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Offline Hassfurt

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The Meybad Conference
« on: February 02, 2021, 08:45:18 PM »

To

His Majesty King Heydar of Royal Seleucid
His Majesty King Finley of Ui Cenneslaig
His Majesty King David of East Moreland
High Priestess Skye Maddix of the Cult of Helus

As has been communicated Prince Jonas is set to host talks with the ideal of ensuring the progress towards the discontining of the Celtic Protectorate takes place. With this aim a conference between the parties in Meybad, located in the Protectorate will take place. I shall mediate proceeding and hope that I can count of representatives from each party. I have invited naturally the Seleucid royal representative and the Cenneg one as they must agree to the ending of the arrangement. Part of the agreement calls for recognition of conditions by representative of the Cult of Helus and so it is needed to invite the Morelanders as the royals hold special place among the Cultists in all nations while naturally the High Priestess may speak on behalf of the faith. I want therefore to invite each of you to meet me in person or via your representative.

Best Wishes

Prince Jonas
« Last Edit: February 02, 2021, 09:17:54 PM by Hassfurt »

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #1 on: February 02, 2021, 09:35:39 PM »


To:- Prince Jonas

We have fond memories of your visit to our nation on your inspection tour and the kind words you wrote in your report.

We are excited that you believe you can accelerate the finalisation of the Protectorate and like you we are confident that we can show that the Cultist community in Royal Seleucid is safe and does not face any discrimination from our government. With this in mind please expect me to attend the talks in person and I look forward to a positive outcome.

His Majesty King Heydar of Royal Seleucid
Duke of South Markazi




To:- Prince Jonas

We are cautious about these talks. While we believe the Seleucid government have made positive steps towards ensuring the safety of the Cultist community in their nation we believe that the food crisis shows that the situation there can escalate quickly and that while the government may be visibly more supportive of the Cultist community it is clear that at grass roots level this is not necessarily shared by the general public. While we do not officially have a stake in the treaty we have been and shall maintain a close interest and in the interests of helping these talks will be dispatching our Foreign Minister, Duchess Orlaith Kade, to participate in the talks.

May The Gods Watch Over You and Your Nation Know Peace

King David III of East Moreland



To:- Prince Jonas

The Cult of Helus has watched proceedings in the Celtic Protectorate carefully. We have seen several mixed reports about the region however it is clear that perhaps a first hand observation is needed. As such I shall be attending your conference in person along with some of my administrative staff. It is my hope I can be reassured of the safety of the Cultist population and a restoration of normal status for the Protectorate.

May The Gods Watch Over You and Grant You Wisdom

High Priestess Skye Maddix

Offline Hassfurt

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #2 on: March 02, 2021, 07:11:10 PM »
OOC- Will start this in next few day. Could someone tell if things changed background since.

Offline KrisNord

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #3 on: March 03, 2021, 09:03:32 AM »
OOC- Weekend this and I'll be free of online learning stuff :)

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #4 on: March 06, 2021, 07:02:48 PM »
The City of Meybad in Royal Seleucid was the centre of the Cultist region and as such the towers of various Temples dominated the skyline rather than domes of the Temples dedicated to the goddess Anahita. The city was in the middle of market day and various traders from the surrounding villages had headed to the city to sell their goods ranging from dates, jewellrey and little home-made leather trinkets. Several years ago the city had been all but deserted when the genocide of Cultists had been taking place. People had flooded out in the countryside hoping to evade the clutches of those hunting them down however still tens of thousands had been killed. It had taken two years until the city had been anything like what is had been before the genocide and took even longer for the Temple of Helus to be fully restored. The locals had insisted that part of the bullet holes in the front wall had been left as a reminder of those who had been gunned down there and on the inside of that wall was a list of names of those from the congregation that had died during those bloody times. Now the Cenneg had been a regular fixture and had done a great deal to restore confidence. They'd been an ever present sight on the streets and they'd done their best to be a part of the community. They'd be seen sat in the various cafes that flanked the market square, their pale complexion making them stand out. There were concerns among the local community that once the Cenneg went things would change but for now they felt safe.

