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Post by Aquinas on Mar 20, 2019 2:21:58 GMT
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Post by doc on May 2, 2019 0:17:48 GMT
Socialists Return to Power Long Period of Liberal Rule ends dramatically Kaliburg, Ananto January 4, 2019
Tremendous crowds turn out to welcome Socialist Party back into power
With a stunning and unexpected turn of events in Kalistan, the Liberals have been roundly rejected by a newly reinvigorated Socialist voter base, and have been, to the person, completely thrown out of office. Voters of Kalistan have returned power to the Socialist Party, and have given it the status of hegemonic Party. National Conservatives and Deputies from the Workers' Front have held a few seats, but the reinvigorated Socialist Party has won 86.7% of all votes and 89.2% of all seats in the National Assembly. In addition, the Socialist Party's Candidate for President, Hera Bennots-Jones has become the first President of the Republic from the SP in several decades.
"We are no longer interested in divided government," said one Kaliburg citizen. "These Liberals have destroyed our economy through neglect and avarice. I for one voted against them and I join with my comrades and insist upon a return to Kalistani Socialism."
The Socialists have promised a restoration of much of what has been destroyed. A list of programs to be restored is the National Service Program, the UBI, the National Food Bank, KALNAPECO, KALNAFERCO, a focus on ODEN and a restoration of Kalistani pre-eminence in the northern Anantonese Ocean.
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Post by doc on May 2, 2019 3:36:42 GMT
Kalistan paves the way for ODEN A restoration of the Cartel will mean a recovery of Kalistan's position as Global Drug shippers Kaliburg, Ananto January 15, 2019
National Assembly to advance legislation for full restoration of ODEN in Kalistan
The newly empowered Socialists have declared that their first priority in power is to restore ODEN to its correct place in the world.
Newly appointed socialist Premier, Jane Phillips-Bennots stated, "ODEN was a major source of income for Kalistan during Socialist administrations in the past. It is our intention to restore that Organization and expend once more across Terra."
The Premier was quick to point out that ODEN does not export Drugs. "ODEN itself is simply to Organization of Drug Exporting Nations. They oversee quality, quantity and price controls for all member states. Within Kalistan, ODEN is the primary retailer of drugs and paraphernalia: We prefer it that way here, because we want to ensure that our citizens get the best quality, safest chemicals. But this does not mean that ODEN sells drugs to other countries. They also manage Kalistan's external sales, but ODEN-Kalistan, as a rule does not compete in other ODEN signatory nations, nor do they move their products to non-ODEN states. Those states send their own buyers to an ODEN country, and we happily sell those products in an open market. What the buyers do with their goods when they leave Kalistan is not our business nor our concern."
The passage of ODEN and supporting legislation should be quick and is expected to experience no difficulties. In fact, the Premier said, since it is a mere reauthoriztion, it is expected to sail through the Assembly.
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Post by doc on May 2, 2019 20:24:59 GMT
KalNaPeCo, KalNaFerCo, KalMilInCo restored Major strategic industries to be unshuttered and ramped up over the next year Kaliburg, Ananto February 4, 2019
Three important bills passed through the National Assembly today on a voice vote. Only a few liberal deadenders expressed any opposition to the renationalization of the Petroleum, Ferromineral production and refinement, and Military industrial sectors. The President is expected to sign each piece of legislation within the next week, to renationalize these industries and put Kalistan back on the correct footing with regard to heavy industry, aimed at restoring Kalistan's place as a pre-eminant Seleyan power.
The text of the three Bills are as follows
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Post by doc on May 2, 2019 23:50:22 GMT
First annual "Red Out" Militant workers Contingent demands restoration of the NSP Sulari, Suldanor January 20, 2019 Hundreds of workers showed up to KalNaFerCo's soon to be unshuttered HQ in Sulari to demand return of the NSP
Miguel Filipe Azul, a leader of Steelworkers Local 5013 in Sulari was mad. "We have had enough of these capitalists ripping us off!" The crowd of hundreds of red jacketed workers cheered his speech. The workers were assembled outside KalNaFerCo's historic headquarters, which was a dilapidated multi story office building that had been neglected and eventually abandoned under Liberal rule, to demand a restoration of the basic foundations of Kalistan's economic prosperity.
"We want the Government to put the NSP back in place. The goal is to give young, inexperienced workers a place to learn basic skills. This will in turn better prepare them for work in the economy. It will also help our workers earn a living wage and definitively turn the tide from the capital centered policies of the old Liberal Government back to the workers, where it belongs."
