Bridges-Reiserová meeting in Prague
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"Ah, what a shame, you are missing out on the weather." sarcastically remarked Karel Šín, the Minister of Culture, in a phone call with the President for Life. The weather in Prague has been anything but pleasant at the moment as very heavy rain was falling and Šín was walking around the airport area without an umbrella while on the phone. But he much preffered having talking to Reisrová over a phone than in person as he preferred the distance between them. "I understand. Yeah I'll tell them. Bye." he hanged up the phone and walked back to the rest of the ministers present at the airport waiting for the arrival of the Prime Minister of Reitzmag Simon Bridges.
"Sweet Mary, Karel look at you, you are all wet! You could really catch a cold!" Zuzana Saková, the Minister of Health, expressed her worries upon spotting him returning. She was standing next to the Minister of Regional Development, Lubomír Mejzlík, who kept held an umbrella above both of their heads keeping them dry. Neither one of those ministers needed to be present, but Antonín Smetana, the Speaker of the National Assembly was again ill and couldn't attend the meeting and Saková wanted to prove her readiness to replace him as the Speaker. Mejzlík was present as one of the closest allies to Saková, and since he was the one who officially proposed effectively removing Smetana from his post, eyes of those wishing to become the Speaker were directed at him. As for Šín, he was simply close to the President enough for her to send him with the other ministers as part of the welcoming delegation.
"Come on, I am an warlock, there is nothing a little rain could do to me!" dismissed Saková's worries Šín. "Well, Comrade Reiserová will not arrive to the airport, so we are just, you know, supposed to accompany Mr. Bridges to the Prague's Castle and she'll meet him there. She has some important duties to attend to now."
The Minister of Finance and the first Deputy Speaker Heřman Švestka just nodded his head "Alright." Švestka was mostly a silent man fulfilling the duties before him, for that and his avoidance of conflict he has been a long time high ranking member of the Party. Now however he also felt the opportunity to be named the Speaker after Smetana. He stood next to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Jasmína Dlouhá, holding an umbrella over her head.
Šín has returned to the former Premier Commissioner Sofie Čikarová and took an umbrella from her to hold it above them. He previously left her with the umbrella in order to talk with the President in private. "Here, have a sip of my tea, it will warm you up, it's with lemon and honey." Čikarová took pity on the Minister of Culture and handed him her drink. He thanked her and without a second thought finished the entire drink handing her back an empty cup, on which she looked sadly with her dark eyes. Since she was out of tea she decided to at least light up her cigarette. Like Saková, Čikarová saw her next office as the Speaker of the National Assembly and joined the delegation for this reason.
"Refreshing!" Šín said after finishing Čikarová's tea, "You know the weather isn't all that bad. Yesterday it was much worse and I had to spend the afternoon in mud on a farm with comrade Dohnal, and that was truly bad. But I must tell you, it was pretty interesting and made me want to learn more. I spent the whole night searching up huge melons." Šín smiled widely after finishing his joke, however the silence make him feel doubts about the joke, until Mejzlík simply responded "Me too." followed by a chuckle from Švestka, who up to this point had the expression of a person biting on a sour lemon on his face. Šín's eyes lit up, "Winning, see these guys understand! You know, I thought about including that joke in a sitcom I am writing and..."
"Well, why don't you try to tell this joke to comrade President, comrade Šín?" Dlouhá interrupted him and closed his mouth, as he realized that a script with such a joke would not pass past Reiserová. Regardless the Reitzmic airplane landed soon after and the Czech delegation welcomed the Reitzmic Prime Minister.
"Your excellency I am honored to welcome you in the Democratic Republic of Czech Slavia, regrettably President for Life Reiserová can't be here with us as she has to attend to duties of upmost importance, but she will meet with you soon. If you'd please follow me." Švestka welcomed the guest and led him to a limoussine that took them to Prague's Castle.
"The President will be here any minute, please sit down." instructed Švestka in the office room of the President. He also slid a plate with "moravské koláče" and a pen and paper that simply stated that the Prime Minister of Reitzmag officially apologizes to the President for Life of Czech Slavia for the ultimatum which was issued to Czech Slavia on March 13t 2020, and which demanded Czech Slavia to make concessions to Reitzmag "Please feel free to help yourself to both in the meantime." he said smiling before leaving the room.