High Priestess Skye Maddix had flown in two days ago in order to be part of the conference. She had spent time both taking services at the Temple and spending time in the local community, the problem was everywhere she went crowds followed and she'd been thankful the Cenneg military had been on hand to help keep the crowds under control. It had been a hectic but enjoyable few days and the evening before the conference began she'd undertaken a marathon of sword ceremonies for the locals conducting 22 of them in short order. She was now though happily telling her adventures to the East Moreland Foreign Minister Orlaith Kade, King David's cousin and thus a distant relative of Raimond Unasson, the human that Helus had loved so much.

The talks would take place in the local Sheikhs Hall, the former Sheikh had been killed during the genocide along with his two eldest sons however his wife and 19 year old daughter had survived. Sheikha Humaira Hadiyya had now inherited her murdered father's title and would represent the local community in the talks along with her future husband Hamid Magdi who would once the marriage happened inherit the title Sheikh. The four individuals had spent the morning gathering their thoughts together ensuring that the Cultist representation would be speaking with a single voice.

The Sheikha would welcome the Seleucid, Cenneg and Hassfurt delegations and then it would be up to Prince Jonas to navigate things.

Heydar arrived with a rather large quarrel of lawyers and other advisers. "Sheikha" Heydar greeted Humaira as he arrived at the Palace and she bowed deeply to her King.

"Your Majesty welcome to Meybad. May I introduce my future husband Hamid" At the mention of his name the man bowed and extended a hand.

"Hamid, very nice to meet you. The future Sheikh of Meybad. I am looking forward to the marriage and of course wish you all the best. Perhaps Hamid you can come down to Ipsus and join me and some other Sheikh's when we go out hunting with falcons. It's a way of me getting to know those who take care of my lands for me and it would be a good way to get to know my newest Sheikh."

"I'd be honoured" Hamid was rather excited about the prospect and his future wife seemed happy that Heydar was accepting of the man.

Heydar next turned to Orlaith, "Nice to meet you" Heydar extended a hand, "Duchess Orlaith I hope you've had a pleasant stay in Meybad so far. I was delighted your cousin took our invitation to come for the games and I hope we were able to show him that as far as I am concerned we can rebuild bridges between our countries."

Orlaith was unsure exactly what to say and did her best to give a politicians answer. "East Moreland wishes to have peace and friendship among all nations" she settled on. Heydar seemed satisfied with this answer as he now greeted the High Priestess.

"High Priestess" Heydar extended a hand which Skye took, it was a stark contrast to how Heydar would greet even a lowly Priestess of his own faith but this woman did not represent his beliefs. "I trust all is well in the Temple?"

"It is Your Majesty." Skye replied simply.

"Should we all perhaps get ready for the others." the hostess suggested taking them through to the white marble floored room where the conference would take place before she returned for the next arrivals. 
 

Offline Hassfurt

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #5 on: March 06, 2021, 10:11:58 PM »
Prince Jonas had been told that it had now been time to serve the Royal Court. It was fortunate that he had visited Meybad several month ago and that visit had mean this could take place. He was unique from a nation that was friends with the Morelanders, at least a beginning of a friendship. He was also unique that out of world leaders and their staff he was only the one to visit the Celtic Protectorate.

Jonas inexperice meant that he needed a second person with him to help support his actions and words to drive things forward. Queen Karin and King Jonas had suggested Guido Pfaff join him. As King's Consul he was experienced in political matters but also had time in the military. The old man in his 80's now was a good mentor for the young Prince and would guide him well. "Do you think they'll count this as coursework?" Jonas asked as they landed in Meybad, he was at University studying Politics and Law and now the idea of helping make a international accord would make the degree slightly meaningless in his view.

