Summit in Trier

[Rheinbund]

Trier had two airports: One near the city centre and one outside the city. The one near the city centre was only allowed to handle propeller aircraft because of the noise. The one outside the city had been opened a couple of years ago. It was currently the international airport of Trier. At this airport, the Chancellor was waiting for the planes from Belmont and TIburtina, bringing the delegations who would negotiate a trade deal with Eiffelland.

 

[Serenierre]

Premier Shahrazad Martinique arrived in Trier to meet her counterpart - the Eiffellander Chancellor. The agenda was an economic agreement and it was her intention to secure it with generous terms for Belmont. The Eiffellander economy was famed for its strength and their work ethic was also one of the region's most robust. It had been planned to introduce a proposal to the Eiffellander government to allow Belmontien students of business to complete their studies in the southern kingdom to observe the methods of this nation. If these talks went well, it would be the first foreign policy victory in Premier Martinique's new tenure.

As she arrived in front of the Chancellor at the airport, she shook his hand and nodded politely as the introductions were done. Through the use of an official translator, she spoke in delicate French to her counterpart and was then introduced to the other members of the Chancellor's delegation. Following a brief ceremony, where an honor guard was inspected by her and the national anthems of Belmont and Eiffelland were played, the Belmontien delegation was ushered to the embassy to prepare for the summit which would commence later that day.

 

[Quènie]

Trier, Kingdom of Eiffelland.

The Tiburan representant was the Prime Minister Eriberto Coppolino.
Eriberto is plump and pleasant. He is amiable, open handed and eager to please. He is well loved by people in Tiburtina. In his midlife his stoutness caused him numerous health problems: he suffers from gout, aching joints, back pain, and respiratory issues.

He arrived at the international airport of Trier and went to meet the Chancellor von Seydewitz and Premier Martinique.

 

[Rheinbund]

Chancellor Von Seydewitz was fluent in several languages, among others French and Italian. He heartily greeted Premier Martinique and Prime Minister Coppolino in their respective mother tongues. While the respective delegations prepared the summit for later that day, Von Seydewitz had a nice programme for the Belmontien and Tiburtine Heads of Government. First they went to the Pergamonmuseum, in which a complete ancient Northern-Hymiarian city had been rebuilt, after it had been found by an archaeologist about 70 years ago. Then they enjoyed a lunch at Schloss Köpenick, where the summit would take place later that day.

 

[Quènie]

Trier, Kingdom of Eiffelland.

The Tiburan Prime Minister greeted the Eiffellander Chancellor with a warm smile and a fluent greeting in German.

"It is very good to meet you Mr. Von Seydewitz! We appreciate your invitation and I'm interested in discussing the future of our economic status in this your lands! "

He greeted the Belmontien Premier. Certainly, Mr. Coppolino had read some news statements... For now, Tiburtina would listen about the two nations, before loading any own words...

 

[Rheinbund]

Von Seydewitz was positively surprised to see that Premier Martinique had already done some prework. She had already created a list of six proposals:

1) Easing restrictions on movement of trade between Belmont, Tiburtina and Eiffelland.
2) Creation of an Economic Forum (to allow businessmen to meet).
3) Flexible visa scheme for businessmen.
4) Legislation to allow easier access to our national markets.
5) Commitment to keep economic interactions separated from politics.
6) Granting each other a "Favoured Trade Partner" status.

"I agree on these points, but I have to make a remark regarding point 5. The economy flourishes best when the political circumstances are stable. This also means that a government has to refrain from actions that could be explained in the wrong way as much as possible. As an example, strictly speaking, the way your secret service took Mr. Plantard out of Twente is a violation of Twente’s sovereignty. Such a bold action can be justified, but only when the crimes committed by the man are severe enough, and only after all diplomac means have been exhausted. And there we have one of the problems we have with your recent action in Twente: Not all diplomatic means in this dispute have been taken. Of course, I cannot tell you what the government of Belmont can do and what not, but you have to be careful with the reputation of your country. Now several governments in Gallogermania and beyond are drawing their conclusions about your respect for the sovereignty of other countries. You will have to make a public statement about this, instead of ignoring it.”

Von Syedewitz took a sip of hist water. Then he continued.

“I also want to make known that Bourgogne is an old friend of Eiffelland. Should we be forced to a choice between Belmont and Bourgogne, we will choose for Bourgogne.”

 

[Quènie]

Trier, Kingdom of Eiffelland.

Coppolino read the papers.