What Azul was speaking of was a restorative revolution in the Kalistani economy which may not have made Kalistani capitalists fabulously wealthy like the last few decades of Liberal rule has, but ensured that Kalistan took a measured and steady path to growth and prosperity, which previously ensured that Kalistan had an enviable wealth equality, and a clipped business cycle. Unlike capitalist countries, Kalistan's depressions were not felt by most people, due to the UBI, and there were no rabid speculative booms that would lead inevitably to a few people getting ridiculously rich and the rest of the country going bust. Under the old NSP, Kalistan maintained full employment through permanent labor shortages, and undermined the justification for militant labor unions. All of that ended catastrophically under Liberal rule, as Kalistan became a schitzophrenic basketcase economy, with wild and inexplicable swings in the prosperity of millions.
"We voted that nonsense out," Azul said. "We voted it into the ground. Now it is time to right the ship. Bring back the robust NSP now," Azul demanded, to a rousing applause by the crowd. The mass then marched to the District capital and held some chants, and then started a street party which included snacks and music.
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Post by doc on May 3, 2019 1:24:12 GMT
KalNaPeCo experiences some setbacks; Looks to the Future
"Undoing damage created by Liberals will take some time" Sulari, Suldanor February 12, 2019
A Suldanor roughneck takes a break while cleaning machinery on an oil derrick
KalNaPeCo, the National petroleum corporation which was rechartered last month, has begun dryland operations this month.
KalNaPeCo spokesperson Gina Fernandez said to Izquierda: "Well, it's going to take a little longer than we expected when we began last month. Years and years of criminal negligence when it comes to actually managing and maintaining Republican assets by the Liberal regime have taken its toll on our capital formations. Most of these oil wells were either incorrectly capped when they went out of National service, or the metal was not properly coated and was left to rust. A lot of these places became tragic toxic environments. So we have to sped valuable time and resources to clean this mess up before we can start producing."
Of the more than 425 dryland oil rigs in Suldanor and southern Odufaray, more than 40 of them are "dilapidated beyond repair" and will need to be taken entirely out, while another 75 are "severely damaged". IN the Ananto Strait, the numbers are similar, with one oil well found to be leaking petroleum directly into the Strait from a damaged rig. "The neglegence in government we are uncovering from the Liberals is just stunning," said Fernandez. It will take us more than a year to clean up the environmental disaster that the Liberals, through their "no Government is good government" attitude have handed our country. The health costs to a generation of Kalistanis has not even been measured yet, because we have not gotten state health care back online yet.
But KalNaPeCo is not all gloom and doom. Fernandez mentioned some plans for the future. "Once we are past this stage, and have undone the vast damage than Liberal neglect has caused our country, we are looking to expand into a new cartel. We would like to work with other countries to found a production and price setting regime for petroleum, to ensure that we do not compete with one another. Cooperation is the way to go. We are looking at Luthori, for instance, and perhaps looking to work deals out side of specifically petroleum. Hemp oil and bio diesel is the future, and a cooperative agreement with the Empire might be to both of our advantage. It will allow KalNaPeCo to diversify and to plan for the future when our oil runs out."
Fernandez says the company is optimistic about future development of petroleum.
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Post by doc on May 3, 2019 20:44:57 GMT
Ramen craze sweeps Kalistan Noodle dish from Sekowo now "Most Popular" in Country Yoshimi, Suldanor March 4, 2019
Anne Velasco, Yoshimi, demonstrates the newest Hot Trend in Kalistan
If you've been living under a rock for the last 6 months, you might be excused for not noticing the newest food craze to hit Kalistan. It is an import from Sekowo, and it is taking Kalistani fine dining restaurants by storm. And it may surprise you: The craze is Ramen.
Yes, we know. You've probably eaten a brick of stringy highly salty cheap noodles in college more than once (in a week). Instant ramen has long graced the microwaves and hotplates of the poor in Kalistan during the Liberal regime, when inexpensive food was nearly non-existent. But understand: the ramen being served in trendy restaurants in Sulari, Neveras City and Kaliburg is far closer to the staple of Sekowo than our instant stuff which. This is more like a gourmet soup.
The ramen that people are eating now has noodles, sure. But these noodles are often made of rice or buckwheat, instead of the wheat that Kalistanis usually eat. This alters the flavor palette of the meal from the get go. Then, chefs will use vegetable broth, rather than chicken broth. They can include anything from there. Some will put seaweed in it, some will put shitake mushrooms, some will add tofu. For the carnivores, shrimp is a favorite, but so is chicken. And a few adventurous sorts will even request squid. As a whole, this meal is far more wholesome, and a bowl of ramen is more nutritious than most equivalent soups.
