan? Would the Jurzani political climate be compatible with the socialist ideals of the Carentanians?

Only an open and honest discussion could show.

 

[Clarenthia]

The President was glad he finally got to meet with the Carentanians. From the war's onset, there have been nations who supported Jurzan, but none did quite as much as Carentania. Carentania's continued devotion to Jurzan made them the most favorable nation to the populace and to the Shura Congress especially.

With recent developments, there are many things Jurzan finds massively important to the survival of the nation and only Carentania is willing to supply those needs. SEEDTO was becoming a massive mistake on Jurzan's part and to be entirely honest, the whole reason for SEEDTO was so Jurzan could relax its guard and not need to be continuously on full military alert. The epic failure in Belmont made Khayrat anxious to return to his communist friends and offer them very sweet deals.

Khayrat walked up to his Carentanian escort, grabbed his hand and sincerely said "You must remember, Carentania is by far our greatest friend, it is an honor that I am here."

 

[Socialist Commonwealth]

Commissar Mejic greeted the Jurzani president with his well-known smile. It was a sincere, earnest smile, even though it was hard to tell whenever he faked it. His happy, easy-going nature produced an infectious smile which caused his peers to lose their negative thoughts every time he was around. It made him a natural diplomat and was his strongest weapon in tricky negotiations.

This time however, he was genuinely happy to see the foreign politician. He was living proof of the success of Carentanias politics in the Jurzan.

"I am glad to finally meet you in person, President. This is a great moment and we have a lot to discuss. We have prepared a small tour around the city on our way to the meeting place, where will proceed with the official negotiations as soon as possible. Please, follow me."

Quick, efficient, no unnecessary pomp. Some habits were hard to shake off and despite making the effort to show the Jurzani president around the historical sites of Carentanias capital - the Black Square, the Maximo Park, the Dunay Promenade - it remained a rather short sight-seeing tour and within mere minutes, the diplomats cars had arrived in front of the building of the Commissariate for Foreign Affairs. Inside, a small lunch was waiting for the Jurzani president. It was Pasta.

"Now, given the many different issues we have to discuss, Carentania has taken the liberty of preparing a number of proposals which you have any liberty of accepting or rejecting. We hope to meet on eye-level with our southern neighbours and it is not our intention to pressure the Jurzan into any kind of political direction. If you find that certain agreements can not be made by the Jurzan, Carentania will understand that."

Dusan Mejic handed the Jurzani man a number of documents, listing the following:

"1. Carentania is interested in acquiring benefitial deals regarding the access to Jurzani natural ressources. Especially Oil, Copper and Coal are in high demand by the Carentanian industry and signing binding contracts over fixed delivery amounts would be welcomed. Such deals can only be signed with publically owned corporations and Carentania will not support any privately run company. In return, Carentanian engineers will help with the developement and efficiency optimation of the mining operations and Carentanian machinery will be delivered as developement aid.

2. Carentania wishes to aid the developement of a freely accessable public transport system in the Jurzan to provide sustainable growth to the Jurzani economy and aid the exchange of goods, ideas and people between our two countries. As a first step, Carentania proposes the construction of a high-speed rail from the Carentanian city of Sisak to all major urban centers in the Jurzan. Again, only a publically owned company is acceptable as partner and operator for this railroad and we furthermore wish that, since Carentania will provide knowhow and equipment free of charge, the use of this railroad will be free of charge for Jurzani citizens as well.

3. Carentania desires a long-term cooperation between itself and the Jurzan in the sector of generation and supply of electricity. We are willing to provide knowhow and equipment for the construction of a modern powergrid as well as energy plants, provided the energy suppliers become publically owned. Both countries should then proceed to agree on contracts defining the exact procedure regarding the exchange of energy to cover short-term shortages in either country and furthermore aid the developement of alternative energy sources, such as wind power from the Carentanian shores and solar power plants in the Sea of Fire.

4. Carentania has promised the rebuilding of homes destroyed by the Talemantine invasion. It is our desire to connect this promise with a restructuring of the rural regions most affected by the war. To break the isolation of the rural population, Carentania wants to develope small towns and larger villages with good infrastructure and connections to nearby urban centers in place of the scattered rural settlements of the past. Furthermore, we wish to aid the developement of agricultural cooperatives by providing knowhow and equipment to any agricultural cooperative that is formed voluntarily. Carentania also desires to advertise the advantages of cooperative agriculture to the rural population in the Jurzan.

