The Eastern Romans [Earth Two - Closed]

[Byzantium Imperium]

OOC: Here's the ground rule from the get go; if you decide to show up? Do not put a timestamp on your post; I decide the passage of time in this thread. IF YOU WERE NOT INVITED, DO NOT POST. INQUIRE TO FURTHER INVITATION VIA TELEGRAM.

Imperium Byzantium
Constantinople - August 22nd, 2012

The Romans, the Byzantines, the Ottomans, Eurasian was the title after that, then finally they dissolved and there were Greeks and there were Turks again. The spat of independence for each was short lived in its own way for each one; Turkey came together and decided it was better due to the various nomadic tribes of Turkey that a Council of Turkish States made more sense than a single solidified government; a Council that would continue to exist for some time, even under this new system. The Greeks made way with their own Hellenic Republic before they were folded into a commonwealth that had also, ceased to exist.

They came together as a solidified people again to speak of matters involving unification in their different for their common defense; their continued existence as an independent people. It wasn't hard for either side, Greeks or Turks to decide on which identity to 'revive' in order to represent their whole; they pondered over the idea of an Ottoman Empire for a while but both weren't overly fond of it, instead they reached further back and decided on the Byzantines.

While they were more Christian than the predominately sane-Muslim population of Turkey, they were a dominating power that were never, even in their hour of weakness; associated with 'sickness' like the Ottomans were. They didn't send out "Come be our friend" communiques, they didn't send out invitations to every nation in the world to come collude in their capital city; the yet again renamed Istanbul, Byzantium etc.

Rather instead, they sent one; just one, heavily encrypted communication.

Code: Select all

TO: Russian Union State - Foreign Affairs Ministry | Empire of Hi No Moto - Foreign Ministry
FROM: Byzantine Empire - Foreign Affairs Ministry
SUB: RELATIONS
Encryption Level: 8

The Byzantine Empire hereby cordially invites you to our capital of Constantinople in order to discuss the relations between our three peoples, future agreements and to stand on current ones; should they exist. Assuming you have not yet heard of us, this is because we have not yet cried out existence down from the tops of the Caucasus Mountains; in the short-hand we are a collection of independent states under a single hegemony and we seek closeness with yourselves.

Aside from this simple message, they said nothing for the time being; no grand parties were planned, no other words sent out to the world. It was amazingly if not disturbingly quiet in Byzantium.

[Hi No Moto]

Singapore, Empire of Hi No Moto
Singapore National Airport

Europe, and Asia West of the Ural Mountains for that matter, had and always would be a confusing and constantly changing political landscape. It seemed to all outsiders looking in that nations and governments rose and fell daily into chaos and anarchy. The Prussian Reich, Drvarskan Federation, Germanian's and Franiens had all once been promising states but they had all falled by the wayside, a stark reminder to all nations of what awaited you should you fail. So far only the Cottish, Russian's and Romans had been able to keep themselves standing and of those three nations, only the Russian's could be called friends by the Hi No Moton Empire. Since the fall of the Prussian's, Europe had become a place where the Empire was not well recieved. It did then come as quite a surprise when the Foreign Ministry recieved a heavily encrypted message from the Byzantium Empire, who had fallen somewhat unnervingly quiet in recent weeks, which asked for both Hi No Moton and Russian diplomats to meet Byzantium representatives in their capital, Constantinople. Prussia had been the Empire's way of getting influence in Europe, now that they were gone it seemed that good relations with the Byzantium Empire could rectify the problem and give the Empire a political foothold in Europe and more importantly the Mediterranean Sea. With the Foreign Minister, Shigefumi Mori, on his way to the New African Republic to attend this Economic Summit that was taking place, the Tohokai Party was free to send a representative who was more inclined to their extremist views. One who would ensure that if possible the Hi No Moton Empire could use the Byzantian's to project their power, perhaps military power, in the area. The small delegation would leave from Singapore and make their way to Constantinople immediately.

A communique was quickly dispatched back to the Byzantium Government, informing them of the Empire's willingess to attend this meeting and that they were looking forward to discuss matters which the Byzantian's wanted to raise. The Empire was unsure of what the Russian's would be looking for in this meeting but it was safe to assume that they too would hope they could use this country to project their power into the Mediterranean. Already the Layartebian's and even the Apilonian's were expanding into the Mediterranean; Crete, Rhodes, the Balearic Islands and now it seemed Malta and Gibraltar were about to be swallowed whole by the two nations. Whilst this expansion was alarming it did come with some benefits to the Empire and the Russian's aswell. Expanding into the region had probably drawn the resentment of many European and North African nations, a resentment that the Hi No Moton Empire would be sure to try and foster and welcome those hard done by nations with open arms.