And Kalistanis simply love it.
"I have eaten the normal stuff for years," said Anne Velasco, from Yoshimi. "I mean, it was what we could afford when the Liberals were running stuff. 23 cents a pack and it was enough to fight off the hunger for another night. But now that I have a job and things are looking up, I went out with my girls and saw it on the menu. I was really surprised to see it there, and so I had to try it." She said her first bowl, with mushrooms and shrimp really opened her eyes to the possibilities. "I have a bowl a week, at least," she said. "Since starting, my blood pressure has gone down, and I've lost a few pounds even."
Ramen shops are opening on street corners across the nation, and it is proving to be big business. "My profits have increase by 32% over the past few months," said Yoshimi ramen chef Doug Inaba. "Selling these dishes only increased the overhead a little, but the volume I've been doing... I mean, I can't keep enough of it made."
The cheap ramen which was ubiquitous on the shelves for the last two decades under Liberal rule is still there, but sales of that are going down. "Yeah, we've been able to open space in the soup aisle for better soups, since we are able to stock less of the instant (ramen)," said store owner Amy Thomasson. "Its good too, because the profit margin on foot space in the 'ramen aisle' was so low with that cheap garbage, but we had to stock it because many of our customers could not afford much more. But since we are selling less now, we can put more profitable things there."
The ramen craze appears to be here to stay, and as standards of living begin to slowly recover, it is likely that more Kalistanis will make the switch.
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Post by doc on May 3, 2019 21:52:40 GMT
New Government Named Socialists name UKFW and NCP deputies to key spots Kaliburg, Ananto March 18, 2019
Two short Months after sweeping into power, newly elected Premier Jane Phillips-Bennots has passed her slate for the Government of Kalistan. The makeup of the Government includes members of the two minority Parties. "We wish to keep them relevant in Kalistani Politics, to ensure that their constituencies are still represented in our legislation," said Phillips.
The slate, which passed unanimously in the Assembly, is as follows:
The President of the Republic has also asked that the Cabinet of the Republic be reorganized, and a few of the Ministries be collapsed into Larger Ministries. "We have a number of positions here which could fall under other Ministers. I would ask the Premier to consider elevating Trade and Industry to a Major Ministry, and then placing food and Ag and Science and technology under that. I would ask that Infrastructure and Environment be placed in Internal Affairs, and Education and Culture be placed into Health and Social Services.
"The New cabinet would look therefore have only 8 positions in it, and each of those ministers then would be able to build out full staffs to do each of the things mandated to it."
The Premier of the Republic said she wold consider the request over the next few months.
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Post by doc on May 5, 2019 1:47:52 GMT
Pop sensation, and apparent White Racist Felicia Ingridsdottir dead at age 27 Car crash north of Lhasa also kills family of 3 Lhasa, Neveras May 4, 2019
Scene of crash north of Lhasa
Last week, pop singer and teen icon Felicia Ingridsdottir died in a two car head on collision. According to Neveras police, who investigated the incident, Ingridsdottir, age 27, was traveling south toward Lhasa when her car jumped the median into the opposite lane. In the process, Ingridsdottir lost control of her vehicle and ran straight into a minivan which carried Gina Thomassia of Lhasa and her two small children. All four were pronounced dead on the scene, though it is possible that Ingridsdottir survived after the initial impact, and then died of untreated shock.
"We investigated the scene, and it was a real tragedy, but we believe we have uncovered the cause. The driver, Ingridsdottir, was travelling at excessive speed, and was heavily intoxicated. There is evidence of significant consumption of alcohol and heavy drug use within her automobile, and we believe that this was a significant factor in the collision."
Felicia Ingridsdottir, age 27, at the Kalistani Music Awards last fall
Police spokespeople also indicated that Ingridsdottir was carrying boxes of printed materials in her trunk. "We found things that we certainly were shocked to find," said the police spokesperson. "These materials called for a race war, and endorsed killing foreigners and making Kalistan an all white nation. This find was shocking, to say the least." The police members on the scene said that the impact opened the trunk an when they arrived on the scene, this printed material was spread all over the area.
"It was just... I mean, I didn't know she was into that stuff," said eyewitness Francesca Hernandez. "I mean, my daughters loved her, and she was on her way to a white power rally... I really just am at a loss for words."
