WORLD CUP 89 – QUALIFYING GROUP 18 – MATCHDAY 14
EURA 0 – 1 SREDNJACI
Scorers:
Lineup: 13. V Simm, 21. P Read, 15. T Green, 25. J Byrd, 27. T Wellington, 3. L Almwood, 29. T Matthews, 16. O Vincent (sub Robshaw 73), 28. C Ashton (sub Woakes 75), 17. S Walker, 26. C Atkinson (sub Bond 84)
WORLD CUP 89 – QUALIFYING GROUP 18 – MATCHDAY 15
AGRESOS 1 – 3 EURA
Scorers: Robson 42, Robshaw 58, Bond 89
Lineup: 1. K Belgrave, 2. H Wheeler, 4. J Menard, 15. T Green, 5. K Sherwood, 3. L Almwood (sub Reeve 62), 6. M Rowland (sub Erskine 75), 8. V Robshaw, 7. M Woakes, 10. I Tomlinson, 14. S Robson (sub Bond 70)
Inside the Euran parliament, nearly three thousand MPs were slowly filing into the massive chamber. There was little fanfare until they were seated, at which point the standard ceremonial practice of every day sitting commenced. Tradition dictated a rendition of the national anthem, Ode to Eura, would be performed. Then, the entry of the Speakers would take place, followed by the opening of the doors for the non-binding Expert Executive upper house and its own members. Today was a Tuesday, which would normally mean Questions for the Government; the best opportunity for the main opposition parties to grill the Prime Minister in person. But today there would be a different first order of business.
‘Order in the house, please!’ Primary Speaker Alexandra Lowe quietened the house, silencing the microphones with her master control for good measure. ‘The Federal Government has requested the floor for a statement on the situation in Nyowani Kitara. I have acceded to this request. Calling the elected member for Honeyswood, Ian Smith.’ As per tradition, the governing Liberal Party rose to their feet for their leader, then sat again as soon as he was finished standing.
‘Members of Parliament…’
‘Commodore.’
‘Admiral.’
The Euran Commodore Watershed and the Nepharan Admiral Paterson took their seats. The hard work of a negotiation had already been done. Now they just had to iron out details.
‘I just want to be sure’, Paterson pressed, ‘that this is going to be everything we need.’
‘Based on what you gave us it will suit your needs. And if not, we can always do more.’
‘Fuckin’ A. So, we’ve got…’
‘Two Journeyman class amphibious transport docks – ENS Broad Shoulders and Caravan. The names are a bit on the nose and they’re a bit worn, but they’re yours to use as big old taxis for as long as you need them.’
‘…and with them, we can unload vehicles? MRAPs, armoured personnel carriers, tanks?’ One of Paterson’s less informed colleagues, an Army commander, had butted in.
‘Absolutely. Each ship is outfitted with helicopters, hovercraft, and landing craft for the purpose of deploying them onto a beachhead if no ports are available. But you’ll also have access to two Fort class dock landing ships, ENS Turret and Buttress. These are even older in physical age and design philosophy and don’t carry dedicated internal space for helicopters, but they do have a dedicated well dock.’
‘Ok. So that’s the naval loans.’
‘Secondments, technically. The EN insist on crewing and operating them as usual. But the Naval Auxiliary can actually loan the Nepharan Navy vessels, as your Defence Minister agreed in principle yesterday. ’
‘Loans, secondments, whatever. The fact is, and I don’t like admitting this, our logistics chain is a fucking joke, yeah? So, have you got the fast combat support vessels? Without them my lads are going into a fight without bullets and bread.’
‘Yes, yes, we’ve prepared two of them. Camel class. And with them three replenishment oilers and a fuel tanker, two dry cargo and ammunition ships, two vehicle cargo ships, a search and rescue specialist vessel and a hospital ship. All in all, that’s a dozen auxiliary ships which could massively increase your capacity to move the Nepharan Army out west.’
‘Sounds fuckin’ good to me.’ Paterson sprung to her feet and held out her hand. ‘Good doing business with you.’
‘No problem at all – not like I had much of a choice. Just don’t sink any of them. Please.’
‘…all of us here in this house know what struggle looks like. And let me tell you, it does not look like what is going on in this country right now. We have a growing economy. We are as unified as we have been for a long time. Yes, these referenda are testing our boundaries of debate, and making us passionate. But there’s nothing bad about that, no, not one bit. It shows the strength of our democracy. Let me tell you instead about a place where there is struggle, and where democracy is not strong. Let me tell you about Nyowani Kitara.’