[URBOV]

Traditionally the Russian State and Byzantium had close ties. Orthodoxy was a common tie as was the shared history between the two States. Vladimir the Great was himself married to a Byzantine Princess in his day and since then the Russians had seen the Greeks as cousins. While they were crafty cousins, they were family all the same. With the decline of Byzantium, Kiev had quickly seized the title of, “Center of Eastern Orthodoxy” but the much later rise of the Soviet Union had ended that.

Godless Communists had since governed Russia and while the Church had seen a brief resurgence between Dissolution and the second Union, it had quickly been suppressed by the Cheka during the Iranian Conflict. An abortive invasion of Turkey had directly preceded the rise of Byzantium, an invasion marked for it's hostility and the fanaticism of the Bulgarian Units employed. Offering reparations and assistance in the spirit of Fraternal Ties, the Union State was eager to re-assert itself in the Balkans following the second Dissolution.

Quickly a diplomat was prepared and dispatched to Constantinople as soon as possible. It was assumed that he would be expected and to further ensure that he did not surprise his Byzantine hosts the diplomat was to arrive via luxury yacht. Foreign Minister Ganya Levonovitch Rogozhin himself was to play diplomat, further evidence of the Russian Union State's desire to cement friendly ties with what they hoped would be a long term partner.

[Byzantium Imperium]

Yes, this took too long. Yes, it is short.

Constantinople

There was a minuscule delegation sent to Ataturk International Airport to receive the Moton delegation, headed by a minor diplomatic official with an easily forgotten name, the Byzantines simply weren't putting much on ceremony, this was not to appear 'rude' as some might suggest but rather to keep things as quiet as possible; having several major officials arrive to be greeted by other major officials spoke more loudly than trumpets after all. The President of Greece and the Turkish Council had gathered in Constantinople as well and the Byzantines had had a time keeping that as silent as possible as well, they didn't like being loud, simply put. The communications received from the Motons weren't returned, rather they'd be returned in person so to speak. The Russians were also expected; albeit the Byzantines weren't entirely sure how they were arriving so there was a delegate on standby to receive them; albeit a few minutes later than upon entrance; whereever they might have intruded into the country.

[Hi No Moto]

Jinsaburo Mazaki had been the man chosen to open talks with the Byzantine Empire by the Tohokai and for good reason. Unlike some on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he had shown himself to be an extremely loyal and sometimes fanatical supporter of the party which had shown during his dealings with the Cambodians and Indonesians who had been brought to heel by the Empire in recent months thanks to his efforts of persuasion. Despite having little experience dealing with nations outside of the Far East he seemed the most logical choice to conduct talks and make sure the Empire knew where the Byzantine nation stood in the world, a world that was becomign increasingly divided between two main camps ... those that supported the Layartebians and those that opposed them. The fact that there was little ceremony for the arrival of the Hi No Moton delegation did not bother Mazaki, to him this was nothing more than business and he did not expect a band or celebration every time he arrived in a country. To him it showed him one of two things; that the Byzantine Empire was efficent and kept all things business like, or they wanted to keep this meeting a bit of a secret. Either truth suited Mazaki just fine.

Mazaki made sure to exchange pleasantries with the small delegation who came to meet him at Ataturk International Airport through use of his interpreter. Mazaki had made a point earlier in his life that he would speak Japanese in almost all diplomatic meetings, a sort of indication to the patriotism and fanatacism he showed to his country and more importantly to him, the party. After this small exchange Mazaki was to be taken to the meeting place where he eagerly awaited what the Byzantine representatives had to say to him and his Russian counterpart and whether or not it would be something the Empire would like to hear.

[Byzantium Imperium]

Again, this took too long. I took liberties with this, telegram me with objections you two.

There was no reception, no fair or great ceremony of greeting for either delegate. Rather instead amid small talk they were quickly and efficiently led to a small unassuming building a few city-blocks away from the Hagia Sophia; which was currently being gutted of plaster-of-Paris that was centuries old; much to the chagrin of the local Turks. The small building was not impressive on the inside, it was not tightly guarded on the outside either, it was bluntly put, a utilitarian seizure of a simple office building until something more magnificent could be built or procured. In the largest room, which was a simple conference room the gathered heads of the Turkish, Greek and newly formed Byzantine governments sat, the senators and President of Greece and the various Governors of the regions of Turkey that made up their council. Around this collection of men were translators, scribes and other such hidden workings of government, ready with pens and papers in hand as well as digital instruments to take down every single word that was said in the meeting to be.