After about three minutes of Bridges sitting in the office alone in silence, facing a photo of Reiserová visiting a hospital, the door finally opened again and Reiserová stepped inside her office. "Your excellency, sorry to keep you waiting but, you know, there was a really pressing issue that needed to be addressed. For the good of the nation, I'm sure you understand." she was smiling happily and extended her hand to Bridges. Her hand was very visibly just washed as Reiserová was addressing the pressing issue of enjoying a warm shower after her morning exercise, which prevented her from being present at the airport during the storm. However since Reiserová was elected President, things that were good for her mental and physical health were elevated to the position of being good for the state as a whole.
"Please, call me Albína! I actually have a little present for you. Now I know that your state really wanted to get the nuclear weapons licence, applying for it twice and being denied both times. But the Democratic Republic was granted the licence, and so, you know, since we can get the nuclear weapons and you can't we decided to show our solidarity and share what we can!" she said and gave a painting to Bridges.
Painting Albína Reiserová gave to Simon Bridges"Your very first nuclear warhead!" she exclaimed with a little smirk. "As you can see the painting is pretty minimalist, but that is precisely the intention. It is supposed to be a participatory art so you can Asianize it if you'd like!"
"Now before I sit down, is there something I can get you for a drink? And please tell me about what is new in your country. Have you heard the statements from the President of Spain and the reaction from the General Secretary of Yosai, Internal Affair Commissioner and from Ineland? Pretty wild right? What is your opinion on that whole thing?" Reiserová looked over Simon's shoulder to see if he has signed the official apology to her, before disappearing into the kitchen to bring drinks for herself and her guest.
-
Simon felt quite anxious at how the meeting would go, regardless he had no choice for it had already been arranged. Normally, he went through all the protocols in place and continued wondering about the meeting as the plane cruises in the air with its escorts and decoys. While inside, he had some tea with his fellow ministers while discussing about the agenda for the meeting. One by one, headache after headache, he went through the papers he handles in his day to day life as the head of government of a federation. And then came the time to arrive. As he arrived, he is welcomed by Svestka.
SB: "The pleasure is mine, I'm happy to have a visit to this country again."
He introduced his entourage as the group proceeds to the Prague Castle where he sits down waiting. Time was important to him, but so is patience as he learned during his agent career. He kept himself busy with a game of "Flappy Gorg" while waiting, breaking his high score with 69. After which, he stands as Reiserova enters the room and shook hands with her.
SB: "Oh it's fine, and please call me Simon as I don't want to be too formal to a fellow leader. Our nation doesn't have any interest in nuclear weapons, and our applications that were decided by Parliament are rare for there are specific provisions prescribed by Constitutional law."
He received the painting he found cute, and placed it somewhere beside. Requesting only water to again avoid the Kligenberg effect whenever he drinks with leaders who love fun, he went on to sit down.
SB: "Mainly, we've been working on projects with many nations and focusing more on our foreign policy with all the recent events unfolding. I'm well aware of the still ongoing situation between the Spanish and our Yosainese brothers, and indeed it's very concerning. I'm not particularly one sided in the issue, as I want both states having a fair share of territorial waters in the strategic trade route. My interests are primarily the protection of our economic supply lines, and of course the security of our nation and its allies as a secondary point of concern. And with Spain having acquired nuclear weapons, it is concerning what else they could do."
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Albína Reiserová was a bit disappointed to not see Bridges' signature on the apology. She thought that perhaps Bridges was waiting for her to sign the paper before her eyes, but regardless, she thought it would be best to bring it up later. In fact after hearing Bridges say that despite the Kingdom Reitzmag applying twice for the nuclear weapons licence Reitzmag doesn't seek to obtain these weapons she lost all words and just nodded while smiling.
"Water? Are you sure you don't want something hot to warm you up after experiencing the storm outside Simon? Well alright, water coming right up!" she said from the kitchen before emerging with glasses filled with water and putting them in front of Bridges' and her own seat before sitting down. "The one on your left is just normal water, but the one on your right is a mineral water from remnants of a sea! It's salty, but it's so good for your respiratory system, stomach and liver!"
"I completely agree with you, respecting territorial integrity is also very important for us. I quite liked what at the time Internal Affairs Commissioner Biden said about the issue, I just hope he will fulfill everything he has promised in his campaign for this term, you know, otherwise that would be quite disappointing to those who voted for him... do you know Mr. Biden personally? But anyways, I wouldn't be worried about a nuclear war, you know, I've met with President Aguilar and he appeared very reasonable. And he also appears to know how to dress, but I am sure you noticed that too... I mean I heard from Archbishop Kligenberg that you yourself are quite interested in fashion." she smiled.
