Visiting the Embassy [ATTN: Nieveland]

[Pelasgia]

Propontis, Pelasgia

In the last few days, Propontis was practically teeming with motorcades, as officials moved around for the occasion of the 104th National Congress of the Socialist Workers' Party. Officials came and went, but most of the traffic was concentrated around the People's Palace, the majestic parliamentary building of the Popular Assembly, which hosted the National Congress. Certainly, nobody expected an official motorcade to head precisely in the opposite direction--toward Galatopyrgos International and Business District, where all the foreign legations were located since medieval times. Doubly so for the motorcade of a Minister of the People's Government. And yet, this is precisely what happened.

Surrounded by police vehicles, a series of black luxury automobiles made their way down Gasmoulon Avenue, the main street cutting through the small peninsula that constituted the district from its northernmost tip down to the old Radilan tower to which it owed its name. The motorcade stopped outside the Embassy of the the Republic of @Nieveland, where a small host of journalists conveniently awaited. It was there that, following a small series of official pleasantries for the public's eyes, the Foreign Ministers of the two socialist countries would meet.

"Comrade Minister," said Anaxandros Koligos, the Pelasgian Foreign Minister, to his Nievish counterpart. "I hope you will excuse the delay. Averting a war between Tarusa and the Germanics took a near superhuman effort over the last few days." He pointed to an aged bottle of wine, dated from the late 18th century, which was alleged to have belonged to the first Nievish Apostolic Nuncio to Propontis. "I hope that you will accept this gift on behalf of the Pelasgian Nation as a show of goodwill, and as proof of our honest desire for friendship between our peoples."​

 

[Thaumantica]

A scarlet-haired journalist from the islands caught ambassador Lanpherson's eye immediately after stepping outside of the humble Nievish embassy. While the Pelasgian photographers were either checking their phones or watching out for Koligos the Nievish woman was pressing in on John Lanpherson like a hawk.

"Care to comment on your cousin's latest controversy, eh John?" Nieve McAllister jabbed from behind a small recording device and thick-rimmed glasses.

"Are you entirely lost my dear?" Lanpherson bemoaned.

Unimpressed, McAllister pressed on: "Almskeeper Pherson has been named by a schoolmate as Freelove Rover in her younger days, did you know her as such?"

"I know not the source of your vile save the pits beneath," John replied, "please return to Caitekurke and check the legions you call sources and leave goodwill enterprise be."

Nieve McAllister clicked her recorder off and sighed, "I thought you'd be more forthcoming with that Pelasgian wine wafting from ye'gub?"

"Did'ya know tourists often get caught up in Pelasgian prisons for spreading disinformation? No, because you fashion yourself a journalist do ye?" Lanpherson softly sliced with a sly smirk, "I suggest you enjoy your little holiday and try publishing something about the great healing springs they have here; and then perhaps readers may enjoy reading one of your otherwise sleazy bits?"

Clicking the recorder back on Nieve turned to the sound of Pelasgian cameras clicking and their state's motorcade. "Thank you for your time Mr. Lanpherson, I'll be seeing you after your little meeting."

John grimaced and turned a shade of red before catching the eye of Anaxandros Koligos of Pelasgia. "Bloody hell," John whispered with a wince before holding out a hand to welcome the Pelasgian Foreign Minister into the Nievish embassy.

"No excuse is needed, nor will it be accepted dear comrade," John replied to his greater counterpart's polite statements. "Had not Pelasgian People's Republic intervened I doubt we'd be exchanging gifts and pleasantries here today."

John held up his aged bottle of Pelasgian wine and nodded graciously, "I will deliver this to the Alms Committee in Caitekurke and recommend it is only opened when we have ensured this Thuri-Bourg crisis is a distant memory of socialist success."

"Now," Lanpherson said once inside and in the conference room prepared for them, "I dun'expect you to ever wear this, but it is our gift to you as honored friends of the Niomonnach". On the table laid a Nievish Tartan fashioned in primary black, gold squares, and red chiseled edges to represent the Pelasgian state. "Should you not frame him, do donate it to the needy: our people wore them or used them as blankets and tents before we gave tenements to all!"

