Achkaerin News Service

[Achkaerin]

ACHKAERIN SIGNS MAEA

By David Woods: Political Correspondent

Achkaerin has signed the governing charter of the Mundus Atomic Energy Agency. The move comes as no surprise, nor does the landslide majority the ratification achieved in the Senate passing by a tally of 498-1, the sole dissenting voice coming from Robert McKinlay of the Puritan Party. Speaking in an interview following the ratification vote Minister for Science and Technology Kathryn Deed (pictured above) said:

"The MAEA represents the first part of the equation entered into last year when the three nuclear powers called time on their arsenals and initiated decommissioning  The other half of the equation is of course a solid non proliferation treaty that focuses on the preventing of nuclear weapons becoming an issue ever again. The MAEA is a solid treaty that secures and regulates the transfer of nuclear materials for civilian purposes. Obviously what's also now needed is a resolution to the Slava Lavosk situation, an agreement there could very easily form the basis of the non proliferation treaty. Meanwhile we just have to hope that other efforts do not derail the best chances of success."

The Minister refused to comment on whether Achkaerin would support Rokkenjima's bid to host the MAEA or whether Achkaerin would submit a bid itself.

ASA TAKE FIRST STEPS ON "ATLANTIS JOURNEY"

By Kimberley Thorn: Science and Technology Correspondent

The Achkaerin Space Agency has launched the mission designated as Falcon One. The mission, a lunar orbit mission, marks the first step in what the ASA has termed the "Atlantis Journey" which was explained by the Agency's director Gary Hale as follows: "This is the start of a journey that will take us many years to travel our objective is to reach Nergal in the manned sense. There are many strands to this undertaking and there will be many different missions and projects over the next few years, our manned mission focus is on the moon for now which we're intending to use as a dress rehearsal and test bed for what we're aiming for on Nergal. Falcon One isn't a landing mission and nor will Falcon Two be, but Falcon Three onwards will be."

Falcon One is expected to achieve Lunar orbit within the next forty eight hours.

MEDALS ON DAY FIVE

By Felicity Stewart: Sports Correspondent

Day five of the Mundus Games saw further success for Team Achkaerin. In the womens marathon on the streets of the host city it was Lissie Michelsen who took the gold medal, breaking clear of her Pavitr Parvat competitor in the closing kilometres to take the victory by a comfortable margin. In the pool there was another gold for Becky Brittain as she took gold in the women's 800m medley. But it was unusually in the diving pool where Achkaerin had a great amount of success, in the mens 10m platform Riley Hayes took an unexpected gold medal and then in the womens 5m springboard Amy Sutton (pictured above) took another gold medal. Speaking afterwards Sutton said "I'm gobsmacked to win gold, it wasn't expected but wide open competitions like this are the best chance for us to do something unexpected and maybe start to throw some momentum into the medal charge."

Also asked for comment was the Achkaerin chef de mission Princess Esme Azurewind who said "We're building momentum now which is good and that's producing strong performances from our athletes which is even better. We've got plenty of days left and we'll see what other stories emerge out of the games."

[Achkaerin]

AID BEING SENT TO NOOBIA

By Roisin Shaughnessy: Chief Correspondent

In response to a developing humanitarian situation in Noobia, the mobilisation of JET assets from numerous nations including Achkaerin has been authorised. In addition the Achkaerinese military, who have a great amount of experience in situations like this most notably in Safraen and following the great disaster in the former Union of Nordic Peoples, has been deployed. It is understood that the majority of Achkaerinese aid is presently en route to Ui Cenneslaig pending the approval of the Noobian Government for an aid operation to take place, meanwhile a small naval contingent including the INS Apothecary (pictured above) and the INS Arthur Mishima, on what is expected to be the final deployment for the latter, has been deployed as part of the effort and is expected to be arriving off the Noobian Coast in around four days time.

FOREIGN OFFICE ON HASSFURT

By Olivia Moore: International News Correspondent

The Foreign Office has outlined the Government's position on the Diarchy of Hassfurt following the nations emergence from isolation. Speaking after the Senate debate on the subject the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chloe Murray (pictured above) explained the position saying:

"On most occasions the emerging of a nation from isolation is something to be celebrated even more so in current times as many nations seem to be embarking on a course of regression rather than cooperation. Hassfurt is however the exception to the rule, Achkaerin is signatory to the Mundus Convention of Universal Rights a document that states in its very first article that 'Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.' to therefore say that your position in society is determined by your hair and eye colour is something of an absurdity and a practice that has no place in the Mundus of the twenty first century. Accordingly the Senate has passed series of motions that make clear that Achkaerin will limit its diplomatic contact with the Diarchy to the normal course of business required by embassy staff. Our ambassador who is yet to be appointed will be appointed not on the basis of their appearance but on who is best qualified for the job. We're also advising our citizens against travel to Hassfurt."

There was no comment from the Diplomatic Office about who the potential ambassador to Hassfurt could be.

DIVERS SURPASS EXPECTATIONS

By Felicity Stewart: Sports Correspondent

Day six of the Mundus Games saw the Achkaerinese Diving Team do something none before the game thought likely, they finished top of the diving medal table. Following a strong performance in the individual events it was turn of the synchronized events, a discipline not just about technique but about getting the timing between the two divers spot on. Leading the way for the Achkaerinese were Daniel Bell and Timothy Diaz in the mens synchronized 3m, they took home the bronze. In the mens synchronized 10m platform Riley Hayes and Toby Cooke won silver. On the womens side of the event there was gold success in the women's synchronized 3m as sisters Adelyn and Estrella Cunningham (pictured above) took gold narrowly pipping their Seaforthian rivals, in the womens synchronized 5m the gold was won by Amy Sutton and Evie Grant. It means that Amy Sutton has made a little history becoming the first Achkaerinese diver to do the double of winning an individual and synchronized diving event at the same games.

The success leaves Achkaerin in second position on the medal table chasing after Pramoria and there's a level of optimism around the camp with many aware that the athletics and cycling programmes both of which are traditional Achkaerinese strengths have plenty of events still to come. Whether or not Achkaerin will repeat the feat of finishing top of the medal table is yet to be seen but there's a clear determination around the team to give it their best shot.

[Achkaerin]

CONSUL UNIMPRESSED WITH NOOBIA

By David Woods: Political Correspondent

As the crisis in Noobia continues to develop, the Achkaerinese Government has registered its disappointment with the Noobian Government over the handling of the affair. The comments come after two significant developments first the Noobian Government rejected the notion that there was a humanitarian crisis and then the CNN using their satellite's provided evidence strongly suggesting that there is a crisis. Appearing on breakfast television Consul Michael Williams was asked about the situation to which he said "This is a thoroughly unsatisfying situation. We've gone from having a humanitarian crisis to being told there isn't one and then to being shown the independent evidence that there is one. It begs the question just what the heck is going on here? To President Achebe I say this, the offer of help remains on the table and I urge you to think again about the offers that have been made and let's deal with this crisis before it gets much worse."

SCHOOL RESULTS DAY

By Roisin Shaughnessy: Chief Correspondent

It's that time of year again, the major educational institutions have released their results for the year 2018-2019, it marks the first year since the introduction of the skills based employment preparation curriculum for 16-18 years olds. Overall there has been a slight increase in the number of students receiving the top grades in their HSQ diploma's (high school exams taken at 16) while the number of students reaching the magic grade of A, the third band of the marking structure in Achkaerin, in five or more subjects also increased to 95%. The most popular elective subjects at HSQ level remained largely unchanged with history remaining at the top of the list just ahead of ICT one interesting notation is a very slight increase in the number of students studying engineering the third successive year this has happened. In terms of core subjects - Achkaerinese, English, Maths, Science, PE and Religious Studies the pass level remained consistent with previous years with a slight increase in numbers. Interestingly for the first time in recorded history Lady Morgana High in Valtheim has come out on top of the high school league table at HSQ level.

At Future Level (education between 16-18 years of age) the number of students achieving grade A or above remained high with the most popular subjects being studied including history, maths, law, psychology, various sciences and sociology. A straw poll conducted among graduating students at King's Park high school in Freshwater found that 47% of those leaving school were looking towards apprenticeships rather than university education, it is not yet known whether that split is an accurate representation nationwide. In terms of the skills based curriculum the number of those achieving the required standard was 80%, a figure that may seem low in comparison to other education statistics but when considering the difference between theory and practice as well as it being the first year that the curriculum has been in use nationwide it has been viewed as a solid figure representing a good basis to review and develop from. Topping the Future Level league table was surprisingly the Centre of Oceanic Research And Learning (CORAL).

At university level the spread across the degree levels was as follows the number of students achieving first class degree's was 12%, upper second 25%, lower second 55%, third class 8%. Unsurprisingly the University of Artaxia retains its spot at the top of the league tables followed by Freshwater University and then for the second year running Elsion University holds third place. The top performing college at the University of Artaxia was Queen's College (students of which are pictured above celebrating their results).

QUEEN'S FOUNDATION EXPANDS AWARDS LIST

By James Robson: Home Affairs Correspondent

The Queen's Foundation has expanded it's awards list for the first time in thirty years. The Foundation which annually awards the Queen's Medals for excellence and achievement in a variety of fields today announced that from this year it would include a mathematics medal on its list. The foundation founded as part of Queen's College at the University of Artaxia, came about through the generous donation of funding and reading material of a former warden and lecturer of the college Doctor Percy Youngson, a teacher renowned for having students who weren't entirely sure what the subject of the lesson was and yet a man of learning and experience who as part of his will left a significant sum of money and his research materials to Queen's College on condition that every year the college recognized the achievements of people in various fields. Over the years several disciplines have attempted to get onto the awards list however since the inception of the medals in 1900 the number of disciplines to obtain this status has been quite small with only Economics (1937), Engineering (1960) and most recently Archaeology or Anthropology (2014) being awarded it, the discipline of mathematics now joins this list having received the assent of Doctor Youngson's great granddaughter Charlotte Youngson (pictured above) who as the direct descendant of Percy Youngson and therefore technically the Foundation's chair, is the only person permitted to make such decisions. After making the announcement she answered questions on why the decision had been taken saying "When we consider that we recognize the achievements in several significant fields it is concerning that for so long the field of mathematics, which often provides the foundation for many scientific and engineering advancements that we acknowledge year after year, is not in itself recognized it seems quite appropriate to do so now."

Ms Youngson is herself a recent graduate of Queen's College and will host the Queen's Foundation Awards for the first time in a few months.