‘Not that far from our nation lies a beautiful homeland of twenty-five million. Though its natural surroundings are wonderful and its people as kind as any, Nyowani Kitara is beset by a plague we have become all too familiar with in this country – the existential struggle of war. This is not a simple conflict. There are at least three factions, all of whom with very different motivations and backgrounds, all of whom have wronged one another in some manner. Fathers, mothers, daughters and sons are being pitted against one another in the vilest kind of infighting. Many around the world have said this must be brought to an end, and of course, they are completely correct…’
Fort Kajana trembled under the rumbling thunder of dozens of transport aircraft coming and going as the Nepharan Army deployed its Forward Expeditionary Brigade under the command of Brigadier Claudia Larchwood. Nepharan troops, vehicles and materiel were being rapidly unloaded onto the airfield, watched closely by gathered soldiers of the regime’s Kitara Revolutionary Forces. It was an odd couple relationship in the making, that was for sure; a socially liberal social democracy with a professional volunteer army popping over to help out then neighbourhood Marxist-Leninist dictatorship with more than a hint of hereditary monarchy, defended by their large but poorly disciplined and equipped force of mostly conscripts.
It’s said that you should always read between the lines, and this was one of those situations. Quite literally hidden in between the lines of Nepharan soldiers were small numbers of another group of foreign combat personnel. A bit browner haired, a little less bulky, and with a different kind of fear factor; less blunt, intimidating and mercenary like the Nepharan’s they accompanied, these were black-clad figures of mysterious origin and an ominous veneer of quiet professionalism. One by one, they peeled away from the different Nepharan troops they’d been assigned to, and all gathered together in one of the buildings the KRF had set aside. There were no flag patches on their uniforms, no recognisable identifying marks. But to those in the know it was clear – the Euran Marine Commandos were on the ground.
‘…so, what are we to do? That, colleagues, is exactly the question the world is asking of us right now. Let us not be shy or modest. Look at the headlines, the gossip and rumours and leaks from foreign states, the pundits and experts, the statements of intent and letters we have been sent – everyone from Busukuma to Centralis wants to know what Eura is going to do. And why not? May I remind you, this country – under this Government, led by this party – is the one that delivered an overwhelming hammer blow to the dreadful surge of Sameban fascism. And through our military prowess, our diplomatic weight, our economic success, our political leadership, we have decisively led our region and this part of the multiverse across multiple crises.’
‘Mytanija. Mareibat. South Covello. Mertagne. A laundry list of places where the juntas, jingoists and jesters of this brutal world reigned, until Eura came to the table and said: enough! Now, I believe that we have a record in recent history to be proud of. But it has come at a cost. We have expended great amounts of blood and treasure resolving our own problems, let alone those of others. And unfortunately, we have not been as welcome everywhere as we might have hoped.’
‘In Nyowani Kitara, there are no easy options for us to repeat that success without going to the lengths we usually do and incurring those costs once more. That is because, if we are honest with ourselves, there is no completely clean ally in this conflict, no champion of a friendly cause, and no easy end in sight. Given my promises to the Euran people to focus on the issues that affect them at home after making foreign policy a priority for the last decade, this Government must set boundaries.’
‘Therefore, for the moment, there will be no swooping of the Euran falcon to save the day. No major intervention, no diving in to shield civilians, no derring-do for democracy. Instead, we will seek to prevent Nyowani Kitara from becoming a failed state and falling into the endless pit of permanent civil war at an arm’s length. We shall save lives and livelihoods without making Eurans the first in the firing line as they so often come are. This is where our allies come in…’
The Chair of the Office of State Intelligence picked up the phone, possibly the only one in Eura she didn’t have tapped.
‘Burns.’
‘Phillips, ma’am. Calling from Central Ops.’
‘Ah. I hope this is an update about “GEARSTAR”.’
‘Yes ma’am. And little green men.’ Her stomach turned at the phrase.
‘Its true then. Any idea on numbers?’
‘Unclear at this time, but we’re working on it. Former Sameban regime supporters in exile, including some of the only remaining senior regime military officers, have plucked for helping either the KFF or DFLK, particularly the former. We have no direct proof yet, but…’
‘How confident are you?’
‘Very.’
She stepped away from the handset and grabbed her coat. ‘I’ll need to speak to the Prime Minister immediately. He’s already started speaking in Parliament.’
‘Ma’am, can I make a suggestion?’
‘Go ahead.’
‘I think we should wait.’
‘And why on God’s green earth would we do that?’
‘I think it is in the best interested of the Office, and of the Prime Minister, that he comes across this information as late in the day as possible. It will give us more time to gather evidence and, well, being blunt here, reasons.’
‘Reasons to-‘
‘To go over there and kick seven shades of shit out of them.’
‘Good point. I’ll brief him in the evening then once you’ve had a chance to provide a further update. And don’t tell the KPWC anything through the backchannels, or the Nepharans, not yet. Are there any other complications?’
‘Yes. Bregaland communists and lot of them. They’ll probably roll in for the KPWC which gives us a bit of a diplomatic sensitivity on that front.’
‘Yes, it does. I’m sure they’ll start handing them over if we apply the right kind of pressure. Thank you, Phillips. We’ll speak again soon.’