"Alright, I'll be brief, the Democratic Republic seeks mainly investments, so getting your governments to encourage Reitzmic companies establishing themselves in Czech Slavia is our priority. But tell me, you know, what does Reitzmag see as its priority in the relations between our states?" the President once again urged foreign representative for investments. Since the trials with Kovářová, Zbouralová and Plachta increasing investments from abroad has been the priority of the Democratic Republic in negotiations with all economically powerful states.
After finishing her very brief speech, she stood up to go look out of the window and saw that the weather isn't getting any better, she sighted. "Unfortunately it looks like we won't be able to tour the city, but you mentioned that you visited the country before? On what occasion was that?" she turned away from the window and walked back to the table, but she didn't sit down. "You know what? We could play a board game. Do you have any favorite? I can go get one from my sons' rooms!"
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Simon took the normal water with respect and had a sip.
SB: "Indeed, we try to ensure that our nation and our allies have their sovereignty and territories respected. Commissioner Biden was of course right in his words, except of course his continued mention of me and my government even though we did no wrong. And of course, it is obvious we do not know each other personally but I certainly did meet him when I was still starting as an MP. Our country primarily isn't concerned with nuclear weapons stockpiles constantly growing around the region, it is only when our interests and sovereignty are violated and disrespected that we take action. I'm surprised that Jesus went here not far from when you got your nuclear stockpile. "
He took another sip, eventually drinking all the water from the glass before then listening to the Czech President's words.
SB: "As Prime Minister, the foreign policy I established is mainly to open more trade relations and give more economic opportunities from our country. A lot of companies indeed showed interest in investing in Czech Slavia when they knew I was coming here, they were asking if I could include in my agenda their requests for guarantees before they start investing here. Other than that of course, some of the key things we bring up during summits are visa policy, academic and cultural exchange, scientific partnerships, and most of the time defense although I imagine Czech Slavia already has enough allies to secure itself and adding us might simply be a burden in both funding and logistics for both our nations."
He sighed, while then going through some documents he brought. When Reiserova mentioned about his visits to Czech Slavia, memories flashed to his mind. He tried to focus more on the vacation trips with his family, but the memory of near death during a mission to take out a Reitzmo-Czech Slavian Mafia Leader still can't be removed from his mind.
SB: "I had multiple visits here, usually with my family on vacations. At times I come across this place and wonder what it's like inside, since that was still the infancy of the internet. Sometimes, I came here for a field work."
He uttered his response in a way that his true intents in visiting the country back then was not obvious. When Reiserova looked, he smiled quite awkwardly.
SB: "Many people in our country consider chess as the true national sport over taekwondo, although I did train for both except I'm not as good on the other one. If you are interested then, I could give my skills a try again."
Simon waited patiently and continued through his documents. When Reiserova was gone, he looked around as if he sensed something wrong. A danger may or may not be there, but it's like that his instincts were kicking in again because of the memories that kept coming back.
-
"Alright, wait for just a moment please!" she said before leaving Simon Bridges alone again in her office, while she went to look for chess in a room of one of her sons. After about ten minutes she finally returned to her guest. "Sorry that I've kept you waiting!" she apologized before starting to prepare the game. "So you said you came here to work some years back? That sounds interesting, what kind of business did you have to do here?" Reiserová asked as the game began.
The actual game was shorter than the time Bridges spent waiting for it to begin. With few moves the Reitzmic Prime Minister was able to get a checkmate before Reiserová could even get the conversation about his previous work in Czech Slavia started. "Huh.... well that was quick... you didn't have to go all out like that." commented the President for Life on her defeat still keeping her eyes on the chessboard .
"Now where were we." said Reiserová after the pieces and the chessboard were put back into the box, her tone of voice still being upset, although she attempted to hide it. "Ah the investments... well I am very glad to hear that Reitzmic companies are eager to strat a major expansion into Czech Slavia. But what kind of guarantees are we talking about? You know, we don't really give preferential treatment to any companies... well unless, you know they come from a country we have a friendship agreement with. We are all for scientific partnership and academic and cultural exchange, you know I'd love to see our painting style with Reitzmic characteristics!" she exclaimed the last part happily, "Regarding the vise policy, can you elaborate a bit? What visa policy are you proposing? You know I'd probably need to discuss that with my Ministers." Reiserová turned her eyes to her own documents, she knew that within her Government and the leadership of the Socialist Republican Party there was a opposition to making paths to richer countries easier as it could encourage emigration from the Democratic Republic of Czech Slavia and thus any potential offer by Bridges would likely be refused. But at the same time she didn't want to state this upright.