Ingridsdottir was known for her pop hits "Run them out", her Egelion language hit "Fuerza Blanca" and her early forays into country music. Given this information, her fans have said that her music takes on new meaning. Ingridsdottir's next of kin have been notified and they have asked her fans for forgiveness and for privacy. A public memorial will be planned in Vrassa, where Ingridsdottir was from, in June.
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Post by Aquinas on May 5, 2019 2:06:35 GMT
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Post by doc on May 6, 2019 2:16:57 GMT
Kalistan Briefs Premier leans against memorials for pop star, Reoinforces Cordon on Ananto Straits Kaliburg, Ananto June 3, 2019
Pop Star Memorial "Disapproved of"
Premier Jane Phillips-Bennots Speaks out against Pop Star memorial
The Premier of the Republic issued an official condemnation of any public memorial for deceased Pop Star Felicia Ingridsdottir, who recently was involved in a fatal carcrash in Neveras. "While millions loved Ingridsdottir's music while she was alive, a re-evaluation of her lyrics demonstrate she was actively preaching a message of separation and hatred. This only came to light after her tragic killing of three Kalistani citizens. We should not celebrate her life, as an unapologetic white racist. We have asked her family to refrain from holding any public display for her, and have also asked her hometown to not observe her passing. Additionally, we have asked KRTVN not to air her videos any longer, and they have agreed."
The Premier responded to a request from the Kalkali Foreign Minister who asked that white racism not be celebrated in Kalistan. "It was a reasonable request on their part. Her ideals are not something we stand for, and while we cannot prevent her family from remembering their loved one, we do not need to make it all official. Her message alienates much of our population, including various enclaves of new arrivals. I want to send a firm message: Kalistan is not supportive of bigotry."
Ananto Straits remains closed to foreign Naval Traffic
KalNaPeCo rigs begin producing petroleum once more as Liberal mismanagement becomes just another bad dream
As more and more oil rigs come back on line, and environmental damage begins to be reversed, the Premier of the Republic reiterated Kalistan's official stance on the Ananto Strait. "We want to ensure that the world knows for sure that the Ananto Straits is not to be traversed by foreign naval traffic. Doing so runs a foreign military through the heart of Kalistan's economic engine. It puts our entire nation at risk. Consequently, we will continue to enforce the no-transit law in the region. We would also note, that no restrictions exist on foreign commercial shipping through the strait." The Premier noted that if a foreign state wishes to work with Kalistan to sign a Status of Forces Agreement, it may be possible to include provisions which would allow that country limited access to the Straits with their offensive military weaponry.
"This is akin to foreign Armies marching across Kalistani soil. We as a sovereign state wish to make it clear that we would not permit this sort of incursion, and doing so would be an act of war. So too to the Ananto Strait."
The Kalistani Navy runs regular patrols around the Northern and Southern Limit and aims to intercept ships running the limits.
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Post by Basileus on May 6, 2019 16:14:47 GMT
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Chitin
Member
My citizens, you know we have a special place for democracy, it's called the wastepaper basket
Posts: 127
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Post by Chitin on May 6, 2019 21:38:37 GMT
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Post by Aquinas on May 7, 2019 1:16:36 GMT
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Post by doc on May 7, 2019 3:44:05 GMT
Representatives from Lodamun meet with Kalistani Defense Attache in Kaliburg Agreement on Ananto Straits reached; Lodamun to invest in KalNaPeCo Kaliburg, Ananto July 12, 2019
Representatives from Kalistan and Lodamun meet to discuss the Ananto Strait
Cementing a long time bond, representatives of Lodamun and Kalistan met last week in Kaliburg to develop a new Status of Forces Agreement in the Ananto Strait. Kalistani Regular Naval Forces spokesperson Lt. Commander Dina Hendrickson said, "Lodamun and Kalistan have concluded a new status of Forces agreement in the Ananto Strait. We have granted the concession of unhindered naval movement, in coordination with Kalistani naval liason, and have opened the new Straits Naval Gunfire Range to Lodamun for training. In addition, we have agreed to conduct joint naval exercises for the purpose of integrating tactics and C&C of our two navies, to more closely cooperate in the defense of Northeastern Seleya. Furthermore, Lodamun will have access to logistics from Port Swedes in Vrassa during their maneuvers. In exchange, Lodamun has agreed to invest in KalNaPeCo, and will be jointly constructing new wells with the Nationalized Firm. Lodamun will receive royalties equal to their investment in the over all capitalization of the company."