"I'm sure it will help" Guido chuckled as they left the plane to drive to the venue.

On arrival Jonas introduced Guido to the host and then made the way through. He ensured that him and Guido rounded the table meeting each of the parties before taking his own seat and unpacking a bag of folders, notebooks and a two cans of energy drinks ready to begin.

Offline KrisNord

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #6 on: March 07, 2021, 02:41:21 PM »
The Cenneg had been torn over who to send. If King Finely had attended then he perhaps would have been accused of being too connected to the Morelander cause with his friendship with King David. The next choice would be Prince Lennox but with him currently serving as Minister of Defence in Lodja it wasn't really time for him to leave to represent his homeland. It was left up to Princess Una to head their delegation along with the Taoiseach of Ui Cenneslaig Cadoc MacKenzie. Finley had told his sister he would support whatever her recommendation was and so the duo knew they could negotiate strongly if they needed to.

Having arrived the day before to visit the Cenneg military complex in Meybad the two didn't have a long trip to the Conference and having made their introductions took their seat ready to start. "Prince Jonas as chair of this gathering how do you want to start things?"

Offline Hassfurt

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #7 on: March 08, 2021, 08:07:03 PM »
Jonas was nervous to start the meeting. He looked at his notes took some water then checked his note again. He glanced to the side where Guido was sat and the man gave the reassuring nod. "Thank you for all agreeing to attend" The Prince began. "We are here today in order to work out if the arrangement for the Celtic Protectorate is still required. When the agreement was made it was to ensure the Cult population of the area was protected after the genocide in 2016. Then the Ui Cenneslaig military were neutral powers and the government of Royal Seleucid was under King Akakois. Five years have passed by and there has been many changes. The Cenneg are now allied with East Moreland through the CNN. It was the Moreland intervening that saw a need for the neutrality of the Cenneg to end conflict. The aim was to get the safety of the Cult of Helus followers ensured for all time and give Seleucid the chance to ensure the safety. Since then we have had no problems with the Cultists being targetted and the Protectorate has known peace. As  things have changed we should review if the Cenneg are still needed and having visited the region I believe that this is likely. We should perhap get people's views."

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #8 on: March 13, 2021, 07:56:50 PM »
It was Duchess Orlaith Kade the East Moreland foreign minister who was the first to respond. "While we may agree with Prince Jonas that much has changed in Royal Seleucid and perhaps more so in the Protectorate we have seen that its not just as simple as on a day to day basis. When this nation experienced a crisis there were large sections of the public that looked to scapegoat the Cultist community. The Temple in this city was even targeted and when it looked like the Cultists would take steps to protect themselves they had threats to have their ritual swords confiscated. I think it is hard to say that the Cultists would be safe with that in mind."

Skye had nodded along, "We've seen very few people involved in the genocide and then attacks on Cultist temples prosecuted meaning many of the people have little confidence that anti-Cultist actions are taken seriously" She looked down at her notes, "There were tales of many swords being confiscated in some towns and villages. They have in many cases not been returned so if we are to see Cultists really being fairly treated that could be an important starting point."

Heydar had expected things to start this way and had a few things prepared. "The food crisis that triggered the issues you have raised pushed many people to desperation. In places like Ipsus we saw riots among people of the Anahitist faith blaming certain temples for the situation. Desperation always leads to suspicion and while I know some people targeted the Cultists that was a very very small minority of the Seleucid people and measures were put in place to solve the issue swiftly. I have made it very clear that our government will always ensure the safety of all Seleucid regardless of their faith."

"Manists during the food crisis were not targeted." Orlaith interjected.
1
Heydar knew she was right and so attempted to continue. "I believe we have shown that should a crisis threaten this community we will move swiftly to sort the problem. We were capable of ensuring food got here quickly and prevented problems. What the Cenneg did in terms of providing actual security we can just as easily do. There is no reason anymore to doubt we are capable of doing our duty to our people. As for the confiscated swords I give the High Priestess my word that we will do everything we can to restore them to their owner or compensate so they can be replaced. I think we need to hear though judgements from those who have seen the situation in Meybad and are not as invested by faith or nationality."