Unofficially the Nievish had initiated this meeting in backchannels despite Pelasgia's official invitation, so Outward Communicator Lanpherson felt the need to continue and invite conversation. "Comrade Minister, again, I thank you most heartedly for donating your time. I am prepared to speak on behalf of my nation's intent to embolden your nation's efforts on the Socialist International. We envision it to be a seed whose early growth entails cultural communion of distant peoples. I can describe this vision to you, but we in Nieveland believe Pelasgia to be the primary beacon of the socialist world vision and I would wish you to inform me of more pressing matters if ye should have knowledge of them."

 

[Pelasgia]

Foreign Minister Koligos studied the gift carefully before handing it to one of his aides for safekeeping. "Thank you, Comrade McAllister. I will present this gift to the Presidium of the Council of State as soon as possible." Pausing for a moment due to the distant protests of a certain Nievish journalist, who was being warned to leave the diplomatic quarter due to lacking proper documentation to be there, he followed Outward Communicator Lanpherson into the embassy."

"It would be my pleasure, Comrade. For one, let's do away with bourgeois formalities--if it would suit you, we could use our first names hence. As to the vision of Pelasgia for socialism the world over, I would be delighted to inform you. Pelasgia believes honestly that, though socialism is the best and most scientific form of government, all countries should be allowed to arrive at that system at their own pace and consistent with their own local culture. After all, isn't socialism's greatest strength that it respects local tradition and belief, where the uniformising forces of global capital leave only a desert and call it peace?"

"In short, Pelasgia hopes to promote socialism across Europe by showing the peoples of the world its mere practical superiority. To do that, our common prosperity, peace, and cooperation must become apparent. The Socialist International was created to achieve this end: by facilitating diplomacy and voluntary integration between our states, we can create a zone of prosperity and peaceful dialogue that will be the envy of every reactionary power. At the same time, that would allow us to quickly respond to any provocation by the reactionaries. A noble task, do you think not?"​

 

[Thaumantica]

"I of course accept your offer of familiarity Anaxandros," O.C. Lanpherson replied, "and grant you call me John as well."

Lanpherson perked up at the sound of a commotion down below before seeing Nieve McAllister surrounded by Pelasgian Militia. "She's an ambitious little tart, that one," John remarked with a short nod and smile as lady Nieve screeched outside. "I do figure Miss McAllister will see the light in Propontis and choose to follow it. I stake mine and my nation's honor that she will not be an issue for you."

Listening, John nodded along as the Pelasgian spoke and wrote down a series of notes such as "URN+" which should remind him to check on McAllister later. The next was "CeSò" as a reminder to discuss social justice, and finally, an "F" circled for faidhir or faire.

The world socialist vision is much like that of the spiritual," John offered before pointing to a carved and painted orthodox cross carved and nailed to the wall. "Niomonnach felt Christianity in a wave many centuries after Pelasgia, and ultimately we try to grade others on a scaling grade of . . ceartas sòisealta . . " John said before knocking knuckles on his head to rock out the Engell words, "social justice."

"We respect the outward spiritual and political visions in this way, on a grading scale, with the understanding that the Nievish vision is itself a lighthouse few can see," John said with a casual shrug. "But the world does see Pelasgia, doesn't it?" John remarked with a muffled chuckle. "This is good!"

"I'm here because Pelasgian's are leading World Socialist Vision, Anaxandros, and we have been thinking about it for a rather long time in Nieveland since 2015 .. . ," John said with a few scribbles at numbers and dates before offering a decisive "That was the 1st Quarter 2015, the Nievish Socialist Party asked to chart the World Socialist Vision of the future."

"Pelasgia has taken the mantle and Nieveland is here to support," John said as he pushed his paper to the side and stood up, "the 1933 Engellexic World Exposition made us . . . " John said with some reprehension, "understand that it is possible to capture the world culturally, technologically, and even financially if enough is strategically put on the table for that event."

"Nieveland is nearly absent from the world wide web," John said with a sneer, "but we do understand that this is not 1933 and singular events do not captivate and hold on to headlines for quite as long."

The Outward Communicator pondered the options for awhile before setting a course. "Culturally our World Socialist Vision demands that we, Nieveland, opt out of capitalist organizations and events which are purely profit based and corrupt." John advised carefully without mentioning that world groups could be considered spiritually corrupt as well.

"What we are thus recommending is that when there is an International Publishing House, for example, there should be a Socialist International Publishing House. If there is a World Cup of Football, or an Olympic Games that do not explicitly embody the values of social justice then we must be creating our own adjacent games that incorporate our values."