"There is no doubt ... Political circumstances ARE stable!" Coppolino nodded in agreement "And Tibur always considered Bourgogne and great and old friend of the Tiburan Throne!"

At the End of the List, Prime Minister Coppolino read an note:

Eiffelland: Belmont would be seeking investment from your automobile companies in its own industry.
Tiburtina: Belmont would like to seek out an agriculture trade deal with you, we love our Mediterranean foods like fish/olives/tomatoes etc.

"Oh, an agriculture trade deal!? That could be good... But I have with me some representatives of some young Tiburan companies who would love to have a partnership with your companies!

 

[Rheinbund]

"I think we can have very interesting talks with the representatives of those young Tiburan companies," Von Seydewitz said. "Regarding agriculture, our company Magirus-Deutz makes very interesting agricultural machines. Furthermore, there are several agricultural products that Eiffelland has to import, such as wheat, meat, eggs and milk. And of course, we are also very much interested in agricultural products from Tiburtina."

Then he took a sip of his water.

"We are also very much interested in iron ore, steel, tin, copper and oil. We found a deposit of bauxite last year, but it appears more difficult to exploit than we thought, so we also need bauxite."

 

[Serenierre]

"First, let me clarify, the issue with Mr. Plantard was at an impasse... the Twentish Government had blockaded all avenues of resolving the issue by dialogue, and this is true, we were in fact at the end of our tether as far as options are concerned. I am mindful that such actions are not to be taken lightly but this circumstance was different... and I' sure you'll understand. But let me categorically state, Belmont is a responsible member of the international community fully aware of international law and we take the sovereignty of international states seriously. This is clear and we have stated so. Following the operation, we released a legal brief which provided the legal rationale for our action and it has been made available to whomever seeks to read it."

And on the issue of Bourgogne, it really is a trivial tiff, the media gave it far too much attention... it would not be beneficial to us either to have tensions on that border... we are linked economically with Bourgogne, perhaps in ways greater than either of your countries, due to our common border, the scope of interaction is greater. So no one needs to worry about taking sides..." she paused, "Although seeing the definitive stance both of you gentlemen take, I can't help but wonder why is it that it is Belmont here rather than Bourgogne if Belmont is simply an obstacle in the equation of three friends?" She let the comment hang for a second and before anyone could say anything, turned her attention to the Tiburtan politician.

To Coppolino, Shahrazad Martinique turned her head and spoke, "And of course, our interaction need not be limited to simply agricultural issues... we share a large land border and our trade ties are closer than we may think... so I am particularly interested in dialogue with you to see where we can expand our options."

To Von Seydwitz: "Yes, we have heard of your discoveries," [smiles ever so slightly] "And my mining sector companies are quite eager to get involved, perhaps a bilateral effort to secure these deposits... obviously we will not make any claims over the resources but a contractual relationship guaranteeing a mutually beneficial financial arrangement would be what we seek."

 

[Rheinbund]

"Regarding Bourgogne, I think that there is room to change the three musketeers into four musketeers, Prime Minister," Von Seydewitz said. "I must say that I apparently did not know everything about the Plantard-question. Please accept my apologies for that. Regarding Bourgogne, with all due respect, there were quite some nasty words going from one country to the other and vice versa. I believe you if you say that it was just a minor issue stirred up to large proportions by the press, but we on the other side of the screen only see the result of the press stirring things up. And again with all due respect, if a government sees that the press is stirring up a minor issue to large proportions, then that government has to take immediate action to calm the press down. Not by means of censoring, but by means of giving the correct information and making clear that everything is blown out of proportions. As an example, a large part of my spokesman's job is correcting Bild Zeitung when it once again blows a minor issue up to astronomic dimensions or tells blatant lies once again."

He took a sip of his water. Then he continued.

"If you could help us with exploiting that bauxite deposit, we would indeed be very grateful."