Offline KrisNord

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #9 on: March 14, 2021, 06:26:35 PM »
Una had been briefed on the actions of the Cenneg military in the protectorate and now spoke out. "We have seen a steady reduction in crimes against Cultists we could consider to be fuelled by anti-Cultist feeling. The number of attacks though did go up during the food crisis and I have to say I do agree with Duchess Orlaith that this is a concern. I would also though say that it is clear that since we've started joint patrols with the Seleucid military and police they've been doing a good job. So I suspect that should the Seleucid pick up the duties of the Cenneg military we could see the same measure of safety extended."

She looked down at her notes for a moment. "Currently we are permitted to have  8,000 soldiers, 2 destroyers, 3 frigates and a maximum of six other vessels, as well as 25 combat aircraft in the region and we have that until 2026. In the last 12 months we've had joint patrols with the Seleucid. I therefore suggest we put in place a timetable. If we record a drop in incidents against Cultists in the region by July, which will mark the anniversary of the Protectorate formation, then we'll drop the figure by 25%. If then at the following year we see another drop by 50%, then in 2023 if the trend continues we'd move it down to an observer force. The agreement though would mean the Seleucid would need to demonstrate they can commit in a similar manner as to we have."

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #10 on: March 18, 2021, 09:37:34 PM »
Heydar contemplated Una's words for a while. "Please let me ask a question I have a few times before. If the Protectorate is about patrolling the streets of Meybad and the surrounding areas to ensure no attacks on the Cultists are taking place then how is the 11 ship Cenneg fleet achieving that? I think regardless of the numbers of ground troops the naval assets must be massively reduced. We would perhaps permit a single ship such as your Ocean class and one other ship. This should allow you to use it for various operations but also give us the reassurance of a withdrawal. As for combat aircraft I think we should limit those to helicopters." 

Offline KrisNord

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #11 on: March 21, 2021, 08:52:13 PM »
Una shook her head, "WIth respect Your Majesty should a situation happen like the previous genocide it would be up to our men and women to be the first people to step in and try and stop it. We're already in a foreign nation and massively outnumbered so therefore having some assets to give those men and women a fighting chance to save lives is crucial. You'll not need reminding it was when your father was out of the country rouge military assets seemingly acted against the Cult. You've been very active diplomatically, more than your father, and so should this happen when you visit say Waddan, then we would need to be ready to take steps. Having a small fleet allows us to offer at least some protection and a route out to those on the ground. Meanwhile having the ability to airlift in and out materials we may need is vital, and fighter aircraft to escort those out of Cenneg airspace is needed. I believe though that the idea of a gradual withdrawal makes sense so long as we pair it with some of our suggestions."

"The first of those is that a new Regiment within the Selecuid military is formed. This should be made up of Cultists and should be based on a day to day basis in Meybad. That I believe should be doable from taking existing Cultists from your forces and offering them this chance. Many nations already have regionally recruited forces and this would be on similar lines. It would put the Cultists mind at ease that should things go bad there is at least one element of the military that will not go rouge. Militarism is a key part of the Cultist code of Canley and I am confident they would be an asset to your nation."

"The second of those suggestions is that we would need to see some law making hate crimes against Cultists given a specific stance rather than just for example being murder or assault. If we get those two things then a pull down in numbers is achievable." 

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #12 on: March 21, 2021, 09:45:15 PM »
Skye Maddix interjected next. "I would say that militarism is not a key part of the Code of Canley. The Code exists by giving each human a responsibility to look after each other and historically speaking that meant a need to become skilled in weapons. There is nothing explicit in the texts that tell us to join the military." Her correction given she was content to be quiet.