The Byzantine Emperor sat at the head of the table; a rather humble looking man honestly in his western styled suit and tie; a black jacket and the tie was red; he had dark brown hair and small black eyes that seemed to bore into people; an educated man he would be one of the few people in the room who understood both delegates if the reverted or stuck to their native languages when they arrived; he spoke Latin, Greek, Turkish, Russian, Japanese, Chinese and English, covering the few bases he needed in the area that he intended to set his state up in standing with. He kept his eyes locked on the single entrance to the room, a simple door that in any given second---ah, there it was; a knock was given at the door and it was opened; presenting the first of the delegates, the Moton; who he respectfully nodded to and waved in invitation to enter. The Russian was late, eh?

[Hi No Moto]

Short and sweet but it's just filler until the meeting starts proper.

Jinsaburo Mazaki almost grimaced at being waved into the room by the Byzantine leader. He understoon the need for secrecy in this meeting but it still seemed to him that the Byzantine's were taking liberties, showing very little respect for him. Entering the room Mazaki made his way towards the seat opposite the Emperor that had been marked for him and before sitting down he gave the Emperor a quick and stiff bow before sitting himself down with his translator next to him.

"It is an honour to at last meet you your majesty" Mazaki begun through the use of his translator, not feeling too bad about seeming rude after he was waved into the room "I hope that this meeting you have called with be very productive and lead to greater relations between our two nations. It is in the Hi No Moton Empire's best interests to have a strong alliance with the Byanztium Empire."

[Byzantium Imperium]

Filler is fine, it's something, apologies for the liberties.

"こんにちは" The Emperor responded quietly before he continued via the use of another translator, preferring the middle man approach to avoid more perceived arrogance, as he had no desire to offend one of the most culturally sensitive cultures on the planet. "Welcome, Ambassador Mazaki Jinsaburo, to Constantinople. We are honored to find you in our August Presence." The Emperor did not stand or bow as was Moton custom, as the Ambassador was in the end just an Ambassador; but he did show as much respect as could be possible to his station. "I as well do hope that this meeting will be productive; as your most glorious Empire has a keen eye to their interests we do as well; and believe that it is within those interests to forge a strong bond between the Byzantine and Hi No Moton Empire. I apologise for any slight against your being; while I have studied your culture I am but a novice in comparison to your knowledge." The Emperor both responded and apologised for his earlier rudeness, which he had caught onto easily enough. "May I offer you refreshment while we wait for the unfortunately late Russian Ambassador?" Andreas made a simple gesture to a man next to a simple silver cart which was laden down with various foodstuffs, traditional Greek and Turkish as well as some Russian and Moton dishes for cultural comfort.

[URBOV]

Foreign Minister Rogozhin was not a punctual man of late. Alcoholism had slowed the once mighty Russian diplomat, though his mind was still sharp when he was sober. Unfortunately for him the diplomatic mission to Byzantium was one of the rare instances when he was shockingly sober and this had meant that once he was on the ground his lateness was entirely the fault of his chauffeur. The FSB which handles VIP security had provided him with a man who could kill a man with his bare hands, fire any weapon he came across, and speak five languages, though in an undeniably Russian way provided a man who could not speak nor read Greek.

So reduced to a simple tourist who drove around a foreign city without being able to accurately consult street signs, the Foreign Minister arrived several minutes later than his Moton counterpart. Exiting his vehicle, Minister Rogozhin stifled a heavy sigh and adjusted his designer glasses. Finely dressed in the manner of the “New Russians”, he shifted through the half remembered briefing on how to address the Byzantine Emperor as he was guided into the meeting room. Entering slowly, Foreign Minister Rogozhin respectfully inclined his head and said,

" Vashe Imperatorskoye Velichestvo , ya rad s vami poznakomitʹsya. YA ministr inostrannykh del Ganya Levonovitch Rogozhin i imeyut polnoye pravo predstavlyatʹ russkiy Soyuznogo gosudarstva v lyubyye soglasheniya , kotoryye mogut vozniknutʹ v etoy vstreche."
“Your Imperial Majesty, I am pleased to meet you. I am Foreign Minister Ganya Levonovitch Rogozhin and have full authorization to represent the Russian Union State in any and all agreements that may come of this meeting.”