 

[Serenierre]

Clearing her throat, Shahrazad spoke in response to her Eiffellander counterpart, "What the press chooses to report is entirely its own business... as Governments, it is imperative that we cooperate in such a manner, using our diplomatic missions, to be aware of the reality. And yes, the role of the governmental spokesmen is clear... and they do in fact do their job... but we cannot make the journalists play up those statements when it is certain that a more sensationalist angle will result in more sales for the news barons. "

"But I do admit, it would be wrong to say it is a trivial issue between Bourgogne and ourselves... yet I reiterate... not as bad as the media makes it to be..." she took off her spectacles and looked straight at the Eiffellander Chancellor, her cold grey eyes meeting his, "You mention that this could very well be a quadrilateral meeting... and yet it is not... I personally, through my interactions with the Burgundian Prime Minister have observed that the appetite is not present in that country to engage in dialogue along the lines we have conducted today... I have gotten the impression that their government is more protectionist in its outlook than any one of us. I tried to engage with them through a common Francophone bloc but the reaction was rather tepid," she shifted in her seat and folded her arms, her tone relaxed and very matter of fact, "So, Mr. Chancellor I leave it to you to bring the Burgundians into the 20th century. Perhaps you will have greater luck." She smiled.

"But going back to the issue of inter-governmental contact, I want to state that this issue with the Plantard affair is a case which shows the failure of existing channels of communication... thus I would recommend, seeing that we all seek to become major trade partners for each other, a serious rehaul of our systems is essential. What do you say?" she asked the two gentlemen.

 

[Quènie]

Trier, Kingdom of Eiffelland

Coppolino was surprised.


"Lady Martinique, I would like to emphasize how distant and how close our nations are... and we need to be close economically," Coppolino said, "If we find solutions..." Eriberto Coppolino suggested with his green, trusting eyes.

"What tariffs currently exist should be examined and altered to promote an agreement of trade!" he said with a great smile.

"But we are generally receptive to alternative proposals to the course of our international economic dialogue."

 

[Rheinbund]

OOC: I read posts 10 and 11. This is on my radar. I will answer tomorrow or Thursday.

 

[Rheinbund]

Chancellor Von Seydewitz was a bit overwhelmed by the way the Premier Martinique reacted. He didn’t have a problem with the idea of a woman at the top. Women were already doing paid jobs, and not only the classical ones for women like nurse, secretary, librarian or teacher, but also jobs like doctor, lawyer, judge or scientist. Also in Eiffelland. Then why not a woman at the top? But on the other hand, did a woman really have to show so much toughness like Mrs. Martinique did to get at the top? Or was Von Seydewitz a bit too hard in his phrasings, and did Mrs. Martinique react so toughly because of that?

In any case, he realised that Mrs. Martinique was the first woman at the most powerful position of a country ever who really had to prove herself. Indeed, some occasional Queens preceded her, but they didn’t count in this, because they got their powerful positions thrown into their laps. He decided to give her the benefit of the doub.

“Well, Mrs. Martinique, I will discuss the matters with the government of Bourgogne,” he said. “Regarding the Plantard-affair, I have to say that the channels of communication already exist: Our embassies. It seems that we have to use those embassies more efficiently, but I propose to discuss that later, so that we have the opportunity to think about it. Let’s focus back on the reason why we are here. I go back to your points issued earlier today.”

1) Easing restrictions on movement of trade between Belmont, Tiburtina and Eiffelland.
2) Creation of an Economic Forum (to allow businessmen to meet).
3) Flexible visa scheme for businessmen.
4) Legislation to allow easier access to our national markets.
5) Commitment to keep economic interactions separated from politics.
6) Granting each other a "Favoured Trade Partner" status.

“Like we already concluded, for point 5, we will have to improve our communication lines. I think that we can easily agree on the other points.”

 

[Serenierre]

She smiled. "Yes, Mr. Chancellor, five points out of six are also good. On all the points, save issue number 5, let this be known that my government is ready to commit wholeheartedly on this trilateral effort. Our nations are the premier economic engines of Gallo-Germania and moving forward like this is the most logical and rational path for us to undertake. From me," she pointed to herself, "Herr. Chancellor, consider Villesen's seal of approval upon the Trier Concord."

 

[Rheinbund]

"Thank you, Premier Martinique," Von Seydewitz said. "And also thank you for suggesting a name to our agreement: The Trier Concord. Prime-Minister Coppolino, what is your opinion? I think we have enough basis for a fruitful cooperation between our three countries. Do you agree with that, and can we close a deal?"

 

[Quènie]

Trier, Kingdom of Eiffelland

After quietly conferring, Prime Minister Coppolino said:

"Yes, We have enough basis! The Trier Concord will greatly increase the trade amongst our nations and, according to statistics, will be beneficial for each of our economies!"

He took a sip of his water and continued

"Tibur approves the The Trier Concord!"

 

[Rheinbund]

"Thank you, Prime Minister Coppolino. Then herewith the Trier Concord has been established," Von Seydewitz said.