MUNDUS GAMES DAY EIGHT ROUND UP

[center[/center]

By Nick Watson: Sports Correspondent

Team Achkaerin have continued to enjoy success at the Mundus Games, a solid display in the rowing saw two gold medals brought home, there was heartbreak in both cricket gold medal matches where Achkaerin's men and women narrowly lost out to their opponents and in the women's hockey final a penalty shootout defeat to Tytor denied Achkaerin's women the gold medal. However it wasn't all a case of so close and yet so far except when on water, in the men's mountain bike race Achkaerin's Caleb Simpson (pictured above in training prior to the games) won the gold medal in a race that was all about waiting for the right opportunity to make a move as he explained after the race saying "That is probably the most competitive field we've ever had in this event at the games and it's not often mountain bike races become bunch races like that, usually they string out a little more but when they do become tight it's important to be aware of everything around you and to make the move at the right time. I know that in training I've been pretty strong on the downhill so I tried to break away after one of the climbs and managed to pull a bit of a fast one on the field.

[Achkaerin]

TEAM DAWNBREAKER CHASE MORE RECORDS

By Kimberley Thorn: Science and Technology Correspondent

Team Dawnbreaker, the group of university students from the University of Artaxia that broke the land speed record for a solar powered vehicle have announced their intention to challenge for another record this time they're going for the human powered vehicle land speed record. The current record stands at 89.58mph however the Dawnbreaker team believe their vehicle (design concept pictured above) christened 'Aerobreaker' will reach speeds exceeding that, they've set a provisional target speed of 92mph. Very few details of the record attempt and schedule are currently known however the team leader Kit Davenport has seemingly hinted that the Aerobreaker could challenge for not one but two records, though no one is sure what the second one would be.

Kathryn Deed the Minister for Science and Technology commented on the announcement saying "This is why I'm a big fan of university projects, they dare to challenge the records, they dare to see how far you can push the envelope. Though I'm fairly certain we all owe the EMAC team behind their speed records a lot of thanks for all their achievements because they certainly seem to have inspired this. I'll be following the projects progress with great interest and wish them every success."

MOLLY MAGIC SENDS ACHKAERIN TOP OF THE TABLE

By Felicity Stewart: Sports Correspondent

Day nine of the Mundus Games saw more Achkaerinese medal success in the morning the cyclists took a clean sweep of the medals in the womens mountain bike with gold going to Reyna Miles ahead of team mates Selene Bale who took silver and Charity Strike the bronze. The middle of the day saw the individual triathlons get underway. The event is not traditionally an Achkaerinese strength despite Games success in the last couple of years, the mens race was won by Adam Carter who used all his experience to break away towards the end of the bike leg and managed to stay away on the run, speaking afterwards he said "It was a tactical race, normally in triathlon you go flat out but at the Games there's always a different atmosphere, I saw a chance to attack towards the end of the bike and I managed to get out comfortably on the run and keep the gap constant."

In the womens event there was another Achkaerinese gold this time won by Molly Cooper (pictured above after finishing the race), Ms Cooper a corporal in the Scouts only started triathlon competition following watching the coverage of last years Games and had to wait until the national trials a few weeks ago to secure her spot on the team with the qualifying time. Her race was a little bit unusual for triathlon in that it was a large bunch race from pontoon dive through to the early stages of the run before eventually a surge in the pace strung the field out creating a smaller lead group. Speaking after her medal ceremony Molly said "I can't believe that just happened it's so crazy to think I've just won the Mundus Games triathlon. It was a bit of a tricky race because you don't imagine everyone will stay together like that but we were all out of the water within seconds of each other and then no one could break away on the bike. And then on the run it was more like the sort of race you may see when the athletics gets going in the stadium in a few days time, I was just running my own race and then when the pace was raised I felt good enough to go with it, I remember looking around and noticing there were only six of us and then I'm thinking 'I could actually win this thing' and then I just tried to stay with the leaders as the group broke down more and more until we got to the last two kilometres and then I hit the front. There's going to be a few celebrations in Maelstrom tonight I think."

Achkaerinese victories on day nine were rounded out by the team of David Nikaido and Kimberly Ravers taking gold in the tennis mixed doubles.

[Achkaerin]

NEW MARINE RESERVE DECLARED

Minister of Agriculture and the Environment Siobhan Williams delivered todays announcement

By Roisin Shaughnessy: Chief Correspondent

The Achkaerinese Government has unveiled plans to declare the area affectionately known as the Coral Coast a marine reserve. The coral reef that the reserve will contain within it is the natural habitat to a great many common and at risk species of sea life including the scarlet finned whale. The announcement of the reserves was made by Minister for the Environment Siobhan Williams who said "The reserve we declare today, the Coral Coast Marine Reserve, is one of the largest reserves on Mundus. It is a huge step towards the Mundus we want to leave to our children and grandchildren. The reserve will be managed to a large extent by the Centre of Oceanic Research and Learning (CORAL) who will continue their ongoing studies of the reef and the life within."

The extent of the reserve

CORAL have also welcomed the announcement with the organisation calling it "A great step in the right direction" while in a related story Professor Paul Burgess, the Operations Manager of CORAL spoke about Matilda Osman's ocean school plans saying "We're encouraged to see this development from Professor Osman, CORAL have to a large extent been pioneering this concept and we wish her plans all the best. In fact we would like to extend the invitation to Professor Osman to visit CORAL's facility and see how we do things if she wishes."[/size]

GOVERNMENT ANSWERS ON CLYSPERIS MCUR MISCONCEPTIONS

By David Woods: Political Correspondent

In the Senate the Achkaerinese Government gave a statement rebutting comments made by the Pharoah of Clysperis, the responsibility for the statement fell to Melinda Carter the Minister for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion who stated:

"Mr Speaker with leave I would like to give a statement in relation to Achkaerin's interpretation of the MCUR and its application.

Mr Speaker this statement comes about following yet another round of comments from the Pharoah of Clysperis where she seeks to accuse certain members of the international community of acting in certain ways, in this instance of being hypocritical in regards to application of the MCUR. However Mr Speaker her argument and we have done our due diligence and read it with great care, appears to be based on a false premise because she states 'these nations use one article of their beloved MCUR to try to strangle Tamora'. Now I'm sure the Pharoah as an experienced public figure would not for a moment suggest that nations do not obey the rule of law without evidence but for the audience of doubt let's be clear - the jurisdiction of the MCUR is defined within article one of the treaty as 'The High Contracting Parties shall secure to everyone within their jurisdiction the rights and freedoms defined in Section I of this Convention.' in short Mr Speaker it means everyone who is within the sovereign borders of the signatory states, which clearly does not include Tamora so it is therefore an impossibility for the MCUR to be enforced against Tamora and it has not been by any nation to our knowledge. And on that basis the idea that the MCUR is used as a weapon is in our view dismissed as a huge misconception which we're sure was an honest mistake on the part of the Pharoah.

It should come as no surprise that nations who sign the MCUR have long standing positions on the rights and freedoms defined within that document, so it should come as no surprise that it is virtually certain that a signatory state will have an anti-slavery position, it should equally come as no surprise that such a state may choose, as is their sovereign right, to sanction a nation that practices slavery such as Tamora just as Clysperis is well within its sovereign rights to impose sanctions on Lakhzovia. The Pharoah is correct to state that there is no mechanism to compel nations to act and that is because it is an impossibility but there is also nothing to preclude signatory states from exercising their sovereign rights and acting on the principles that they have. It is also worth noting Mr Speaker another point on which the Pharoah is correct where she states 'Our Peoples are not granted a set of rights by a piece of paper' the idea of that is nonsense and even suggesting such shows a lack of understanding of what the MCUR represents. It is a document that states a shared set of ideals between like minded nations. It is a document based on the principles that those nations have and had before the document was even conceived and it is from these principles which largely have their basis in the teachings of faith and morality that we say our rights are derived.

Finally Mr Speaker in the interests of fairness and decency I'll make the Pharoah this offer, in a few days the Senates human rights committee will be back in session and if she would like to come and address the committee then she is welcome to do so but we would ask that should she take this offer up that she bring with her detailed evidence concerning what she sees as human rights abuses. I'll even go one better and make this an open ended invitation Mr Speaker so never let it be said that we haven't offered the opportunity to give the Pharoah's concerns a fair hearing."

ACHKAERIN CONSOLIDATE TOP SPOT

By Nick Watson: Sports Correspondent

Team Achkaerin have consolidated their position at the top of the Mundus Games medal table. Having taken top spot on day nine it was important to keep the medal push up and the team put in a solid performance. The triathletes completed an unprecedented clean sweep taking gold in all three triathlon events - having won gold in the men's and women's individual triathlons yesterday the two sides of the equation joined forces in the mixed team relay with a team led off by Timothy Carter followed by Kim Carson who handed over to men's gold medallist Adam Carter before the final leg run by women's gold medallist Molly Cooper.

Over in the football it was medal matches day and double gold success for Achkaerin, first the men broke the hearts of the hosts by defeating New Derusmia 3-1. It wasn't an easy match by any means as the hosts went ahead in the first half and put up a spirited defence for much of the game, frustrating the Fox's but in the last twenty minutes the introduction of Adam Dawson to the centre of the midfield brought with it the turning point as he teed up team mate Danni Leonidas to equalize, Dawson was also involved heavily in the second goal an intricate passing move that saw Robert Kinnay finish it off with an accurate finish. It was perhaps fitting that it was Dawson who completed the scoring with a penalty five minutes from time. Speaking afterwards the team's coach Dame Julia McCabe said "That was a hard game, New Derusmia gave us a right run for our money out there, they didn't underestimate us, they had a clear plan which they stuck to and while it wasn't enough for them today that team has great promise. For ourselves I'm proud of the lads and especially the youngsters we've given a chance to in this competition, it's certainly going to give me a selection headache when the World Cup comes around."

On the women's side of the game the Vixen's as they're known also took gold though they had an easier time of it against Aquitaine winning 2-0 with a brace from striker Amy Bell (pictured above), the first a volley from the edge of the box and the second a cool finish after a weaving dribble. It's led to more calls from those involved in the sport for a return of women's international competition outside of the Mundus Games, a point that the Mundus Football Association has said it will address.

So with eight days of competition left we asked the Achkaerin chef de mission Princess Esme Azurewind to give her assessment of where things stand, she said: "I think I can safely say that these have been the most competitive games we've ever had. Sparked by the surprise package of Pramoria in the pool no doubt but we've had some strong performances and hopefully have plenty more to come, there are still plenty of events left and it's going to be tight at the top of the medal table I think because it looks like the Pramorian runners, jumpers and throwers are all in good shape it could well get interesting when the athletics programme kicks in properly in the stadium in a few days time."