‘…I cannot stress enough the esteem with which this country should hold our allies to the south in Nephara, even if we might not always see eye to eye on every issue. When the extinct Sameban regime bore down on us, terrorising every Euran and Sameban whom now share one, complete and diverse Eura, not many nations did everything they could. They sent aid, offered support and condolences, sanctioned the fascist regime, and all of these efforts were worthy contributions. But few wanted to fight, perhaps understandably given the extreme violence the former Sameban regime had visited upon its enemies. Nephara were different. Bastion called, and Corvistone answered.’
‘Thousands of Nepharan troops committed themselves to a war that was only their own due to their close allegiance to our country as well as theirs. Their numerical contribution was relatively small but outsized in its fury and impressive victories. And now, they wish to step up again, recognising an opportunity not just for their own country to play an important role in stabilising the region as a leading CRC member, but also in lightening the load from the never-ending list of Euran responsibilities. I have spoken regularly to Margravine Lindt in the last week and we have discussed a long-term plan for bringing the conflict to an end in Nyowani Kitara. After discussions with my Cabinet, our diplomatic corps and the armed forces, it is a plan which I am confident saying is the best hope of delivering a potentially peaceful future for the twenty-five million citizens of that country who need support.’
‘As all of us will be aware of by now, there are reports across the broadcast and print media of Nepharan troops having been deployed to Dewayo over the past twenty-four hours in order to support the Government of Nyowani Kitara in preventing its imminent collapse at the hands of opposition rebels. I can confirm that these reports are true. While mindful that the Government of Nyowani Kitara is not one whose politics we remotely share or endorse, I also recognise that these opposition groups do not represent viable alternatives themselves and will not sue for peace unless defeated on the battlefield.’
‘This Government therefore supports Nephara in its operation to ensure the survival of the Nyowani Kitaran state, in order to enable a ceasefire at some point in the not-too-distant future, and the restoration of peace and stability to the country. This support will come with strict conditions, on which Bastion will be providing oversight and input to support our allies and the current regime in Dewayo in ensuring no citizen of that country feels the need to rise up in arms again. Our support is practical as well as political; I would like to thank the men and women of the Euran Air Force for their brave service in enabling an overnight operation to transport thousands of troops, vehicles and supplies of the Nepharan Army to Dewayo, an operation that would not have been possible without Euran support. The Euran Armed Forces and this Government are continuing to develop solutions for enabling the continuation of this Nepharan-led operation in Nyowani Kitara.’
‘What of those who oppose this plan? There have been many statements in recent days by foreign government’s proclaiming their support for one faction or another, and some hoping to curry our favour for their positions. But these proclamations, while sometimes well intended, do not offer a strategy. Well, quite frankly, I don’t think they have one behind the scenes either. This is the only operational and realistic plan which can be delivered now – no negotiation, no delay. This is the only show in town. It is, like all plans to solve complex crises, bound up with different risks and potential points of failure. I can guarantee you now that the Euran Government will continuously monitor this situation and communicate closely with our partners to ensure we remain on track to a resolution. If we believe we are off track and that our objectives will not be achieved, we will reconsider how best to move forward.’
‘This strategy serves the best interest of Nyowani Kitara and its people, of their neighbours, of the wider Rushmore region, and of the Euran nation. And it is a strategy that must not be interfered with. Numerous powers from outside this region have insinuated they may try to intervene in this conflict directly. I say this now – the Euran Government will not tolerate such intrusions. The Euran Navy has deployed a carrier strike group to the Xandrian Sea, which will remain in place and intercept any attempt from external forces to interfere with the peacekeeping operations of our allies or ourselves. Such interventions should be restricted to humanitarian aid alone. And, in good time, we will proceed through the CRC to develop a long-term economic prosperity plan for Nyowani Kitara, where the CRC – Rushmoris, not outsiders – will shape the peace of the future. I will now release the floor for the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs to answer questions.’
Chair,
I understand your Office has gained intelligence of increasing complications developing in the Nyowani Kitara situation. I cannot say this surprises me one bit. I also remain deeply concerned that the Prime Minister may have signed up to something here that our erstwhile allies cannot guarantee success in. You will be aware that the Prime Minister told the Margravine that Eura would not stand idle if she were to fail. I think he may have been speaking in the moment, and in truth hasn't thought about it beyond that - he's too bloody distracted by these damned referendums.
I would like to meet, and will bring key defence figures with me, so that we can develop a clean-up plan if this all goes sideways. In a world where Nafuna and her entourage get overrun or the Nepharans find themselves up the proverbial creek without a paddle, we are going to have to be ready to live up to the unwritten commitment to step in and sort the whole thing out. Its either us or someone we haven't thought of yet, and who definitely won't be looking out for our interests.
Yours,
Carl Rutherford
Foreign Secretary
(79’ Björnsdóttir 
); Harrysson 
(22’)
(90+4’); Matteosdóttir, Kristersson, Reynarsson, Vilbertsdóttir; Álvgeirsdóttir 
(21’)
Morten Clawbrand 
2 0