As the Foreign Minister took his seat he nodded a warm greeting to the Moton representative before continuing,

" YA uveren, chto vy mozhete otsenitʹ vsego russkiy ozabochennostʹ v otnosheniiYuzhnoy blizhnego zarubezhʹya yavlyayetsya urovney vmeshatelʹstva Zapada . Konechno, my privetstvuyem nashikh pravoslavnykh bratʹyev rosta na mirovoy arene , my takzhe rady videtʹ , chto ekonomicheskiye otnosheniya mezhdu nashimi oblasti uvelichitsya s zatverdevaniya vizantiyskogo gosudarstva, odnako my po-prezhnemu ochenʹ obespokoyena Layartebian aviabazy ​​na yuge Turtsii. My takzhe obespokoyeny Layartebian vladeniye Krit. Takim obrazom, pervyy vopros ya khotel by predstavlyatʹ Vashe Imperatorskoye Velichestvo , eto mozhetrusskiy doveriya Soyuznogo gosudarstva , chto Vizantiya priznayet antagonisticheskiy kharakter zapadno- skandinavskoy derzhavy ? "
“I'm sure you can appreciate the foremost Russian concern in regards to the Southern Near Abroad is the levels of Western Interference. We of course welcome our Orthodox brothers rise onto the world stage, we also are pleased to see that economic activity between our two areas increase with the solidification of the Byzantine State, however we are still very concerned about the Layartebian Airbases in southern Turkey. We are also concerned about the Layartebian possession of Crete. So the initial question I'd like to pose your Imperial Majesty, is can the Russian Union State trust that Byzantium recognizes the antagonistic nature of the Western-Scandinavian Powers?”

[Byzantium Imperium]

Andreas held a long and even gaze to the Russian Foreign Minister before he gave an almost cruel smile to the man. "We recognize the imperialism of the barbarian hordes in ancestral Roman lands, yes." The Emperor was not overly fond of that imperialism, even before his rise to power; his opinion of the 'West' was low, at best, with the exception of those who he held in an odd esteem in Italia to the west. "There are certain things in motion to assure Roman security; and by extension one can argue, Russian security; Minister Rogozhin."

Events in Turkey surrounding those air bases had been a matter of much debate before the Greeks and Turks had come to mutual agreements to avoid absorption; Adana being one of the foremost 'incidents' labeled by the Byzantine Ministry of Intelligence as being a soft point, the Turkish people were not happy with Layartebians on their shores, and they would not abide them much longer. "This is not the point of this meeting however." The Emperor deflected any further on that topic. "The purpose of this meeting is what we three here assembled can do for one another. I offer you something that one of you partially lacks and the other entirely; access to Nostrum Mare, the Mediterranean Sea as you call it." He empathasized the ancient term for the Mediterranean, stressing the Latin quite obviously.

"While Russia has theoretical access to this place, we are both aware, Minister Rogozhin, that if I were to close the straits of Byzantium you would be cut off from that venue; and of course the honorable Motons are entirely in the Pacific, hence why I offer you this; port access to our sea." Andreas spoke for long periods, giving them little chance to interrupt him in anyway, not that he was being rude, he simply didn't stop once he got going. "Along with this I offer you both trade and economic support; as well as military alliance against external threats, especially against those Native American barbarians and those Norse Vikings."

He waited in a paused second before he added simply to what he had said. "What do Russia and Hi No Moto have to say?" He then politely made a simple but old gesture opening the floor to their speaking.

[Byzantium Imperium]

All Posts Marked in Red Like this one are SIC from both of you and concern Layarteb.

Imperium Layarteb
Azores - Pico Island

The Layartebian island of Pico was nothing short of a fortress. Streamlined ultramodern defenses it assured the first of anything coming near the nation's mainland from the north would be long dead before it got there if they had the misfortune to pass by it unattended. The subtle thrum of the Layartebian UH-60M helicopter severing to soothe at least one individual of a very small group on board the aircraft. It was a mixed ensemble of Turks and a Spaniard, just one; he was an older man, perhaps in his upper sixties by looking at him with graying thinning hair that used to be an illustrious brown in his younger years, worn down by years of work and worry.