[Achkaerin]

"CSU WILL BE ROBUST" - CAIDH

By Olivia Moore: International News Correspondent

Lìosa Càidh, the Secretary General of the Cross Straits Union has stated that the CSU "will be robust". The comment comes following observations made by East Moreland Foreign Minister Edward Tamana in light of the Morelander decision to close Hunter's Vale to Lakhzovian refugees. Ms Càidh was asked questions about the admission process for Lakhzovia into the Union while attending a function of the Child Welfare Fund with its coordinator Timothy Willows (pictured above with Ms Càidh), in response to the question Ms Càidh said "The Cross Straits Union has a very clear process for the admission of nations into the organisation, we're very clear that it is an organisation where all its members are expected to cooperate and collaborate with each other towards mutually shared goals. Admitting a nation into that requires that we conduct an extensive vetting procedure in the form of an interview with a representative of that nation in which we seek to address the concerns the Union has and attempt to discern whether or not to recommend admission to the membership. We will be robust in our questions for that is our responsibility. And come the Cross Straits Summit in a few weeks time we will see the result of those questions."

EDELWEISS FESTIVAL ENDS IN STYLE

By Zoe Tate: Entertainment Correspondent

The Edelweiss Festival came to an end last night bringing the curtain down on the eight week classical festival for the one hundred and twenty fourth time, the last night saw the traditional pomp and pageantry for what is regarded as one of the most patriotic nights in the Achkaerinese cultural calendar. The festival which is funded by the Crown doubles up as a charity fundraising effort with a mix of domestic and international charities and causes selected each year as recipients of the money raised this years selection included the Legacy Sport Foundation, Legionaire Legacy, the Global Childbirth Initiative, Child Welfare Fund and Olivia Robertsson's medical charity. The event was brought to an end by Crown Princess Serenity (pictured above) who in addition to announcing the amount raised - ∑88,794,075 also opened up the evening's festivities in the traditional slot for the Royal Family. The Crown Princess also thanked all the musicians who had performed at this years festival, once again this included some international participation.

Highlights of this years festival have included a night with the One Voice Children's Choir, a masterclass by Duchess Renee Azurewind, a tribute to the exploration of space by the Royal Philharmonic orchestra as they played the complete Planets and in a Proms first the Achkaerin University of Arts and Culture Orchestra (otherwise known as the Silverlea Symphonic) performed a selection called "The Rhythm of Mundus" a carefully crafted medley of music featuring selections of pieces from across Mundus. Of course it wouldn't be the Edelweiss Festival without the final of Young Musician of the Year which this year went to Matthew Chamberlain on flute.

LAWSON ONE SHORT OF MILESTONE

By Nick Watson: Sports Correspondent

Day Eleven at the Mundus Games saw more success for the Achkaerinese team, there was a gold for Britney Hammond in the Womens Cross Country - the team also picked up the gold and Millie Neal won a bronze in the womens MMA. However the main attraction for Achkaerinese fans was the return to action of Sammy Lawson, taking to the roads of New Derusmia in the womens time trial event she appeared the very epitome of calm and she delivered the performance the fans desired taking the gold medal by twenty four seconds, her nineteenth medal in the history of the Games, with the velodrome program still to come most expect her to achieve if not surpass the milestone of a twentieth medal. Speaking after the medal ceremony she said of her future prospects "I know I've got some strong events in the velodrome but I also know that I'll have some strong competition so it's certainly not going to be easy by any measure. We'll see what happens later on."

[Achkaerin]

EMPEROR IN SAFRAEN FOR MEMORIAL

Emperor Peter pictured reading during the Memorial Service

By Niamh Roberts: Royal News Correspondent

Emperor Peter was in attendance at the annual Memorial Service in Safraen. The event which commemorates the day that the country was given the all clear following the Kaiju virus outbreak in 2014 is a fixture on the Emperor's engagement calendar, it is a commemoration not just of those who died from the virus but also those who died protecting civilians - over the course of the two Safraen operations 700 Achkaerinese servicemen and women lost their lives. During the service the Emperor read the poem Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep by Mary Frye to the assembled congregation and following the ceremony took the opportunity to speak with Safraen citizens and President Dretsyj.

Accompanying the Emperor for the day was Danièle Aveline, the Duchess of Aquitaine. In response to queries over the Duchess's presence the Marble Palace has stated "It is no secret that the Emperor has played a very significant role in the Duchess's life they are very much considered family by each other and so their attending events together like this is not unexpected." Some commentators however have speculated that upcoming events may have played a part in the reasoning for this joint attendance with many believing the most obvious reason being that the long awaited Cartier Report, the results of the investigation into General Sebastien Cartier's conduct during the Marseilles crisis is now imminent.

MISHIMA CLASS RETURNS HOME FOR THE FINAL TIME

By Penny Noble: Defence Correspondent

The Mishima Class vessel the INS Athos Mishima has returned to port for the final time, the amphibious assault ship and its sister vessel the Arthur Mishima have been listed for decommissioning following close to twenty one years of service in the Achkaerinese navy. Both vessels are expected to be replaced but there has been no official comment on that. When asked for comment Admiral Stapleton, the Director of Naval Operations, said "For many years now the Mishima class has served with distinction being one of the workhorses of many an aid effort or combat operation, however times do change, today we say goodbye to two of our most important vessels over the last few years but in time we shall welcome in their replacements that we hope will be as equally distinguished."

[Achkaerin]

PREPARATIONS UNDERWAY FOR CROSS STRAITS SUMMIT

Crystalline Castle will play host to the annual summit in a few weeks time

By Olivia Moore: International News Correspondent

Preparations for the annual summit of the Cross Straits Union are well underway, the summit this year will take place at Crystalline Castle in Achkaerin and is set to feature not only the seriousness of discussions between the membership and the admission votes on applicant states but also the opportunity to hear about the good work the CSU does through its three special funds and associations with charities and NGO's and finally there's the matter of a drinks reception. However the preparations have attracted a new edge in the last few hours following the announcement that the Cross Straits Treaty Organisation otherwise known as the CSTO has been refounded the announcement was colourfully described by one employee of the CSU as "Downright discourteous and blatantly disrespectful." The Cross Straits Secretariat has maintained that the CSTO issue does not do anything except force a minor change in the agenda though they have stated "It could and should have been timed better."

AIR FORCE TEST OUT NEW MISSILES

By Penny Noble: Defence Correspondent

The Achkaerinese Air Force has conducted final testing on two new missiles it has been confirmed. The missiles named Chidori and Heaven's Dagger have both been in the development pipeline for many years both the product of Riviere Corporation's Research and Development Division. According to the released information Heaven's Dagger in this form (mark one) is the first component in a new missile family for the Achkaerinese military it's reported to be stealthy as well. The Chidori missile according to information is a non lethal missile that operates as a support weapon rather than a strike weapon. Both missiles are expected to be cleared for incorporation into the military within the next week once the various development groups have met. The Ministry of Defence has said that they are "Greatly impressed" with the days testing but not elaborate further.

MEET MORPH THE ROBOT EXPLORER

Concept image of 'Morph'

By Kimberly Thorn: Science and Technology Correspondent

The Achkaerin Space Agency has unveiled plans to build a 'shapeshifting' robot. The robot which is currently under the project name 'Morph' is in fact intended to be a number of smaller mini robots that will reportedly be capable of swimming, climbing, floating and more whether individually or as a larger robot. And if you think you've heard something like that before then it's possible that you may be thinking of the Smartwar developed swarmbots, the concept of 'Morph' is similar in that the robots will have to work together and autonomously when out in space but it's something that has captured the imaginations of many. Nicola Fernley, the Director of Flight Operations for the Achkaerin Space Agency when asked for comment said "Morph is something quite special in that it's a concept we've come up with for the exploration of space in a multitude of environments. We're targeting a run at Titan for Morph when we have it developed and ready to go, hopefully we'll be able to send a few of these things up there and learn a lot more than we know at the moment."

PRINCESS CERYS TAKES UP FAMILY MANTLE WITH GOLD

By Nick Watson: Sports Correspondent

Day Thirteen of the Mundus Games saw mixed fortunes for the Achkaerinese team. The beginning of the velodrome programme saw two golds, one silver and one bronze added to the overall tally there were bronzes and silvers elsewhere and skateboarding made it's games debut, perhaps fittingly the mens halfpipe was won by a Morelander, though not Tim Carpenter because he didn't make the team. However it was over at the surfing that one of the stories of the day unfolded as Princess Cerys Azurewind took the gold medal in the womens individual event. She becomes the third Azurewind to take a gold medal at the games following her uncle the Emperor who took two gold medals in the three day eventing and a single gold in the puissance in previous games and her cousin Crown Princess Serenity who has a gold in basketball, two golds in pentathlon and a heptathlon bronze to her name from previous years. Speaking afterwards Princess Cerys said "I'm speechless, I mean I knew I had a chance for a medal but never thought I'd win the gold, it's going to take some getting used to.

Also watching the event was Princess Cerys's mother the chef de mission for team Achkaerin Princess Esme Azurewind, who afterwards shared a congratulatory embrace with her daughter.

[Achkaerin]

REACTION TO PARACAMBI DEVELOPMENTS

Elodie Gliss interviewed following the news of todays developments

By Roisin Shaughnessy: Chief Correspondent

The Achkaerinese Ministry of Defence has given its reaction following the news that the reason for the measures taken around the Paracambi island of Castries concerned a secret chemical and biological weapons lab. Additionally it was revealed that some of what was tested at the lab included samples found in Seleucid weapons of this type, prompting a swift response from the Seleucid King. Outlining the immediate Achkaerinese response was Elodie Gliss (pictured above), a first Lieutenant in the Achkaerinese Army who following the outbreak of Bubonic Plague last year was responsible for the testing of the samples and subsequent report on the potential origin of the strain of the plague. Importantly the report stated "none of this proves in legal terms that there is direct culpability on the part of Royal Seleucid in terms of the current outbreak as a) suggestion is not proof and b) the exact nature of the current outbreaks origin can not be confirmed at this time." In outlining the response to the current situation Lieutenant Gliss said:

"When the initial testing was carried out I reported the findings based on scientific fact. I was very clear that while the report did not amount to proof it did give probable cause in a legal context to warrant an inspection of Seleucid facilities. Unfortunately action undertaken by the Iwi prevented such an inspection from taking place and now it may well be the case that the origin of the plague we saw last year is in fact Paracambi not Royal Seleucid. Therefore we would suggest that resolving the matter of origin is a matter of urgency and request that the Paracambi Government make available to us for the purposes of testing the samples they have recovered from this lab so that we may determine whether the plague of last year and the samples recovered are in fact one and the same strain. Establishing that is the first step and once we know one way or the other the answer to that question we can settle the matters that King Heydar correctly raises."