"You know it's funny that I mentioned Aguilar before and now you mention a defense pact! You truly came at the right moment Simon, maybe you could help me. You know, as you said, these are dangerous times so it is important to keep our states secure and I feel like the Spanish President has a great deal of respect for the Democratic Republic and our system. He recognized our legitimate concerns and showed eagerness to cooperate." She lifted her eyes to look into her counterpart eyes before getting up and walking towards a window. "And so, you know, since it is my responsibility to guarantee the safety of the nation, I am really considering asking the Spanish President for establishing Spanish military base in the Democratic Republic and, you know, I think he would agree with such a proposition. Or, you know, perhaps the Inimicans would be interested in establishing a military base here. Have you had met Emperor Artabanos before by the way? I met with him recently and he left a really positive impression on me... I mean except for the moments when he was talking about something gross.. which honestly wasn't that rare..."
The President for Life turned away from the window and started walking towards the Reitzmic Prime Minister. "So what do you think about proposing this to the Spanish? You know, between you and me, I wouldn't need to ask them if the current administrations of certain states apologized for the steps of the previous administrations, which increased tensions with the Democratic Republic and worked on developing friendly relations with us. But sadly we received no apology, so I suppose there is no other solution to the uncertainty than to allow Spanish or Inimican military presence in Czech Slavia." she shrugged her shoulders and smiled at Bridges, standing next to him. "Water?" she asked suggesting refiling Bridges' glass while she also moved the letter of apology for the ultimatum with her hand closer to the Reitzmic Prime Minister.
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Hearing the question, Simon felt quite tense as his memory of the past keeps coming back. He tried to hide it, fabricating a story while trying to not act weirdly. He took a deep breath, and then began.
SB: "Well, my father runs a business and was looking for other countries where he could retire. He sent me here at times to look at some places where he could stay when he gets old, although it was my brother that eventually inherited the business while I inherited his estates in Reitzmag."
On the game, he as much as possible tried to not play too good. But of course, his skills keep kicking in and it's hard to adjust to a lower play level. He tried to control himself, but Reiserova kept doing blunders. Eventually, a bishop and queen smothering checkmate was reached and Simon won.
SB: "It's fine Ms. Reiserova, just a little more practice and you're already the same level as me. My father taught me the game and hired a private tutor when I was young as he believed chess is the best game to train for life, something I eventually learned was true."
He got back to his place and continued through the documents.
SB: "A variety of companies did come, most are big ones that come from the largest groups in the country. Primarily they're all about technology, entertainment, and finance. And since they're a variety of companies, they also requested various safeguards. Although a common one is about public order and safety when they operate, they pretty much want to keep violence away from their premises. On visa policy, my foreign minister proposed to allow a limited visa-free travel for up to 30 days with a certain interval between visits. I think, this would allow to open Czech Slavian tourism more to our citizens."
He handed the white paper containing the details the Foreign Ministry proposed for the new visa policy. And then, he heard Jesus Aguilar's name again. This time, with the phrase 'defense pact'. This was something he's not comfortable discussing.
SB: "Ah, the Spanish and the Inimicians. Those two very troublesome states, sorry if I have to be honest and straight. You know Ms. Reiserova, I am in no position to tell you or your country what to do. But I have only one advice, sometimes it's better to simply stay away especially to the bullies hiding within your circle of friends. I've learned this the hard way throughout my life, and have experienced a lot of backstabbing and betrayal. I didn't know that there were people within my inner circle, the closest of my friends that were hiding the real demon within them."
Simon takes a sigh, as he remembers how one of his closest friends was the one that almost killed him during a mission in the United Duchies. He was saved if not for his late best friend Jasper, but was badly injured by 3 gunshots luckily hitting no vital organ.
SB: "And if you don't understand what I mean, there are simply those that pretend to be kind but are in fact destroying the peaceful world for their own interests."
He stands up and looks at the window, trying to hide his displeasure and disappointment at the Czech Slavians befriending the two states that were openly aggressive, oppressive, and colonialist. Indeed, he can't do anything out of respect for the sovereignty of other countries but it was something sensitive that hit him really hard. At first, no one believed that the Spanish and Inimicians were threats to the peace and stability of the region as they continually polarized it. But with the situation at the straits, the reality was revealed and nations started to understand the truth.
SB: "I can't recall ever meeting Emperor Artabanos, but I've heard a lot about him. I'm glad you've made some new friends, but remember to be careful. I'm sure you know that I'm a former spy and agent of the MI6 and MI5, and I hope you mind that what I'm telling you are things I learned during my service period."