He wore a nice suit, Roman silk, and carried an old silver pocket watch that was until recently in mint condition, it now bore the distinctive mark of blocking a bullet for its wearer, of which he was infinitely thankful to whatever Gods there may have been that it did not shatter and do worse harm. One of his arms was still in a sling and he'd seen better days, the recent actions in Spain were less than kind and honestly considering the fates of some of his good friends he considered himself lucky.

Along with him were several Turks, four were Turkish soldiers; they were only lightly armed considering they expected no real trouble on a Layartebian military base; their rifles in the larger transport plane that had brought them from Anatolia. The last person was a lovely woman who sat on the Council of Turkish States; Meryem Peynirci was in her mid-fifties and did not look her age, easily mistaken for thirty at oldest she had dark chocolate hair and lively eyes, and was hardly wrinkled; some people just aged gracefully as they said; the Turkish woman was dressed rather, Western honestly; in a tight fitting but professional long skirt and blouse styled as a woman's suit that was a dark gray and white and she had small ear-rings in her ears.

The Byzantines had approached the Empire of Layarteb around the time that they had finished consolidating their political union with Spain. They maintained the same system as the Spaniards, and changed no policies towards The Empire in regards to Spain, not that they could to begin with due to the structure of the Byzantine Government; but they had not tried all the same. No instead they approached them on relations, it was clear on the outside that the Byzantines were Pro-Russians, it was not difficult to see at all; and if one missed it they were very politically ignorant.

On the inside however; the Kingdom of Spain and its affiliates had been before the union and were still, heavily Pro-Layartebian, a relationship which they were not going to give up regardless of who the new boss thought he was; of course their new boss was the same as the old boss, their monarch didn't change; and the Byzantines were only here to be recognized by literally the most powerful nation in the world; and procure agreements and other statuses between their government and the Layartebians.

"We're touching down in less than five minutes." The Layartebian pilots said in English, which Avana was glad he spoke.

"Thank you gentlemen, it is appreciated." He kindly responded as the helicopter went in for it's landing but a few minutes later; the Turko-Spanish party disembarking into the waiting arms of a Layartebian escort which greeted them professionally but not unkindly and led them deeper into the installation...

[Layarteb]

The Black Hawk came into view, its strobe, and warning lights making its subtle outline visible in the night sky. The pilots hovered and dropped the helicopter onto the helipad gently, where the doors were opened and the passengers welcomed out, where they were greeted by the Layartebian Minister of Defense. "Minister, I trust everything went well. Despite the beauty of the night, we really should go inside; you never know who could be looking." The Minister of Defense said as he walked towards a pair of opened doors that led into the largely underground headquarters, which had been built into the northeast flank of Mount Pico. Despite Mount Pico being a volcano, the northeast flank was historically the least prone to danger.

Of course, the Azores was a major fortress for the Empire. Spy satellites overflew it regularly and long-range, high-altitude tracking of those satellites gave the Empire specific windows to operate without being watched from high above by nosey nations. This particular time was one such two-hour window.

The goal of this meeting was the discussion of Zaragoza Air Base in northern Spain. Firmly in Layartebian hands since the days of the North Germanians, it and its associated radar complex were now under the Byzantine-Spanish Empire and there wasn't a particularly warm level of blood between the Byzantine element and the Empire. Of course, Spain was a different story and now with the collapse of Portugal, a lot had changed.

The Minister of Defense led his guests through some areas of the complex and to a briefing room that was nicely built and furnished. It was a stark contrast to the concrete and military sparseness of the headquarters. He offered chairs, he offered refreshments, whatever small talk had to be said was said, and business was ready to begin.

[URBOV]

Foreign Minister Rogozhin nodded in time with the Emperor’s offer. Access to the Mediterranean was guaranteed more by the Black Sea Fleet than by the sovereign of Byzantium, though naturally it’d be much more agreeable to have them think that their Emperor’s offer was what allowed access. The Military Alliance against both the Cottish and Layartebians was also a matter that was more or less expected by the Foreign Minister. In fact had the Byzantines reached out to the Western Powers before she had approached Russia than the Empire would have not received diplomatic recognition.

The only real issue was trade. The Russian Union State had since the dissolution of the Soviet Union been a heavily public oriented mixed market. President Dmitri Siloviki’s Russian Unity Party was fast losing ground to Communists who would allow medium and small scale private enterprise to continue but would surely nationalize the larger conglomerates that currently dominated the Russian Market. Any agreement made regarding economic matters would at best be violated or severely altered when the Communists achieved the majority in the Duma that they had been a few seats away from since the financial crisis of 1998.