Lodamese ships became the first foreign navy to sail through the Straits since early last month. Given Lodamese investment, initially to the tune of 2.6 million KRB, they now have a vested interest in keeping the straits free of foreign threats, such as those from Sekowo, who have recently complained that having to go around Ananto away from the oil fields will be too "inefficient" for them. Clearly they place Kalistani economic security behind their own profitability, but as more states recognize the fact that the Ananto Straits are not in fact international water, but are Kalistani sovereign territory, the foreign imperialists' facetious claim about international maritime law becomes more and more transparently ridiculous.
"We will recognize international maritime law where it applies," said Kalistani Foreign Minister Eduardo Enrique Delgado. "But it clearly does not apply in the Ananto Straits which is so intrinsic to Kalistani security as to fall outside the jurisdiction of the Law of the Sea, which was made by imperialists for imperialists. When Sekowo lets us sail warships near their coasts, we will consider letting them sail warships near ours. Meanwhile, If Sekowo is so concerned about maritime law, perhaps they should demilitarize their own waters first, rather than demanding it of others."
Lodamun joins Beluzia and Kalkalistan in recognizing the Straits as belonging to Kalistan. Naturally, Kalistan will look more favorably on those nations than upon the ones who for whatever parochial reasons seem to want to ignore Kalistan's legitimate claims to the water. Said foreign Minister Delgado, "The Premier has been explicit on this: International peacetime commercial shipping will not be hindered through the Straits. We have no more interest in hindering commerce at sea than we do on land. It is our intention to limit this codon to explicitly military naval vessels. This includes militia craft which work in tandem with foreign governments but do not fly that government's flag. Armed warcraft of any sort, except those covered by the SOFA are the only ones excluded."
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Post by doc on May 7, 2019 4:13:56 GMT
BRIEF: Kalistani Assembly reauthorizes "Privateer Act" Letters of Marque to be granted for the crippling or destroying of foreign Military vessels in the Straits Kaliburg, Ananto July 21, 2019
The Premier held an affirmative vote on the reauthorization of the ancient Kalistani Privateer Act, which grants privately operated light armed, fast attack vehicles such as those preferred by the Militias to attack foreign shipping within Kalistani Waters.
"Let it be known," said the Premier of the Republic, "That all letters of Marque will be issued directly by the Assembly, and no taking of foreign ships will be countenenced under this law. The goal is to provide a credible deterrent to the dabblers-- those who issue some proclaimation for the sake of an ideology, and seek to probe the Limits. As Dorvik says, The Regular Navy can provide at best a porous border to stop foreign military craft from crossing the limits. But we would like to inform our Dorvish colleagues, within the Straits, it will be open season on foreign offensive naval units found there. The Privateers, as a condition of their acceptance of the Letter of Marque are to offer no quarter to unauthorized military shipping in the Straits. And as they are not Regular units, we do not intend to enforce the laws of war upon them the way we do our uniformed naval personnel. Yes, some ships WILL get through. But really, it is an odds game. And those who seek to test the cordon will have to ask themselves if they feel lucky."
The Premier stressed that foreign naval shipping will be unmolested within the strait. "The targets of the Privateers must be military targets. If military units choose to use commercial craft as human shields, those holding letters of Marque have their permissions and limits contained within the Letter. It seems to be safer to just acknowledge the Limits and go around."
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Post by enderprophet on May 7, 2019 14:08:06 GMT
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Post by doc on May 8, 2019 2:41:38 GMT
Kalistani Briefs: Liberals in Kizenia, Weed in Dah Intelligence reveals fate of LDP leaders; Dah Plantations produce massive profits Dahriel, Ananto September 12, 2019
Premier of the Republic reveals fate of Liberal leaders
Kalistani intelligence services have released a formerly classified report concerning the fate of Liberal Democratic Party leaders. "We understand that many of them have defected to Kizenia," said Premier Jane Phillips. "We also understand that many of them have exported several million Rubles of Kalistani public funds and have used that to bribe Kizenian politicians, who are known for their rapacious appetite for corruption. While it is not clear whether the Liberals who absconded with Public funds have influenced the Kizenian Government to adopt policies preferable to the former Liberal Democratic Party, we believe that they are behind recent efforts of Kizenia to ban Kalistani drugs." The Premier continued: "It is unclear to us whether Kizenia even buys anything from Kalistan. While it would make sense for them to do so, we do not have manifests of their docking in Kalistan. They admit that their sanctions will not affect Kizenia in terms of shortages of Republican goods or commerce. We agree. An embargo by Kizenia is not expected to affect the Kalistani Economy." Dah Plantations produce bumper crops; surplus immediately sold off to foreign dealers
The ODEN warehouse in Dahriel was swamped by foreign buyers as the first ODEN harvest in years was auctioned off. "Most of these people," said ODEN director Mike Blackfish, "are from foreign countries who fly commercial to Kalistan, buy large amounts of Kalistani product, and then ship it back to their home country. We have a separate mart for domestic retailers, but sometimes they come over and check out what the foreigners buy. I can assure that all ODEN product is of the top grade, but as they say, 'the grass is always greener on the other side.' So these guys come over here and check it out."