"I understand that there may be a Jacaranda Cup on the horizon, and we in Nieveland are prepared to boycott this and ask others to do so if it does not celebrate the World Socialist Vision." John declared before allowing a sigh and deep breath, "Pelasgia holds the banner of the Socialist World, we have already discussed this, so when she boycotts events or organizations we and others must be expected to follow . . . But if we boycott something, we must also stand up an alternative for cultural enrichment."

"So, and I will give you ample time to reply and alter these steps, the NSP believes the Socialist International must identify inherently corrupt events and organizations," John quipped, "we then pull our collective resources out of those venues and stand up our own with the ultimate goal of standing up an alternative World Socialist Vision at an Exposition in Propontis as soon as the pieces and players are assembled in an impactful way."

 

[Pelasgia]

"Your recommended approach is interesting, John," Anaxandros said, pondering at the meaning of the different signs made by his Nievish counterpart. "That being said, we in Pelasgia have found that, for those of us who can sustain it and keep it under control, a certain level of contact with the capitalist world can be beneficial--first, because it allows us to strengthen ourselves by drawing what positive that system does produce; and secondly by demonstrating the superiority and success of our own system to the rest of Europe, thereby dispelling all the propaganda of the reactionary regimes."

"Of course, we also understand that other socialist societies might lack the capacity or the simple will to interact with the capitalists. That is both reasonable and fair; some risk being swallowed up by the beast of global capital, and others yet might judge the benefits of such interactions to be far outweighed by the ills they bring with them. Yet, as the primary torchbearer of the socialist vision in Europe--as you yourself so graciously described Pelasgia--it is our duty to maintain contact between the two spheres, and to facilitate it as need be for the benefit of our socialist brethren."

"Therefore, I have a recommendation for you: that we establish parallel institutions under the auspices of the Socialist International for those countries wishing to abstain from the bourgeois world order completely; while, at the same time, allowing those who are not prepared to do so to continue to participate in both. Surely, such an approach will maintain unity among the brotherhood of socialist nations worldwide, since it would each state to pursue its preferred approach--the one common denominator of all such approaches being participation the socialist events, regardless of whether the state in question chooses to participate in their respective bourgeois equivalents as well."

"John, you mentioned the Jaracanda Cup. Certainly, we could make our own. But, this being Pelasgia, the land of so many ancient games, I say: why not aim bigger? Why not make the Socialist International Games, involving athletes from every socialist nation in every major sport? Surely that is an event the capitalists cannot hope to match, since they lack such a unified event of their own--and it is therefore the best opportunity for us to advertise the superiority of the socialist system. What do you think?"​

 

[Thaumantica]

Lanpherson nodded because few individuals nor groups or nations were willing to shed capitalist corruption fully. If Anaxandros and the Pelasgians believe that it was better to take on strengths from the wicked it would be the next generation's burden to cast them off, the same as the Niomonnach did and do through generations.

"We can do these games, yes, and they can involve the wide world . . " John said with a certain shoulder and neck adjustment, "But we won't have the Post-Delegationists present where Niomonnach stand among united nations of people. If any should choose to participate they must apply to a United Peoples State beyond the anarchy their PD homelands afford them."

"On this we will not budge," John declared, "a monarchy such as Tarusa or a republic such as Tianlong can be held to expectations and standards."

"But the Post-Delegationist presence is a riddle concealing a joke at which its people pay the expense. There can be no place among states where an anti-state lurks."

 

[Pelasgia]

Anaxandros was positively surprised by his counterpart's positiveness. "I was only suggesting games for the Socialist Nations, but, you're quite right, I think, in being open to making them open to all states--the socialist community might be too small for that. We can have Socialist Games as part of the International, and global games hosted by us for everyone. Both, in the end, will serve our goal in different ways: one by fostering solidarity between socialist nations, and another by demonstrating the superiority of our system for all to see."

He paused and reflected on the issue of the Post-Delegationists; Anaxandros had not much gripe with them, as Pelasgia had barely ever had to deal with their likes, but the state of relations between Nieveland and the Post-Delegationist world was notorious Europe-round. "Of course, that is a most reasonable demand on your part--and one that we can phrase carefully. Membership in international games should be open to the delegations of states alone. We in Pelasgia are careful about such things, for Zionist radicals try to register teams in games and other international events often, to use them as mediums to promote the carving up of our territory. Anyway, since Post-Delegationist countries, if one can call them that, affirm that they are not states but 'communities' or whatever else, that should not be an issue."​