It was because of this that Foreign Minister Rogozhin could only say,

“I and thus Russia finds this very agreeable.”

[Byzantium Imperium]

Constantinople

The Byzantine Emperor nodded slightly, as though he were amused in the back of his mind he smiled softly before he turned his attention towards the Moton Ambassador, his translator relaying his words. "And the Honorable Motons think of this?"

---

Imperium Layarteb
Azores - Pico Island

It took only a few moments of pleasantries and small talk to get the representatives comfortable with one another, in Minister Avana's case, comfortable again; as he'd already met the Layartebian Minister of Defense some time prior. When they were settled, the various ministers straightened themselves and directed attention to business to be had, with Madam Peynirci leading, as Minister Avana was present simply to make sure the status-quo between Spain and Layarteb didn't change any.

"Honorable Minister," Peynirci's English was heavy with a thick accent, though she could be understood. "I am here on behalf of both the Council of Turkish States and of the Byzantine Hegemony. We wish to establish official relations with you, regarding things from as mundane as travel papers to the presence of Layartebian basing rights on what is considered sovereign Turkish or Byzantine soil."

"Now we have no desire to see this installations removed at this time, however we recognize that at least one of them has led to dejure unrest and hostility in Turkey towards the Empire, this is something we dislike but acknowledge. If I may, your thoughts, Honorable Minister."

[Layarteb]

"Well insofar as travel visas and trade, the Empire is prepared to offer the entirety of the Byzantine-Spanish Empire what we previously were offering the Spanish, which is two and a half million visas and free trade agreements, which we currently have with the Spanish. Because of the appropriate increase in population and territory we could scale these two and a half million up to four.

"To your question about the bases," the Minister of Defense said, continuing, "you are correct, the situation in Adana has, in the recent past, been tumultuous, to say the least. However, as we have shown, much of that was fabricated intentionally to provoke conflict whereby no conflict was warranted. Unfortunately, the stigma of that has remained and while the Empire has done much in the months and years since the Adanese War, we will admit that there is more to do and only time will heal what wounds were created.

"The Empire has no desire to leave these bases either. While we can work out agreements, these bases are important to our strategic plan."

[Byzantium Imperium]

Imperium Layarteb
Azores - Pico Island

"Honorable Minister, we have no intentions for you to leave; as I said. While it is no doubt important to your strategic goals across the world, it is within our own better interests that you stay exactly where you are; while we are not formal allies and likely never will be, no offense intended of course; we have common enemies and common interests and as such it is important to Turkey and to the Byzantine Hegemony that you remain exactly where you are. While of course we can't give you the space for free we can and will be most willing to work something out with the Empire's government and military." Minister Peynirci said with a confident tone and slightest hint of a smile.

"If I might interject and backtrack just a half-step." Minister Avana said gently enough to not be seen as ignorant. "It is to my understanding that the Turkish Council has already taken steps to relieve the state of Adana, though I don't know details of course; it is in my opinion that the Empire's opinion could be lower in the region to say the least. As to what I do know about, I do believe that the appropriate increase in traveling documents and visas to be acceptable by any reasonable standard."

Peynirci picked up afterwards, it was rather amazing really how the two ministers spoke as though they had worked together for years and they'd barely known one another for a few hours. "It is the interest of the Byzantine Hegemony; while it is on my mind. We have stated what you can do for us and you've received us kindly in that department so our question is: What can we do for the Empire?"

[Layarteb]

The Minister of Defense listened carefully to both Minister Peynirci and Minister Avana. He saw them both as honorable and seasoned diplomats, much like himself. He was pleased to be in the company of astute and intelligent diplomats rather than the humdrum that some nations managed to present. "To your first comment Minister Peynirci, the Empire takes no offense. We too do not have any 'formal' allies outside of our brothers in Cotland. Insofar as 'free' is concerned, free has never been our desire. In fact, we would like to continue honoring the agreements established and the payments listed in those agreements, simply changing the name on the wire to your finance department.

"I am thankful that you are in agreement with our visa increase. Relations between both the Empire and the Byzantine Hegemony can certainly improve and grow and I think this is the first step and if it is in your best interests to keep the details from the public eye than so too will it be ours.