"In terms of East Moreland I think we would be less worried if we saw a military unit made up of Cultists. When the first genocide happened most that died did so in the first 48 hours and that was mainly because it was impossible for anyone to get anything close enough to stop the killing. With Royal Seleucid being a signatory of the Uppsala Convention now and knowing soldiers who have both sworn to uphold that and the Code of Canley are in the region would put our mind at ease." Duchess Orlaith explained.

Heydar had sat for a while. "The idea is workable but I would look more at a Battalion than a Regiment. Creating a Cultist only Regiment would make them seem like we are segregating the Cultists from the rest of Royal Seleucid and that is not what we want. A Battalion within say the King's Light Infantry Regiment could be stationed in Meybad permanently and made some kind of Cultist unit. We could perhaps work it so that they provide representation around the area on your many Feast Day's?" He addressed this to the High Priestess. "It would then be a practical consideration and not just a safety one. As for laws specifically against Cultists that is not permitted, we are a nation with a great number of different faiths, Manists, Anahitsts, Cultists, Muslims, even a small Christian population too, Goddess only knows how they ended up here." he chuckled, "To make one law for Cultists and not applying it to any other faith is again focusing on Cultist members standing aside from everyone else and does not promote integration and acceptance. I would though concede that perhaps as we now have more tourists and investors visiting the nation a law could be framed in such a way as to protect them all and not just Cultists. This law though would need to go both ways so Cultists may be held responsible for acts of hate against Anahatist members."  Having addressed the Princesses two suggestions on how she would be tempted to withdraw forces Heydar now had one of his own. "I would be willing to create a joint flotilla, each ship from Ui Cenneslaig mirrored by a Seleucid one whenever its in our waters. The same with combat aircraft, every time a Cenneg fighter takes off it would be accompanied by a Seleucid one. It would then allow us to take over your day to day operations as and when this arrangement ends."

Offline Hassfurt

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #13 on: April 03, 2021, 03:24:43 PM »
For Prince Jonas the meet seemed to be making some positive actions. On the one side it seemed people willing to give the Seleucid a chance to if not fully but partly retake control of part of the Protectorate. Jonas looked for his notes and then made the following suggestions.

"Perhaps now we can agree to this"

Quote from: New Protectorate Agreement

With immediate effect Royal Seleucid shall agree the following.

1. King Heydar shall make steps towards passing laws making violence influenced by religious intolerance a specific crime. 

2. King Heydar shall make a force within the Royal Seleucid military manned entirely by Cultists and these shall be stationed within the Protectorate.

3. All swords confiscated from members of the Cult of Helus shall be returned.

4. In situations where return of swords are not possible fair compensation is to be paid.
With immediate effect Ui Cenneslaig shall agree the following.

1. That no Cenneg vessel shall patrol the waters of Royal Seleucid without a mirroring Seleucid vessel.

2. That no Cenneg aircraft may operate within Royal Seleucid airspace without a mirroring Seleucid vessel.

Ui Cenneslaig force limits shall be reduced to the following with immediate effect.

ARMY - Reduction from 8,000 soldiers to 6,000 within six weeks.

NAVY - Reduction to six ships in total

AIR-FORCE - Reduction to 18 combat aircraft.

Ui Cenneslaig further agree that should there be no incident that by the end of 2021 forces shall be reduced as follows.

ARMY - Reduction to 3,000 men.

NAVY - Reduction to three ships in total.

AIR-FORCE - Reduction to 9 combat aircraft.

With no incidents reported by 1st April 2022 then Cenneg military shall revert to a 1,000 individual observation force with each member of the observation force being paired with Seleucid Police or military in the region.


"Is this agreeable"

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: The Meybad Conference
« Reply #14 on: April 06, 2021, 06:02:04 PM »
"I would be willing to sign this." King Heydar acknowledged. "I would though like to define the observation force as being transported in Seleucid vehicles and permitted to carry only communication and side arms."