5. Carentania desires a strong and independent Jurzan. It is no secret that such a Jurzan benefits Carentania as well, as the formerly unsafe southern border has now become secure. It is our wish to formalize our cooperation in a mutual defense treaty and aid the training of a modern military for the Jurzan with expert knowledge."

 

[Clarenthia]

Faraj Khayrat was by no means an elderly man. He was a good 57 years old, he still had a number of years ahead of him. However, he certainly gave off the appearance of being old. He was a man who was born lacking many things. He had a rare genetic disorder which caused him to age rapidly, and his immune system was just simply weak. Throughout his life the desert conditions and lacking medical facilities played their toll on the President. The stresses of being President of such a controversial country haven't treated him well either. He always wore a cape in public, claiming it was for cultural purposes when really it was hiding his bad physical appearance. Only his top friends and trusted people really knew the truth about the President's health.

Khayrat smiled at Commissar Mejic. He leaned into the Commissar and looked him directly into the eyes.

"My people are at a very tough and tedious position right now. It is arguable that no nation has stresses equal to that of Jurzan's. Because of that, we must use realpolitik, we must find our allies and stick to them. I assume you heard of us walking out on Belmont, they aren't what this country needs," the President stated, leaning back.

"Carentania, on the other hand, has done more than anyone else in Europe. Many nations have come in support of us, but very few have produced anything...useful," the President continued "I want to tell you that there is no nation in this entire world that we are more closely aligned to then Carentania. Even Hajr, our brother nation, doesn't come close to the commitment and love we have for our northern neighbors. I have lied in the past, I shall admit this, but look at me now and know that what I tell you is nothing but the truth: The Republic of Jurzan and Workers' Republic of Carentania are and forever will be great partners and allies."

The President again reviewed the proposals of Carentania, but it was easy to tell he wasn't really reading or paying much attention to them.

"I am in full agreement with all of it. There is something else we need to discuss. In SEEDTO, we are a founding member, but it must be known that our commitment there isn't as strong as we let on. We will not be committing our few military resources to them. We are much more interested in the Revolutionary Defense Treaty. It is also in my knowledge that Jurzan has a lot of oil, and the RDT members want oil. They have things we want, I am more than willing to come to an agreement."

Khayrat paused to drink some water.

"Unfortunately, it would be a bad thing for us to publically meet with all of the socialists in the world, which is why we're asking you the favor of hosting a summit, one that we will be attending, secretly of course."

Khayrat felt he went off topic with his ambitions for the Rev. Defense Treaty, but he had a mission in his mind. The newly formed Republic was a very shady one indeed.

 

[Socialist Commonwealth]

"I am sure we can arrange a meeting with our fellow RDTO members, even in secret. However, I can not promise anything, you will have to convince our allies for yourself and while I am confident we can come to some form of agreement, I am unsure how it will look."

Commissar Mejic folded his hands and leaned back.

"Jurzan must, sooner or later, make a decision, I fear, between RDTO or SEEDTO. The greatest problem I see right now is, that the Jurzan is not a socialist country. We can perhaps reach some form of privilidged partnership and the RDTO may, just like Carentania already does, guarantuee your independence. But how much commitment can be made to the Jurzan in public has yet to be seen. Especially the Vangalan public, I fear, which has suffered from fundamentalist islamic terrorism, may have difficulties to realize that the Jurzan is a friend and partner for the RDTO nations."

 

[Clarenthia]

President Khayrat was pleased, very pleased, with how things were going for his Republic. He looked at Commissar Mejic and thought of a response that he would like to hear.

"The Republic cannot call itself Socialist. The reason being, we'd close off too many possibilities. Right now my country is desperate for foreign aid and money, if we don't get it, we won't last long. Declaring allegiance to Socialism is dangerous for us, now anyway. In the future, it will be different. In December, the Rashad Reconstruction is set to reach one of it's goals, at that point, should we be successful, we will talk more then.

However, my government controls the National Oil Company, the National Bank, hopefully our new National Railway system, hopefully a new National Highway, the National Hospital Service, and our schools. We might not be socialist, but we have significant control of our economy and it moves in the direction we want. I hope that'll be enough, but I do have a way with words."

I do thank you in advance for arranging the meeting."