CHIEF COUNCILLOR AGREES WITH PRAETOR

By Amira Cotton: Gowu Correspondent

Chief Councillor Xiaoling Tsu (pictured above) has voiced her agreement with the sentiments of Praetor Julius Devaux of the Allied States of Ardia and joined him in calling for stability. During the weekly question and answer session at the Gowu Assembly the Chief Councillor was asked about the situation between SICR and Sinsu to which she responded by saying - "The situation remains concerning especially for those states that don't want to get caught in the middle of this. Two resolutions have been passed by the Ardian Assembly that will if followed see the situation remedied I urge all involved to follow those resolutions. I also echo the calls of the Praetor of the Allied States of Ardia we should seek stability on our continent, it doesn't do much to foster future relations if nations cannot or will not give the diplomatic avenues a chance."

FERNLEYS ON FIRE IN VELODROME

By Nick Watson: Sports Correspondent

Achkaerin's athletes have continued to find success at the Mundus Games. The first day of competition in the athletics stadium saw the multi eventing competitions take place with Hannah Nikaido winning her third heptathlon gold medal. In the velodrome the Achkaerinese cyclists picked up where they left off yesterday and for the Fernley sisters otherwise known as the Fernley Quartet it was a good day to savour, Kaitlin Fernley - the eldest of the four won gold in the womens individual pursuit, Ruth the second eldest won bronze in the individual points race and then the youngest of the four Niamh Fernley (pictured above) won gold in the womens individual sprint, not an event she has previously competed in. Speaking afterwards Niamh said "It's a little weird to win an event the first time you compete in it especially against women who've been doing it for years. I managed to pull off a long one in the first race of the gold medal ride off and then had the advantage of the rear guard position in the second. It was fun and I'll definitely enter this event again.

The third sibling Lucy will go in the womens Keirin tomorrow.

[Achkaerin]

AIR FORCE HEADING TO KYNE

An Achkaerinese Night Owl Air Command Craft departing for the Kyne

By Olivia Moore: International News Correspondent

Following the seizure of an Iwi gas tanker by Royal Seleucid forces the Ministry of Defence has announced the deployment of Achkaerinese forces to the Kyne. The relatively small deployment of Air Force assets including a Night Owl and Eagle aircraft was observed out of Gowu earlier today. Explaining the move in the Senate the Junior Minister of Defence Sally-Anne Seaborn said "Let's be very clear this is not a favourable situation for anyone it heightens tensions between two states that have a dark history. We do have some sympathy with Royal Seleucid in this, actions were taken without proof. And I repeat that the report that Achkaerin's MDI compiled for the CMA made clear that the findings did not amount to proof of culpability on the part of RS on their own, they amounted to a threshold that was sufficient to ask the question of inspection but not proof that Royal Seleucid was responsible. The Fair Seas Concordat is a document that governs the law of the seas and we will not see the provisions it lays down so easily cast aside. There must be calm and there must be respect, we are deploying Air Force assets to the area and diverting naval forces presently on station in the Gulf of Auraxis to a more flexible position. The Government also notes that some of the events that have occurred in reaction to this situation have highlighted a failing in relation to the Fair Seas Concordat that the Emperor mentioned some weeks ago, accordingly we will redouble our efforts in that regard. For the moment we appeal for calm while efforts are made to resolve this in a peaceful manner."

YOUNG AMBERBROOK TAKES BRONZE

By Nick Watson: Sports Correspondent

Medieval MMA is a fringe sport in Achkaerin, though it is gaining popularity with an estimated five million viewers tuning in to watch the last world title fight. That popularity might well increase now following the achievement of Robin Amberbrook in winning the bronze medal at the Mundus Games in the Men's Medieval MMA event, he won the bronze by KO against his opponent from the Iwi. Speaking afterwards he said "I'm a huge fan of the sport, I was lucky enough to get selected to compete and somehow I managed to win a bronze medal. Would I like to go and do this for a living? Well it's a little early for that decision but it's something to think about over the next few days."

Two of Robin's siblings his twin sister Elianor and his younger brother Amulius are both also on the fringes of Medieval MMA in Achkaerin, unfortunately Elianor had to withdraw from the women's competition with a shoulder injury.

The other main headline for Achkaerin on day fifteen of the Games was the return to action of Sammy Lawson in the velodrome she just missed out on a podium in the women's flying lap but put that disappointment behind her by winning the scratch race and then the elimination race to take her medal tally for the Games to twenty one. Also in action in the cycling were Mark Kaymer taking gold in the men's keirin, Lucy Fernley got silver in the women's version of the event, Tom Colt took silver in the men's 1km time trial while the pairing of Lucy and Niamh Fernley took bronze in the women's Madison.

The days successes put Achkaerin's current medal total at ninety one, twenty behind their record haul of last years games (one hundred and eleven). Speaking about the possibility of breaking that record Achkaerin's chef de mission Princess Esme Azurewind said "These are the most competitive games we've ever seen, we've seen things achieved in these Games that we've never seen happen before, we're top of the medal table and we intend to stay there. Yes we'll be chasing hard after our record total and if it happens great but if it doesn't every single athlete on the Achkaerin team can walk proudly into that closing ceremony in three days time with their heads held high and so can every athlete of every competing nation because they've all done their countries proud."

[Achkaerin]

QUEEN'S FOUNDATION AWARDS NOMINATIONS OPEN

By James Robson: Home Affairs Correspondent

This years Queen's Foundation Awards nominations have opened. The award's, a series of prizes given across a variety of fields to individuals or organisations each year by the Queen's Foundation (a part of Queen's College at the University of Artaxia), date back decades and this year's awards will likely be as distinguished as previous years. Charlotte Youngson, the chair of the Foundation, commented following the formal opening of the nominations saying "Every year we see the best of what Mundus can offer when the intent of the pursuit is pure. We've seen many notable advances and discoveries this year and we're looking forward to celebrating and honouring them."

Of particular interest this year is the mathematics prize as it will awarded for the first time. The Foundation also refused to speculate on specific awards and who may be in contention.

AIR FORCE EXPERIMENTING?

By Kaitlin Noble: Defence Correspondent

The Achkaerinese Air Force has refused to comment following the publication of the above image. The picture, taken by Gregory Jordan a twenty three year old student at Elsion University, appears to show a Hawk type aircraft, used by the Air Force for transportation purposes, however the version pictured has some notable differences in particular on the tail section of the aircraft. When asked about the picture Mr Jordan said "It was just a weird thing, you know we were just doing a test flight of our glider for the University Challenge Shield at the end of November and we got up in the air and we were just about to let the glider go when we spotted what we thought was an Air Force Hawk and then we saw the tail and we thought something interesting was going on."

The Air Force responded to the publication of the image by releasing a statement saying - "It is not the policy of the Achkaerinese Air Force to comment on specific aircraft operations."

In other defence news the Navy has confirmed that the successor to the Mishima Class will be known as the Kyogre Class.

ROYAL FALCONER IN ABYDOS

By Olivia Moore: International News Correspondent

Ygritte Amberbrook, the Royal Falconer (pictured above), will be attending the falconry festival in Abydos. Lady Amberbrook a noted trainer of the birds of prey and patron of the National Bird Society, has reportedly been invited to lead a workshop on training and health of falcons. Speaking about it she said "It's always nice to be able to visit other countries particularly ones steeped in history, that I can do it while talking about a subject I care deeply about is a bonus. I'm looking forward to it."

BRITNEY BRILLIANCE AT GAMES

By Nick Watson: Sports Correspondent

Britney Hammond (pictured above) has won her third gold medal of this years Mundus Games taking gold in the women's 3000m steeplechase. It was an athletics session that was in broad terms dominated by Midaranye nations however medals still came in elsewhere and during the women's steeplechase Britney managed to outrun the field with a strong and hard pace. Her fellow athlete Kayleigh Carson (who took bronze in the women's 10,000m) said "We really need to stop being surprised by Britney, she's been around for a good few years now and we know how good a cross country runner she is, but she's also pretty good on the track and she showed that today, she ran a hard race and ran it like a 3000m race instead of a 1500m or 800m race."

As for Britney herself well when asked for comment after the medal ceremony she said "That was a hard race, I ran it as a hard pace, I knew if it was a fast pace I could try and outlast them, I took a few with me and we got the field split then I just kept surging, I knew I couldn't have it turn into an 800m race because I'd get outkicked, so all I could do was go long and trust I could outrun them over a longer distance."

[Achkaerin]

PRINCE JACK ATTENDS LODJAN BALLS

By Niamh Roberts: Royal News Correspondent

Prince Jack has been attending several balls in Lodja over the last few weeks, the Prince nephew of Emperor Peter is spending some time in Lodja, a move that some commentators believe may one day see him succeed Lady Emalet Silvermist as the ambassador to Lodja, though the Diplomatic Office has dismissed such speculation. Of interest was that the Prince was seen attending these balls as the companion of Katyusha Andronikashivili, the heiress to the Duchy of Qudaghlo and a one time candidate for Queen. There has been no official comment on whether the two are in a relationship beyond what appears to be a promising friendship but it hasn't gone unnoticed that Lady Andronikashivili is a skilled Balalaika player while the Prince is a known guitarist, the pair also share an interest in literature. When asked about the speculation surrounding the above picture, taken at one of the balls, the Achkaerinese ambassador to Lodja Lady Emalet Silvermist said: "It is not Achkaerinese policy to comment on the private lives of members of the Royal Family without their permission. What we can say is that the Prince is in good spirits about spending time in Lodja and is looking forward to learning more about the country."

RUNNERS IN FORM WITH MEDAL RECORD WITHIN REACH

By Nick Watson: Sports Correspondent

On the penultimate day of competition at this years Mundus Games Achkaerin's athletes have given themselves a chance of breaking their medal record tally needing eleven medals on the final day of competition to do it. On day seventeen Achkaerin's runners put down their marker with a flurry of medals, the highlight being the gold for Nicolette Young (pictured above) in the womens 1500m, she is towards the younger end of the age spectrum within the Achkaerin team and was "Overjoyed" at being able to defend the title she won in Kaitaine last year. Over in the Velodrome Sammy Lawson picked up her twenty second Mundus Games medal with gold in the womens Omnium and the Achkaerinese eventing team somehow managed to win gold in the three day eventing, a result which came as a huge shock following their very poor dressage performance that left them well down the leader board but a remarkable cross country discipline and some solid show jumping turned the competition on its head. 