While Blackfish was not at liberty to say who bought what and for how much, he did say: "Ah, yeah, we have all kinds of folks in here. We got people from Keymon, from Dorvik, Lourenne, Kizenia, and as far as Majatra. None of these guys are official buyers: We deal with ODEN folks directly. No, these guys are all independent operators. What they do with the bales after they leave Kalistani soil is not our business or concern. I can tell you that the majority of this crop in particular headed north. Where? I cannot comment further about it, as it would put those distributors at risk when they get to some of these backward prohibition dungeons."
The Director continued, "I will tell you though. We made a mountain of money at least as high as the mountain of Dah and the dozens and dozens of pounds of hard drugs that we sold. Our auction prices were up 14% this year over the last year that we actually systematically sold drugs at the mart here. It is not all inflation. There was just great demand, especially from the prohibition states."
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Mike
Member
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Post by Mike on May 8, 2019 16:06:06 GMT
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Post by doc on May 9, 2019 0:05:53 GMT
As Ananto Strait Crisis heats up, Premier puts a lid on it Regular Navy and Militia step up patrols Port Swedes Vrassa October 7, 2019
Kalistani Regular Naval Forces coordinate live fire and maneuver exercises with Militia members in the Ananto Strait
Premier of the Republic Phillips acknowledged international tensions in the Ananto Straits, but worked to quell fears of invasion. "Foreign Minister Delgado is in the World Assembly as we speak," said Phillips. "He has been authorized to offer concessions on the Straits to nations of the world in exchange for overtures from the other side. We hope his mission is a success: He was sent specifically to outline Kalistan's case, and make the argument for sovereignty as superceding international law, which we view to be a pipe dream cooked up by the powerful states of the world."
In the mean time, the President of the Republic, Hera Bennots Jones has given the green light to increased naval patrols from the Kalistani regular naval force. "We have taken a bold step for our own defense," said the President. "Our goal is to allow people to understand when they have crossed the limits into the Straits. We are specifically interested in turning back foreign military vessels who have crossed into our territory contrary to our desires. There is nothing for those naval vessels to do in the Straits except to threaten Kalistan, and it is our view that each incursion is an act of war."
Consequently, the President has ordered KalMilInCo to begin supplying the Militia with live ammunition, as well as fuel from the Logistics depot at Port Swedes. "The Militia plays an important role in Kalistan's defense. At sea, they are usually the front line of defense. The Premier and the Defense Minister report spikes in applications for Letters of Marque, and the Government of Kalistan acts on each request. I have asked the Defense Minister to establish criteria for Letters of Marque and his criteria were that sailors possess their own boat which can be retrofitted for sea combat, the crew is signed on as independent contractors, and each captain, at least, is a member of one of the three Militias still remaining in Kalistan. So far, the majority of applications have come from members of the National Conservative Party's militia, but the word is that participation from the SP and the UKWF is picking up in response to the menace of foreign threats. By year's end, we expect to have over 300 captains carrying an official Letter of Marque."
The Straits are heavy with Kalistani naval activity, from both the regulars and from the militia. As an additional precaution, the defense Minister has ordered the Regular Air force to begin flying close air support for the Navy's patrols, and has assigned forward observers to specific ships operating close to Kalistani shores, who have the ability to call fire in the event of an incursion.
"We do not want war, obviously," said the Premier. "But we can't take a chance. These other countries are unpredictable, you might say erratic, and they do not have much rhyme nor reason when it comes to forcing their will down Kalistan's throat. We've experienced this imperialism before, and we have turned it back each time. It is different now, because the Liberals are coming for revenge for their puppet Party's demise during the elections at the beginning of this year. They want to force us to adopt liberalism. But they do not know: Kalistan is a Socialist nation. And we will protect our interests, even if the entire rest of the world is lined up against us. We are never going back to our lost decades. It is a new day."
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