Bridging the Mile-Wide Gap | Istkalen - Inimicus
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"You are indeed correct regarding possible sites for the base," said Isteresskemar. "However, I must unfortunately turn down your offers for training and supplying; the Ministry of Defense in Istkalen believes that training should be a completely domestic affair, and is attempting to pursue self-sufficiency in terms of supply, which in my opinion will go nowhere, but regardless it is what it is. One last thing - we would like to ensure that, in the unlikely case of war, that Inimican armed forces do not conduct offenses without the permission of our government."
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"I see", said Sarah, and took a sip of drink. "Well, the offer of supplying and training remains open, should you wish to take advantage of it. As for this final condition, we would of course be happy to agree with this -- we do not expect or anticipate any offensive operations to be conducted by our military in the near or distant future, but as the recent situation in North Diessen showed, you simply never know. In any case, this is something we would happily agree to.
"I do wonder, Minister -- and please do not take this the wrong way -- what is the benefit to Istkalen of an Inimician military presence in your nation? Currently, we have discussed an exchange of minerals, bauxite against cobalt, but what does your side have to gain from our 15,000 personnel stationed in your nation?"
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"What benefit we have is as follows. The base controls the expansion of Reitzmic influence, we feel. Above all, it is that limitation, that control, which the government of Istkalen pursues; we do not want to be subsumed, and we will compromise with them only when our national security is genuinely threatened."
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"Ah, well, I mean, you'll always find Inimicus on your side in curbing Reitzmic influence. Very good. Unless you have any other proposals to make, Irenet, I think we are mostly done here for this initial meeting. I will just ask you this, and again, do not take this the wrong way: will your government be able to offer any sort of security arrangements or guarantees to our troops stationed in Istkalen? We have seen quite.... extensive civil disturbances in Istkalen over the last few years -- the last thing we would want is to send troops into your nation only to have hundreds of them perish in suicide bombings or IED attacks."
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"We will. The primary threat to any base is, and we will freely admit this, the militant population. We will relocate those living within 25 km of the base to other areas, and will establish a security perimeter around the base, staffed probably by our Republican Guard - which is not any politicized organization but rather simplye our military police, which will remain in contact with the base in question as well as the Istkalenic military in the unlikely case of an incursion. We are willing to commit to additional security measures, but we would first like to hear your comments regarding these measures."
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"Mm, yes, well, thank you for your candour", said Sarah, and a vision of Istkalen citizens assaulting Inimician soldiers briefly crossed her mind. "But we thank you for your assurances and plans for enhanced security. We would, of course, have to insist on our own checkpoint procedures, to judge who can and who cannot enter our compound -- notwithstanding that we shall not reasonably deny entry to any Istkalen official with a stated, reasonable purpose. If, in the unlikely case of a serious, armed threat from the surrounding population, our soldiers feel the need to defend themselves with force, we would also seek the assurance that there would be no reprisals from the side of the Istkalen government."
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'We will accept both demands," said Isteresskemar, "the first completely, but the second only partially. We insist that our government have authority, outside of the base proper, to determine what exactly self-defence is. While we understand Inimican concerns over armed threats, we are concerned that a vague definition of an "armed threat" could hypothetically allow - and this is of course extraordinarily unlikely - for unscrupulous people to get away with committing crimes against Istkalenic citizens."
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"Hmm, very well, I see. Naturally, we are not expecting Inimician military convoys to be assailed by militant farmers, that is not at all what I implied. Nor will Inimician soldiers go around Istkalen shooting anyone they deem even remotely a threat to their safety. We merely wanted reassurance that, should an incursion or security incident happen in the base, or around its confines, that your government will judge such situations fairly, and understand that the Imperial Government cares deeply about its military security, the safety of its personnel, and the secrecy of some of its technological assets.
"I think, Írenet, unless there are other things we must discuss, we can formalise our preliminary agreements. I am old the name of this place is Diem Military Compound, so how about the 'Diem Accords' for our new treaty?" Sarah Scribbled down some notes and handed them to aides, who rushed out the room to typeset what had been agreed thus far.
"While we wait, allow me to summarise our agreements. First, Inimicus will lift its economic and diplomatic sanctions on Istkalen. Second, there will be an exchange of natural resources, specifically of Inimician bauxite and Istkalenic cobalt. Istkalen also agrees to strive in international arrangements to maintain a supply of tungsten and rare earth minerals to Inimicus.
"Finally, the Imperial Armed Forces will establish a military base in Istkalen, at least more than 100km from your capital or the city of Kirelesile, and troop counts shall not exceed 15,000 at any time. Inimicus agrees not to launch offensive operations from this base without the prior agreement of your government. Istkalen agrees to establish a 25km-perimeter around this base, clearing habitation and military police checkpoints, and will allow the Inimician military to conduct its own additional security checks on the territory of the base and control entry and exit points.
"Does that all sound agreeable to you? Unless there are other things we should discuss at this time, then I think -- ah! Thank you", Sarah said, as the aides laid out the draft Diem Accords in front of them. "The Empire is ready to sign. Are you?"
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"We are ready to sign, yes," said Isteresskemar after reading the agreement, before then signing it.
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"Excellent!", exclaimed Sarah, elated both for the satisfactory results of this meeting and for the good news she would be able to bring the Emperor. She passed a pen to her Istkalenic counterpart, before taking out another and affixing her signature, and with it, the authority of the Imperial Prerogative, to the Diem Accords.
"Well, Írenet, as much as I would love to hang around, I suggest we meet sometime again soon in a more open, relaxed setting. Military bases are no place for quiet, proper discussion with peers -- or, should I say, with friends."
Gladwell gestured the Istkalenic delegation to the next room, where some brief time for refreshments was spent, before everyone was once again loaded into convoys, and driven back to the airport.