We asked the chef de mission Princess Esme Azurewind for her thoughts going into the final day she said - "I've said it before these have been without question the most competitive and remarkable Games we've ever seen, the medal table only tells one story. But look around at what we've been treated to over the course of the Games, the Medieval MMA was a crowd pleaser, the fans packed in to see the athletics, Midaranye nations dominated the gymnastics and put on quite the show in the swimming pool. Daisy Greechan bowed out in the grand manner with a gold medal in the open water. These are a Games that once again have lifted the lid on many things and we'll all go home after tomorrow's closing ceremony all knowing each other a little bit better than we did when we all assembled here. As for tomorrow and the potential to break our medal record, it's going to be tough for us to do but we'll give it our best shot."

[Achkaerin]

PRINCESS SPEAKS ON NUEVA ARDIA CORRUPTION

Maki Hamer (left) socialising during her visit

By Olivia Moore: International News Correspondent

Maki Hamer, one of the daughters of the last King of Nueva Ardia and therefore technically speaking a Princess of Nueva Ardia, has spoken about her concerns for her homeland. The Princess gave the comments while visiting a centre for survivors of the Ardian Genocide established in Gowu, the centre is currently home to around four hundred survivors who continue to require medical treatment. When asked what she thought about the current situation in Nueva Ardia Ms Hamer said:

"The people of Nueva Ardia have suffered a great deal in recent times, we've already lost millions to a genocide that the international community were prepared to act against but were prevented from doing so by one nation's alternative agenda. Now Nueva Ardia is in a new battle, this time not for its physical survival but for its soul its identity. I don't like that the government officials at local level are corrupt, but to protest against something violently doesn't do anything except continue to fuel the discontent. People have the right to protest that's unquestionable, but equally people have the right to go about their lives without fear of harm, violence or abuse. Hasn't Nueva Ardia suffered enough? Why do we have to inflict more suffering on ourselves? Let's calm down before things escalate to the point where actions can't be taken back."

The Princess declined to comment on the looming Nueva Ardian Presidential Election or President Melos.

SENATE TO DEBATE ACHKAERIN JOINING PKCS

By David Woods: Political Correspondent

The Senate is to debate the possibility of Achkaerin contributing to the Paracambian Kyne Convoy System. The development comes as the situation in the Kyne continues to develop as does the related matter of the bioweapons lab discovery. The motion was laid by the Minister of Foreign Affairs Richard Chambers (pictured above) during today's Senate business, the debate is expected to take place on Monday with the vote following immediately after the debate winds up. The Minister also explained that if the Senate were to vote in the affirmative then the Emperor could be authorising the deployment of assets, the exact nature of which is unknown due to the Emperor having final say on that, on Monday night with a formal commitment to PKCS coming on Tuesday. Minister Chambers also repeated the Governments position that independent comparative testing of the bubonic plague samples from Paracambi should be carried out as soon as possible.

THE FUTURE OF TRAVEL?

(left) concept picture of the Insignia (right) Stella Campbell pictured at work

By Maggie Clough: Business Correspondent

Stella Campbell may not be a big name in the science, technology and business world yet but she's shaping up to be one of the big names of the future and it's all because of something called the Insignia. What is the Insignia? It's a small yacht measuring, according to initial design specifications around 36.5m long, powered by hydrogen and capable of accommodating six people inside in terms of living space, though obviously the capacity for parties and the like is higher. So it sounds just like any regular private yacht doesn't it? Not very exciting? Well you'd be wrong because this thing has a familiar party piece.

It's designed to be a Wing In Ground Effect Vehicle, and if that terminology means nothing to you then the word Ekrabadger should. Using the same principle as the renowned ekranoplan operated by the East Moreland navy the Insignia is intended to be able to handle waves up to 3.5m in size and fly at an altitude of 4m plus it can function as a normal yacht. When explaining her reasoning Ms Campbell said "Whether people like it or not we're living in a world where the resources we've relied on for a long time are running out, they may last for decades yet they may last for centuries yet but we need to start looking at what the future of Mundus is going to be in transport terms and then I had the fortune to attend the Festival of Sail last year and see the Ekrabadger, from there this vision started to take shape the idea that we could use the concept behind the Ekrabadger coupled with clean energy to create a sustainable future for travel. Hopefully we'll have a prototype ready for the festival of sail next year and if it works we'll then take this to the next step."

It is understood that the Insignia will be developed at Riviere Corporation's Illumic Regional HQ in Chamwick as the prize for winning Achkaerin Young Engineer of the Year (Something Stella did a few days ago) is business investment and support from Riviere Corporation for an initial period of two years.

ATHLETES RETURN HOME

By Nick Watson: Sports Correspondent

Achkaerin's athletes have returned home from the Mundus Games. The team which racked up a new record medal tally did themselves and their nation proud over the eighteen days of competition with plenty of inspiring performances whether it was Sammy Lawson pedalling her way to yet more medals, the footballers showing why their the world number one team, Robin Amberbrook surprising in the MMMA or even young Erin Brooks shocking the favourites in the gymnastics. The full effect of the teams performances will take shape over the coming months, in the more short term there is a planned reception for the athletes at the Marble Palace and an open top bus parade through the streets of Valtheim.

[Achkaerin]

SENATE UPDATES EXPORT REGULATIONS FOR NUCLEAR MATERIAL

By Roisin Shaughnessy: Chief Correspondent

The Senate has voted through amendments to the regulations governing the exporting of anything that involves nuclear material. The move comes following Achkaerin's signature to the MAEA and will see additional requirements placed on the exporting of material when it is nuclear in nature. The measures were outlined by Minister of Trade Viola Summers (pictured above) who explained them as follows:

"Mr Speaker the measures laid before the chamber today are a number of new regulations that govern the export of nuclear material by Achkaerinese companies in both the military and civilian sectors, they bring our export regulations into line with our signature as members of the Mundus Atomic Energy Agency and will ensure that our international obligations as MAEA members are met. Mr Speaker the measures proposed today will require any sale of nuclear material to only be sold to nations that are members of the MAEA as per article 10(d) of the MAEA charter. In addition a new category will be created in the military export regulations to incorporate the MAEA and ensure that things such as nuclear powered submarines, aircraft carriers and other such assets are only sold to nations that not only meet our pre-existing thresholds but also now meet this one."

A senator did ask the Minister what the Government's opinion was on the now cancelled sale of submarines to Tytor by Rokkenjima to which the Minister said "Commenting on that is not the purpose of today's statement but very briefly, this now cancelled sale represents what in our opinion is the latest in a long line of issues where Rokkenjima has failed to get all its ducks in a row before taking the considered action. On a side note it would also be helpful if Rokkenjima did not consistently contradict itself."

The motions presented passed through the Senate by a tally of 324-6

[Achkaerin]

ACHKAERIN REMEMBERS ON MEMORIAL DAY

By Roisin Shaughnessy: Chief Correspondent

Once more Achkaerin fell silent to remember the fallen in conflicts past and present today. Across the nation many acts of remembrance took place, in Valtheim the Emperor laid a poppy wreath at the Great War Memorial, also present were the leaders of the Government and other political parties. In Phuebra, where Achkaerinese troops are serving the day was also marked with the expected two minutes silence. As is tradition the day's events concluded with the Memorial Day festival of remembrance at the Royal Theatre in Valtheim (scene from the service pictured above), as in previous years there were guests from the international community including from Dragovah and the NQF. The themed focus this year for Memorial Day appeared to be on the northern ocean, a part of the Great War which saw fierce fighting on the seas, iron resolve on the land and courage in the skies. That war may be well in the past now but the lessons of the conflict, the reasons why people went to war are just as important to remember now as they were then. As always Achkaerin News Services pays tribute on this day to the Achkaerinese Armed Forces and expresses it's most sincere thanks to all those who gave their lives to ensure the future of Mundus that we now live in.

GOVERNMENT CONDEMNS TYTOR TERRORIST ATTACK

By Olivia Moore: International News Correspondent

The Achkaerinese Government has condemned a series of terrorist attacks in the Kingdom of Tytor. In an emergency statement, not to be confused with an urgent question as an urgent question must be laid in advance with notice, an emergency statement can be made at any time by a Government Minister with leave of the Speaker. Making the Emergency Statement was Vice Consul Rhian Kennedy (pictured above) who said as follows:

"Mr Deputy Speaker in the last few moments the Tytorian Broadcasting Service has reported that a series of terrorist attacks have taken place across that nation, at present it is believed to be seventeen targets that have been hit and a provisional ballpark death toll is in the region of two to five thousand. Now Mr Deputy Speaker let me first state and I'm sure I speak for all corners of this chamber when I say that our thoughts are with the families of those affected by this terrible tragedy. Secondly let me state that Achkaerin opposes terrorism in all its forms and we without reservation condemn this attack on our Tytorian friends. On today of all days we should as a community of nations stand united. To the Government of Tytor I am pleased to say that any assistance they may require Achkaerin stands ready to provide."

[Achkaerin]

BLOOD DRIVES FOR TYTOR ACROSS NATION

Students at St James School, Santiago

By James Robson: Home Affairs Correspondent

In response to the terrorist attacks in Tytor, several schools across Achkaerin have held blood drives. It isn't the first time a national response of this sort has been seen - following the disaster that befell the UNP a national blood drive was but one of many response program's with others including food contributions, medical supplies and clothing. Speaking in response to the blood drives Minister for International Aid Hannelina Porter said "It's heartening to know that when something like this happens that there's a community of nations that will render aid. We hope that our aid contributions can be headed for Tytor within the next day or so."

[Achkaerin]

QUEEN'S FOUNDATION AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED

Charlotte Youngson, Chair of the Queen's Foundation during today's announcements

By Roisin Shaughnessy: Chief Correspondent

The Queen's Foundation Awards winners for 2019 have been announced. The Awards, made annually recognize the achievements of individuals or organisations in a variety of different fields. This year was the first year that Chair of the Foundation, Charlotte Youngson (pictured above) was able to personally make the announcements following a long battle with illness. The full list of winners is as follows:

Chemistry - "University of Artaxia Think Tank" for developing the Sea Salt Brick
 
Physics - The CNN for "Moon Bombing Run"

Physiology and Medicine - Olivia Robertsson for Establishing measures to actively reduce AIDS/HIV in Zimalia.