Simon nodded as Reiserova offered water, and then took a glance at the paper while she was gone. There he knew what Reiserova was trying to imply, and that the bases were threats. When the Czech President came back, he went on to continue going through some documents in his large binder pretending he didn't see the paper.
-
Reiserová yet again left for the kitchen to refill Bridges' glass. And to make a coffee for herself. WHile she waited for her coffee she decided to shorten her waiting by checking her phone just to find out that a group chat between herself, Archbishop Kligenberg, Emperor Artabanos and Head of State Rikkalek has been created some days ago by the Inquistan Head of State. The President for Life nodded in agreement after reading the quote that Kligenberg started the group conversation with. She then wrote a very short message before taking her cup of coffee and Bridges' refilled glass of water and returning to him.
The President for Life placed the glass before the Reitzmic Prime Minister and looked at the apology. To her disappointment Bridges' signature was still absent, instead the Reitzmic politician focused on his own documents. She remained behind him and sighted. "Simon, you know, it's one thing to disrespect me, but it's another thing to disrespect our nation. So could you look on the table right in front of you, please?" after saying this she walked back to her seat and took a sip of the coffee before smiling at Simon "I heard you would like to become a father, which is great! So allow me to give you an advice," she leaned back into her chair, "when your child does something bad, it's essential that you teach him or her to apologize for his or her words or actions, a sign of maturity, you know. Now I expect this level of maturity from any Head of Government. You know, apart from Reitzmic apology being appropriate, it is also instrumental to reaching any sort of agreement and ensuring good relations between the Kingdom and the Democratic Republic.... may I also remind you that the Democratic Republic never joined any sanctions against the Kingdom of Reitzmag."
She took her eyes off her guest, took her cup into her hands and looked in the direction of the windows. "The Reitzmic companies want safety in the places there operate in? Well I ensure you that they will find safety wherever they choose to operate in the country, we don't have problems with stability ,you know? And I will make sure to discuss the visa policy you propose at the next government meeting.." she took another sip, still looking in the direction of her windows.
-
Simon was shocked at how Reiserova acted, although of course he knew how to turn the situation to something advantageous for him.
SB: "Ms. Reiserova, I hope you know that shouting is not in my dictionary of things to do in a conversation and that you too do the same. Anyway, sure I will sign this paper. But, I want you to know that me signing this just after what you did simply means that such an apology is not sincere but rather forced. It would've been, of course, better if you sent a formal request to my office or at least sent me a message through Kakaotalk or whatever we use in common simply reminding me of this so I could've done so with great sincerity. As such, this may be an apology on paper, yet it's worthless for it has no soul."
He took the fountain pen he was looking for in his bag, one which he always uses to sign documents during summits. For some reason, seems like his dog sneaked into his office and ravaged the bag causing the pen to be misplaced from its rightful place. As he signed, he continued talking.
SB: "And of course, even though you did force me. You may consider this sincere. I have had multiple experiences of people shouting or making me do things regardless whether it's against or compliant to my will."
As he signed, he wrote:
With sincere love, Simon BridgesHe handed the document back to Reiserova and smiled.
SB: "I hope you like the little simley face over there, the Conservatives don't do that so be grateful a Labour party member is the Prime Minister." -
"Well what can I say, you sure got me there Simon." the President for Life shrugged her shoulders and smiled at Bridges's comments about being forced to sign the apology and thus the apology lacking a soul. "We'll just try to endure it."
She took the document from the Reitzmic Prime Minister as he handed it to her and nodded about his remark about a smily face. "Being grateful is so important for, you know, pretty much everything in life, all the nice moments, all the hardships and challenges, for your family and friends. That is something I try to live by and a message that I try to get out there." she looked back at her guest "Tell me, what are you grateful for today?... You know, since you did what is right and we now don't have to live in uncertainty anymore, perhaps the fact that I will not allow any foreign military base to be established in the territory of the Democratic Republic will give you another reason to be happy for today. Oh, and I am sincere." she put her left hand on her chest.
"Now then, I am ready to sign an agreement on the cultural, academic and scientific partnership... and perhaps we could get an agreement on the Democratic Republic increasing its supply of iron into the Kingdom,... perhaps, you know, in exchange of your government encouraging Reitzmic private companies to invest into the development of mining technologies?"
She took a sip of her coffee and wished she could have been on a comfortable sofa on which she could also put her legs, instead of the less comfortable office chair. "So, have you given any thought to the name of your planned baby? Oh and since we are on the subject of names... I told you you can call me by my first name, you don't have to refer to me as Ms. Reiserová, Mr. Bridges." she smiled at the Prime Minister.