"And now to turn to your last question, what is it that the Empire wants? This is simple and we have already addressed the base question. There are also Yapi Golu Naval Base and Naval Air Station Celemli that we have occupied since the conclusion of the Adanese War. It is not in the interests of the Empire to remain at these bases and we wish to return these bases to you over the course of the year, as we have to remove classified information and sweep the bases accordingly." The Minister of Defense proceeded to his next point. "You may hear from other nations and groups that the Empire and moreover the October Alliance as a whole is playing a chess game with the nations of the world, that we might 'recruit' nations to our side to be used as cannon fodder against our more public of adversaries.

"This is not the case. In fact, the Empire seeks no desire whatsoever in recruiting the Byzantine Hegemony in any conflict, whether hot or cold, and we wish for nothing more than a simple state of neutrality in the state of affairs of the world with concern to the Empire's more public adversaries. This is not to say the Empire wishes you have no relations with them, on the contrary, your policies are your own to make. However, we do not wish to have an active enemy in the Byzantine Hegemony nor do we wish to act in such a fashion."

He waited for that to fall in before he proceeded to the next and perhaps most sensitive topic, something that he had been reluctant to bring up in a first meeting but, the Emperor had made it clear that he wanted the issue raised. "Ministers, the following discussion that I am about to begin is classified above top secret. I trust that you will treat the information as such.

"No doubt you are aware of the history of the Goodrule Third Spanish States?" He waited for a moment's recognition before continuing. "There are some individuals within the Goodrule government and military who the Empire has a particular interest in apprehending. Since the collapse of the Goodrule Third Spanish States all but a very small number of these individuals have eluded our capture through what we believe is a highly intricate and extensive network. The trails are colder than ice, to put it bluntly. We believe that many of these individuals may be hiding out in the mountains of rural Spain. I do not know what the interests of your nation are to this history but the Empire is very curious."

[Byzantium Imperium]

"Oh, we're aware." Minister Avana interjected smoothly. "Not one of our better spots concerning...things like human rights and other such trivialities. We're aware they're hiding in Spain, and they literally run Portugal; however as we are currently avoiding all-out war with another nation in our own backyard, we're limiting our operations to Spanish territory." He paused for a minute before he became insulting with his constant blathering.

"It's not exactly something we keep the Spanish public informed about, or the court system; if you know what I mean. You can question why the foreign affairs minister is in on this sort of thing, of course; my answer is they're one of the worse images of the Iberian Peninsula one can have, and all of us are intent on removing it; permanently."

"While I cannot be as...colorful as my Spanish counterpart; so far as I am aware, the Turkish States are cooperating with the Spanish to similar ends if we find any ex-members of that particular government. Though we are more into the proper judicial channels and the utilization of the Law than we are summary execution; no offense intended of course." Madam Peynirci responded in key to the question given. "In regards to the bases you no longer wish to operate; we will of course remand them from your custody."

"None taken." Avana noted simply before he spoke again. "Is there anything else of great note? We are on a timeline if I remember correctly."

---

Meanwhile, in Turkey and half-way across the world, the Emperor had completed his showcasing to the Russian and Moton Ambassadors; the two sides came to agree on some things and disagree on others but in all it was a beneficial meeting between the three nations that ended in diplomatic recognition of the Byzantines by the two most disliked nations around.

OOC Note: This partial segment is due to the lack of posting on behalf of either URBOV or Hi No Moto, it is the best I can put out to wrap up my thread without being offensive to either non-participating player at this point.

[Layarteb]

The Layartebians were satisfied with the meeting. All had gone according to plan and the meeting ended with a pleasant surprise for the Empire. Previously, the feeling was that the Byzantine Hegemony was going to be less than friendly to the Empire but it seemed that, aside from hoping for nothing short of neutrality, they wanted to be friendly, so long as it didn't put them at odds with the Russians. Given their inclusion of Turkey and the Russian dominance of the Black Sea, such a position made sense both militarily and politically. To have any ill will against the Byzantine government and their surrogates for such a position would not have constituted a logical position on the part of the Empire.

Nothing more needed to be discussed or said, handshakes were given, goodbyes were said, and the Byzantine representatives were set to depart the island and return to the places whence they came in just as cautious and clandestine a matter as in that which they used to arrive. The final agreements made would see their clauses go into effect throughout the autumn and early winter. The Empire would depart its naval base and naval air station by spring and though no firm date was set, the agreement would see a significant reduction by January 1, 2013 with the final withdrawals commencing shortly thereafter.