Literature and Journalism - The Bene Gesserit Sisterhood for Outstanding Citizen Journalism

Peace - Duchess Anna Davidson for negotiating and securing the Environmental Treaty of Wellow

Economics - Maxime Anginer for  Successful leading of negotiations with the Empire of Tamora for a contract with The Conglomerate, with great cultural differences

Engineering - TUNA for Ocean Clean Up Operations

Archaeology and Anthropology - Marcus Merriman for the Paul the Explorer and Phukbridge developments

Mathematics - Professor Francis Delacour for transforming arithmetic algebraic geometry over p-adic fields through his introduction of perfectoid spaces, with application to Galois representations, and for the development of new cohomology theories.

Speaking at the awards conference Ms Youngson said "The Queen's Foundation prides itself on judging these awards irrespective of who the nominee is, what matters is whether or not they meet the criteria that the Foundation sets out, this year we are delighted that in every field winners have met the threshold that we set. We congratulate all this years winners on their accomplishments."

OOC Note - where there was no nominee I've added in.

[Achkaerin]

ACHKAERIN SPACE AGENCY TO SEND STARLIGHT SPACECRAFT ON FIRST MISSION

Starlight pictured after a routine test flight

By Kimberly Thorn: Science and Technology Correspondent

The Achkaerin Space Agency has, for the first time, put its Starlight Spacecraft to use on a mission. The Starlight is a robotic reusable space vehicle, that gets taken up to orbit by a launch vehicle and then lands as a spaceplane once the mission is completed. According to the Achkaerin Space Agency this first flight is a very simple payload carry and deployment one, the Starlight will deploy what in a nod to the television show Doctor Who has been named the TARDIS satellite because this satellite carries a deep space atomic clock, a device that will improve deep space navigation. The Achkaerin Space Agency has confirmed that this mission forms part of its long term Atlantis Project. Speaking about the Starlight Director of Flight Operations Nicola Fernley said: "We're very excited to finally have the chance to see what the Starlight can do, and the deployment of this satellite is an ideal opportunity to give it a full workout. If successful we hope to have several more missions for this family of spacecraft."

[Achkaerin]

SENATE BACKS ACTION IN CLYSPERIS

The Emperor pictured on arrival at the Senate

The Achkaerinese Senate has voted to support a request by the Emperor to intervene militarily in Clysperis. The vote carried by a tally of 494 in favour to 5 against, this is not the first time that such a vote has been required however it is the first time since the war in Safraen that the country affected has been this close to Achkaerin in the geographic sense. As is required under the constitution the Crown (the monarch or their representative) must present their case to the Senate in what is known as an article six statement - these being the circumstances under which the monarch may address the Senate usually this is the annual Covenant Address and the weekly question session however circumstances such as tonight are also within the articles scope. In addressing the Senate the Emperor said the following:

"Mr Speaker, tonight as is required by our sacred constitution I come to this chamber to make a request of the Senate under article six for the deployment of military force. Before I address the matter specifically I would like to extend my personal thanks to the Senate Business Committee chaired by the Leader of the Senate Chamber for allowing me to make this statement tonight and I'd also like to thank the honourable members of this chamber for remaining to listen, discuss and vote on the matter I bring.

A few days ago Mr Speaker I was contacted by the Pharoah of Clysperis, in the letter she sent me the Pharaoh explained the current situation in Clysperis and then did something quite unexpected. She asked for my help. Now Mr Speaker I can assure the Senate that I was just as shocked to read that letter as members of this chamber will be to hear that such a letter was even written. In the darkest moments her country has faced since the soviet occupation of its lands she found the strength to ask something she probably never thought she would. And it is the results of this request for aid that are laid before the Senate tonight.

Under our foreign intervention protocol I am clear that the first exception to the non intervention directive is met, the Pharaoh has asked for our assistance - our intelligence services have as per that exception independently verified that which we were informed of by the Pharaoh, historical artefacts are being looted from the graves of people who have long since departed this world and used to fund this insurrection, we have people being executed and terrorized for no other reason than they choose to follow a faith that is different to that of their assailants. Now Mr Speaker I am by no means an expert on Manism or Islam but I am a Namist and while as a Namist my faith may at times take issue with the traditions and practices of other nations it does not Mr Speaker give me license to kill somebody just because they are from a different nation or practice a different faith, It does not give me license to dishonour the dead and it most certainly does not teach me to ignore a call for help.

I also want to be clear Mr Speaker that it is my position that Pharaoh Akasha of Clysperis is the legitimate head of state of that country, and that is perhaps the most significant point here because even if we disagree with her on some things are we really going to leave a fellow northern ocean nation, one of our neighbours to burn? No we cannot and we must not, for to do so would be to go contrary to everything we stand for, everything we have strived for in recent times and it would be to abdicate our responsibilities and it is not our way to do any such thing.

Mr Speaker we are a nation of laws, we are a nation that respects the rule of law, the very fact that I am standing here tonight bringing this matter to this chamber testifies to that fact, we are a nation defined by and that takes pride in our role in the international community, we are not a nation that walks by on the other side. And we all know don't we that when the rule of law is challenged unjustly, when people seek to make a mockery of the foundations of society that such arrogance, such malice, such ill intent must be stood up against and sealed away back into the void from whence it came! And if it does somehow re-emerge to cast it out again and again and again until much like the schoolyard bully it takes the hint and stops bothering you.

Now Mr Speaker I fully expect that there will be those in this chamber tonight who believe that taking direct military action in Clysperis is not the way to go about this. It is a legitimate view and it is one that I hope all Senators will respect even if they do not agree with it. And I hope those Senators that disagree with my view on this will respect my opinion when I say this - the threat posed by the so called Confederation is credible, the destabilization risk to both the Northern Ocean Community and to Midaranye is very real. We have the capability to do something about it and we have been asked to do something about it, so why would we not knowing this do something about it? The simple truth is we don't ignore the voice asking for help and the Pharaoh of Clysperis is asking. I implore the Senate not to let the Pharaoh's courage be for naught and to look beyond her past words and so I commend this statement to the House."

[Achkaerin]

FORMER PONTIFF RETURNS HOME FOR CARE

By Roisin Shaughnessy: Chief Correspondent

The former Pope Peter II or to use his non Pontiff name Alexander Deed has flown home to Achkaerin. The former Pontiff resigned from his Papal role on health grounds and flew home today for care reasons. He was welcomed at Artaxia airport by his adoptive family the Cardinal of Santiago, Martin Deed (adoptive father) and Minister of Science and Technology Kathryn Deed (adoptive sister), the family relationship is known to have strained in recent times especially around controversial faith issues, one notable example resulted in a long term protest of equal rights occurring outside the Ecclesiastical State embassy in Valtheim. No comments were made by anyone however a statement released by the Cardinal's office later in the day said "It is unfortunate that the events that have occurred have come to pass, given the nature of the illness that my adopted son suffers from I believe he made a tough but selfless decision. I have extended my congratulations via telephone to the newly elected Pontiff and hope to enjoy the opportunity to celebrate mass with him soon."

ATTORNEY GENERAL TO STAND DOWN AHEAD OF 2020 POLL

By David Woods: Political News Correspondent

Samuel White, the Attorney General, has announced that he is standing down from the role after nearly ten years of service because he intends to run as a Senate candidate in the 2020 election, something he would not be able to do as Attorney General because the role is neutral in political terms. It is understood Mr White will stand as a candidate for the Unity Party in a few months time when Achkaerin goes to the ballot box and elects the government. Speaking of his time as Attorney General Mr White said "Having the opportunity to serve my country as Attorney General has been the highlight of my career so far, in a few months I hope to be able to serve the country in a different way as an elected representative. I extend my warmest thanks to my colleagues in the Attorney's office who have supported me for close to a decade and I know they will support whomever occupies this great office next just as they have supported me."

The replacement for Mr White as Attorney General is expected to be announced by the Marble Palace reasonably swiftly. The Attorney General is one of five primary cabinet positions that the Crown is responsible for the appointment of on the grounds of political neutrality the others being the Government science advisor, Chief Medical Officer, National Security Advisor and Cabinet Secretary. In official comments the Emperor thanked Mr White for his service as Attorney General.

PRINCE JACK OBSERVES TRADITION

By Niamh Roberts: Royal News Correspondent

Prince Jack has observed the Lodjan tradition of asking permission from the Queen or her representatives to court a member of the Lodjan Royal Household. The announcement comes following rumours that the Prince and Duchess Katyusha of Lodja were in a relationship and also follows on from a reminder of the tradition from Queen Klara. In the Queen's stead the triumvirate of King Leopold, High Priestess Alla Kohan and Lord Besarian Ivanov granted the Prince's request. Later in the day following this the Prince and the Duchess were seen out and about in Gaia both pleased with the news.

The Marble Palace, which so far had declined to comment out of respect for the Lodjan tradition, has issued a statement saying "The Royal family are greatly pleased with the news and they hope to have the opportunity to meet Duchess Katyusha in the near future."

"WE'RE READY" - COACH CHURCHILL

By Nick Watson: Sports Correspondent

Rayne Churchill, coach of the Achkaerin men's international rugby team, has said that the Fox's are ready for the World Cup. Ms Churchill, the eldest daughter of the Achkaerinese ambassador to Tytor, is leading the side into what will be her second World Cup in charge. Speaking ahead of the tournament opening games Ms Churchill said "Given how the first stage of this tournament is going to work I think it's safe to say that we'll never have seen a tournament anything like this before. To have to play nineteen games in the round robin stage is going to make things very interesting for all the teams involved, and it's going to be a crowd pleaser for the fans because they will get to see the Honeybadgers take on the Maori, they'll get to see us take on Vaguzia, they'll even get to see that rarest of things a Rokkenjiman team competing. As for us well we're ready, we lost the final to the Iwi last year and we're determined to go one better this year."

The opening games of the Tournament saw Ui Cenneslaig defeat Hassfurt while co-hosts Cantabria achieved a bonus point win over Rokkenjima. Achkaerin will open their tournament campaign against Vaguzia.

[Achkaerin]

PRINCE ISAAC KILLED IN TERRORIST ATTACK

By Roisin Shaughnessy: Chief Correspondent

Prince Isaac, husband of Crown Princess Serenity, father to Princess Astrid and stepfather to Princess Lisa has been killed in a terrorist attack in Valtheim today. The Prince and his family had just finished visiting children at the Royal Valtheim Children's Hospital when the attack occurred, two gunmen attacked the family from a building opposite the hospital, the assailants were shot dead by Royal protection agents in the ensuing gun battle. The gunmen's identities have been confirmed as Chigaru Sarraf and Bassam Toma both of whom have held commissions in the Clysperi army and according to investigators served under General Nekhtou during the Clysperi war against the Soviets. When asked whether they are considering this to be an attack carried out by the so called Confederation of Clysperis the Police spokesman said "We are not going to speculate on who was responsible, naturally given the prior association of the attackers with Mr Nekhtou that will be one avenue of inquiry but we are going to be open minded and consider all possibilities."

It is understood that a thank you letter from the Emperor has been sent to both the Morelander, Uburzian, and Ecclesiastical State embassies following press statements from their respective leaderships.

[Achkaerin]

EMPEROR'S LIFE DAY MESSAGE

By Roisin Shaughnessy: Chief Correspondent

The Emperor has given his traditional Life Day Message, the address to the nation traditionally recorded on the eve of Life Day was, not for the first time, re-recorded this year following the tragic death of Prince Isaac (the only other prior re-recording came following the Emperor's wedding to his current wife). In his traditional address, broadcast mid afternoon, the Emperor said the following:

"Good afternoon and a happy Life Day to you all.

This time of year is a time of celebration for many of us regardless of faith for the Namist's it is Life Day, for the Christian's it is Christmas, for the Odinist's it is Yule. It is the twilight days of one year and the approaching dawn of the next. This is a moment to spend time with friends and family and to look back as well as forwards. I would have liked to have started my traditional message by going straight to what my family has done this past year but as I'm sure everyone will understand there is a need to first address the events of a few hours ago, my daughter's husband, my son in law, was lost in a terrorist attack. It is a loss that will be felt by Isaac's family, his friends and the country, he was a remarkable young man who did so much for so many people. He embodied the way in which I as a parent tried to raise those I consider my sons and daughters, he showed kindness, love, understanding and he stuck to his principles.

It has been an interesting year for our nation, we have seen a great many changes, weathered a great many storms, we renewed our strong bonds with Seaforth, we alongside other nations have committed ourselves to making Mundus a much safer and sustainable place for the future, not at the barrel of a gun or the point of a missile, but with international understandings, the inception of the MAEA combined with the continued commitment to nuclear disarmament of not only ourselves but East Moreland and Rokkenjima will once and for all take nuclear weapons and all their devastation off the table. The Treaty of Wellow and other environmental efforts whether they be pioneered by ourselves or by others will see that the planet we live on, when our time to pass into the next life comes, is left in a better place than it was when we came into the world. For much of this year the Achkaerin Armed Forces have for the first time in a long time not had multiple overlapping circumstances to deal with, for much of the year Mundus has enjoyed a great amount of peace, it is only in the last few weeks that this has changed with the terrorist insurgency in Clysperis. To all those in our armed forces celebrating life day abroad this year you as always have the gratitude of the nation for the work you do to make sure we are kept safe.

As I said 2019 has been a year where many things have changed. In 2020 I am hopeful that everything we have been through this year will prove to not be for nothing. For out of ashes comes fire and out of darkness comes light as surely as day follows night and sunrise follows sunset. In the new year I will have many personal reasons to be happy, I'm sure many of you will as well. There are many moments ahead of us still on the road we call our life but let's embrace the journey together and be companions on the road. Enjoy the rest of your Life Day and have a happy new year. Thank you.

LIFE DAY NUMBER ONE SURPRISE

By Zoe Tate: Entertainment Correspondent

The Life Day number one has been won by new band on the block The Aces with their song Baby Who. The band who made their Glastomundus debut earlier in the year as an up and coming band for the future were surprised to win the accolade given that the competition included several household names. The band are scheduled to go on their first national tour in the new year and this success will surely help them in that regard.

[Achkaerin]

ACHKAERIN WELCOMES IN NEW YEAR

By Roisin Shaughnessy: Chief Correspondent

Achkaerin has welcomed in the new year and in fact the start of a new decade. The traditional party in the Valtheim Gardens saw musical entertainment provided this year by Madilyn Bailey (pictured above), Jackie Evancho and Tiffany Alvord. The music was followed by a firework display and it is estimated that some 10,000 people were in attendance according to official figures. For understandable reasons the appearance of the "Curious Royals" - a sort of new years eve tradition which sees members of the Royal Family appear on the Marble Palace balcony to listen to the entertainment didn't take place this year. The members of the Senate however have observed their tradition of posting new years resolutions on social media, most of them humorous, with favourites this year including "I'll be kinder to animals" and "I'll actually commit to redecorating my house". However with 2020 being an election year the resolution "I'll retire from politics if I don't get re-elected" was tweeted by leader of the Puritan Party and outspoken critic of pretty much everything Senator Carl Macnair, incidentally the Senator sits on arguably the most comfortable majority in the country in the University District of Artaxia.

Turning to events in the coming days there is much intrigue about a rumour that the Emperor is to host a garden party in the not too distant future though the reasons why are unknown. The Senate will return to action next week with the first item on the agenda being the 2020 census followed by the appointment by the Crown of the new Attorney General.

STARLIGHT LAUNCHES FOR FIRST TIME

By Kimberly Thorn: Science and Technology Correspondent

Starlight, the Achkaerin Space Agency's latest space craft has been launched on its maiden voyage, the vessel will achieve orbit, deploy the TARDIS deep space atomic clock. orbit Mundus twice before re-entering the atmosphere and landing. While the mission includes deployment of the TARDIS deep space atomic clock, an asset that will make space navigation much easier for all space farers it is the performance of the Starlight itself that has the Agency most nervous with the ship representing a significant investment for the Agency. Other news from the Space Agency suggests that the Falcon project will make its next major step in the next few weeks with more occurring through the year.

ACHKAERIN MMMA FIGHTERS TO GO PRO

By Felicity Stewart: Sports Correspondent

Medieval Mixed Martial Arts has been something of an amateur sport in Achkaerin, following its introduction into the Mundus Games program, the sport both domestically and abroad has seen interest and participation increase and now it has been announced that the Achkaerinese association that has governed it domestically on the amateur level has successfully registered with the sports overall governing authority meaning Achkaerin's fighters can step into the pro ring and face the household names. However don't get any ideas about seeing world title fights occur featuring Achkaerinese stars any time soon, first there's the small matter of sorting out the domestic titles which is why the weekend of the 18h of January will see several tournaments take place to determine the titles under the pro system. Headlining the day will most likely be James Chase (pictured above on promotional poster) who will go for the men's heavyweight title, other notable competitors include Robin Amberbrook in bantamweight with his younger brother Amulius Amberbrook going in the men's featherweight. On the women's side the Amberbrook family will hope to see success as well as Elianor Amberbrook will contest the women's bantamweight while contesting the women's heavyweight title will be Cecilia Frost.

[Achkaerin]

GOVERNMENT GIVES CENSUS RESULTS

By David Woods: Political Correspondent

The Government has published the results of the 2020 Achkaerinese census. In a speech given in Senate Hall, Lizbeth Stewart Minister of Home Affairs (pictured above) explained the results saying:

"According to law every ten years the Government of the day is required to carry out a census, in centuries gone by this simply amounted to a counting of the individual people to determine population, over time more data such as religion, schooling, profession, wage etc has also become discernible and such are the methods these days that there is much that can be figured out from the acquired data.

Dealing with the headlines first the population of Achkaerin, that is to say those persons living within sovereign Achkaerinese territory, is 82 million, that will to some statisticians appear to be a remarkable jump in numbers up several million however it is nothing so dramatic because this is a census where for the first time we have included Gowu in the main numbers rather than as an adjoining annex as the Endeavour Party government of 2010 did. In truth the population increase is up by a mark in the hundreds of thousands rather than the millions. We also have seen in these results a shift in age group numbers which is to be expected with people living longer. The ethnic groups are also becoming increasingly diverse which can be associated with the various refugee crises that as a nation Achkaerin has helped with. This is not something that can be predicted however it is within what we would expect to see in these figures.

The religious breakdown does resemble much of the 2010 census but also reflects the diversity we see as result of Mundus in modern times. Of note is that this is the first census where the Bene Gesserit features as a recognized faith. I remind the world at this point that it is the policy of this government that terrorist actions are carried out by individuals, it cannot be said that all followers of a faith terrorists simply because one follower carries out a terrorist act. The Bene Gesserit is identified as the faith followed by approximately 1% of those counted in the census."

The census result is expected to be debated through the week by the Senate.

SCRIVENS SETS UP SHOP IN JOSAI

By Maggie Clough: Business Correspondent

Janelle Scrivens, a recent graduate of the Royal Northfort University has finalized, according to reports, her maiden business venture - the company called Scrivens Medical is to be based in Josai and will focus on pioneering new medical treatment and research. When asked for comment Ms Scrivens (pictured above) said "I've had a few months to think about what I wanted to do with my life after graduating University and the more I thought about it the more I came back to my time as JET volunteer, so this company from the ground up will focus on developing new treatments and methods in the medical field - we're beginning with researching growing replacement organs. Just imagine how many lives could be saved a year if we could do this."

Of background interest is that Ms Scrivens is one of the four remaining Nueva Ardian Royals.

[Achkaerin]

ANAUSA REVIEW TO BE PUBLISHED THURSDAY

By Olivia Moore: International News Correspondent

The long awaited review of Rokkenjima's Anausa carried out by Major Matthew Kirby (pictured above left) is to be published to the public on Thursday. The review commissioned by Empress Beatrice at the behest of her Viceregent was tasked with identifying the failings and abuses of the Anausa, establishing how the agency was corrupted and then with making recommendations moving forwards. The review is not expected to be complimentary to the Anausa and will almost certainly make recommendations that are perhaps more radical than some in Rokkenjiman political circles would like. And this will be the measure of the reports significance, once Major Kirby has delivered the findings at Pyretennia University tomorrow all eyes will turn to Pyrena and the Diet for their reaction and also interestingly to Avalon in Achkaerin to see what this means for the somewhat unfinished matters surrounding the Andean Genocide that are caught up in this. There has been no comment from anyone on what may happen as a result of this but the stakes are well known and they are significant.

STARLIGHT DELIVERS TARDIS

By Kimberly Thorn: Science and Technology Correspondent

The Achkaerinese Space Agency's Starlight spacecraft has completed the primary objective of its maiden flight, having successfully achieved orbit and held it for 48 hours the Starlight safely deployed the TARDIS deep space atomic clock into Mundus orbit. The Starlight then performed a successful re-entry and touched down at the ASA's HQ in Djana-Ville a few hours later. Speaking following the conclusion of the mission Director of Flight Operations Nicola Fernley said "We're thrilled with how the Starlight did on this run, and from our initial readings the TARDIS is running well within its parameters and now we have a vital navigational assist in orbit and that's something every space agency on Mundus can be happy about."

ACHKAERIN MMMA PRO CHAMPIONS DECIDED

By Felicity Stewart: Sports Correspondent

Achkaerin has its first professional Medieval Mixed Martial Arts champions, the tournaments held over the weekend crowned champions on both the mens and womens side at all competitive weights. The headline event as expected was in the men's heavyweight where the championship weight pitted James Chase (pictured above left) against Michael North (pictured above right), given the quality of the match fans will hope to see many more bouts where these two go head to head, the fight was won by James Chase by knockout. An interested spectator over the course of finals day as it was termed was Crown Princess Serenity which has left many wondering whether she's looking at possibly having the Legacy Sport Foundation, the wounded veterans charity which she runs, take a look at the sport for potential exploration in the future.

[Achkaerin]

MAJOR KIRBY PUBLISHES ANAUSA REPORT

By Roisin Shaughnessy: Chief Correspondent

Major Kirby has published the findings of the long awaited Anausa report, the review ordered close to two years ago by Empress Beatrice of Rokkenjima and her Viceregent came about following the revelations that the organisation had been corrupted in part and had acted against the Rokkenjiman crown. Speaking today Major Kirby said:

"With this report we looked at three periods of time firstly 2005-2013, secondly 2013-2017 and then finally 2017 to the present. In the case of the first time period our purpose was to establish an understanding of Anausa operational methodology to establish a baseline at a time prior to the appointment of Charles Foster Ofdensen as Lord High Steward. For this first time period it can be concluded based on our findings that during this time the Anausa acted and operated exactly as intended. However following the appointment of Charles Ofdensen as first Lord High Steward but then more noticeably as Secretary-General of the CTO a pattern begins to emerge upon examining the operational practices of several Anausa agents, their bank accounts and correspondence records that rather than their duty being towards the Crown of Rokkenjima there was a clear closed circle of Anausa operatives reporting to Mr Ofdensen, the details of each of these agents were found in files seized from Mr Ofdensen's premises. It should be noted that several of these agents have since turned up dead in numerous incidents across Mundus which I will come to shortly.

During the second time period mentioned earlier we come to a period of time which includes among other incidents the Andean Genocide, this is the incident which prompted this review as it is the incident where it becomes apparent that a government within a government orchestrated by Charles Ofdensen was being run. How was such a thing accomplished? Well based on our investigations findings it appears that over many years Mr Ofdensen used Anausa operatives that he trusted to acquire leverage over Rokkenjiman politicians, some imperial councillors and allegedly the Empress herself. As people may be aware when she was tried over the Andean Genocide the Empress gave a sworn in which she stated that Charles Ofdensen used a phone conversation between herself and Kyle Barren over the kidnap by King's Blood of Crown Princess Adriana as leverage to ensure that she didn't step in over the genocide. There is no evidence that any such conversation took place as such there will likely be legal proceedings put in motion but that is not within the remit of this report. The leverage over the Empress appears does not appear to exist, however this does not mean to say that Mr Ofdensen did not seek to influence her.

Following the conviction of Mr Ofdensen in 2017 the leadership of the Anausa changed hands to Mr Lelouch Lamperogue. During Mr Lamperogue's tenure several of the corrupted Anausa were found dead across Mundus in different circumstances, the Anausa put the blame on the Bene Gesserrit and a whistle blower suggested that Rokkenjima contacted East Moreland and asked them to carry out what would amount to acts of state sponsored terrorism similar to those perpetrated by the government of Kaitaine not that long ago. There is no evidence that the Rokkenjiman government contacted East Moreland about this, there is no evidence that East Moreland were in anyway involved and considering that all the dead are former Anausa it is not credible to conclude that the Bene Gesserit were responsible. Having considered the evidence it appears that the Anausa themselves, independent of any governmental body engaged in what can only be described as a civil war which has seen the death most recently of Mr Lamperogue.

Based on the contents of this report the following recommendations are submitted to the Rokkenjiman Government:

1) The Anausa to be immediately disbanded

2) The names of all suspected rogue Anausa to be communicated to counterpart intelligence agencies these persons to be detained and transported back to Rokkenjima.

3) Immediately following execution of point 2, Rokkenjima to suspend all intelligence sharing agreements that it is party to in order to allow a restructuring of Rokkenjiman intelligence to take place - this will also allow final verification on how entrenched corruption was and how far it extended.

4) The Rokkenjiman Government to comply with any subsequent legal proceedings that arise from the publication of this report.

5) Arrangements at Pyrena Castle in terms of the security of the Imperial Family to remain as they are.

Questions have already started circling about whether the decision of Empress Beatrice to leave the throne was anything to do with this report coming out. There has been no comment from Pyrena on this.

[Achkaerin]

OZZIE ROUNDUP: ACHKAERINESE NOMINEES WIN THREE AWARDS

By Zoe Tate: Entertainment Correspondent

It has been another successful year for Achkaerinese nominee's at the Ostlake Film Awards otherwise known as the Ozzies. Overall the success matched last year as once again three awards ended the night flying across the Great Northern Ocean to Achkaerin. First the Achkaerin Space Agency won Best International Documentary for it's documentary on the future of space exploration. Next up the a group of Film students from the University of Valkyria walked away with the Best International Animated Short, while Cassidy Raven better known to film fans as Captain Emma Thrace of the USS Enterprise won the Ozzie for Best International Song Featured in a Motion Picture with her rendition of Blue Skies.

Minister of Culture Bonnie Harper has described the Ozzie success as "Something special." she was in particular quite proud of the students from the University of Valkyria, that nomination came about following an expansion of the Aspire Film competition running in Achkaerinese High Schools each year the prize in that case includes an Ozzie nomination for Best International Short Film, the university versions prize is a nomination in the Best Animated Short. Minister Harper did comment on this saying "One of the things that we've been trying to do in government is to engage more children with the arts such as singing, dancing and film, we've done this in different ways and we've been quite fortunate on the film side with the success the initiative has had. I'm already looking forward to seeing what happens next year.

However despite all the success there has been a note of disquiet around the aftermath of this years ceremony with many critics concerned at what appears to be a developing bias on the part of the awarding committee as summed up by one person, who did not wish to be identified: "Including 2017 the Best International Film has gone to a picture based on a historic event - we've seen Hotel Ubakasa, Au Revoir, Silence and now Time of Darkness win in successive years, we have to now surely ask if it's even worth those directors and producers who delve into the worlds of comedy or horror or fantasy actually even shortlisting for consideration, because it's starting to look like if you don't have a film rooted in history you won't win. And on top of that we've then got Achkaerinese musical performances winning the International Song award three years on the spin. There's a perceptual bias here." The Committee has been approached for comment but none was received at time of publication.

Overall however this was still a good night summed up by Achkaerinese director Fiona North saying "Nights like this show just how strong the film industry is on Mundus, they show a wide range of talent, and it's without question a very special night each year. From what I hear the upcoming year could be a very interesting Box Office battle at home there are some hugely anticipated films coming. I start filming the next instalment of the Rhythm series next week so I'm looking forward to getting back to filming and hoping it all works out for us."

COUNT EMERSON ON "NEW FOREIGN AGENDA"

By Olivia Moore: International News Correspondent

Ever since it was announced by the now former Empress of Rokkenjima that the Viceregent would have a mandate to develop a new foreign policy for Rokkenjima there have been a lot of questions about what sort of policy this was likely to be and whether Rokkenjima would agree with it, since that announcement of course the position of Empress has changed. Speaking in an interview the Viceregent, Count of Saika, Emerson Ravenswood explained what could be expected in a few areas:

On what the General Approach will be

"It's going to be different, we're essentially starting from scratch. In term's of things already in existence we'll be looking at them and asking not 'what do we want' but 'what do we need' and we'll apply this to every treaty that Rokkenjima is party to, from there we'll determine whether we can stand by the existing treaty or whether it needs reviewing, honestly there is at least one treaty that in my view needs renegotiating. Overall this will be a much more diplomacy based approach because we're now well past the point of deployment of the IRN being remotely threatening, it's been done that many times I'd be surprised if there was a government on Mundus that did not have a piece of paper somewhere with 'what to do if the IRN turns up' written at the top of it. On top of that we need to consider that Rokkenjima used to have probably the most developed diplomatic network on Mundus and now it pales in comparison to East Moreland and Achkaerin in this area and those are two nations whose policy involves talking before threatening military action. Our starting point is acknowledging what, where and when things went wrong and developing a policy and a footing that recognizes that Mundus is a whole lot different now than it was a few years ago."

On Rokkenjiman Overseas Military Bases

"Their continued existence will have to be reviewed, with a focus on whether their continued existence can be justified. This was the yardstick that Seaforth used in deciding that the old QAMB should close because they quite rightly concluded that there does not exist a threat in the Illumic or Mhorish area that the native states of that region are incapable of handling themselves. So we now have to apply that to each of the bases and determine whether they should continue to operate."

On the Nueva Ardia Situation

"I highly doubt the change in Rokkenjima's leadership is going to change the substantive position within Nueva Ardia. I'm not going to comment on my personal view of the referendum, but I will say that anyone saying that the referendum needs to be rerun needs to explain why the result the first time around is unsafe, no one has yet done so, on top of that there's no history of electoral malpractice in Nueva Ardia so the incidents cited in the Global News Network could easily be as described, there's no reason to believe anything malicious occurred, obviously should evidence be produced then the matter gets revisited but without that everyone needs to recognize a) that Tero Melos is the democratically elected leader of Nueva Ardia and b) is permitted to seek re-election in 2023."

[Achkaerin]

PRINCESS CERYS CELEBRATES "5TH" BIRTHDAY

Princess Cerys pictured during an interview last week

By Niamh Roberts: Royal Family Correspondent

Her Royal Highness Princess Cerys Azurewind, daughter of Princess Esme and niece of Emperor Peter has celebrated her "fifth” birthday, in truth the Princess has turned twenty this year however her birthday being February the 29th, making her a 'leap day' baby, means that this is only the fifth time she has been able to celebrate it on her actual birthday. The Princess marked the day with Royal duties in the morning, a visit to Rosevale to see how preparations for the annual Rosevale Flower Show are progressing followed by a visit to a local school to be a surprise judge at a science fair, following her return to Valtheim there was the traditional visit to the Pantheon of the Trinity and then as one would expect a birthday party in the evening. The party's guest list included a large proportion of the Achkaerinese nobility and long term patients from the Royal Children's Hospital in Valtheim, a hospital the Princess is a patron of. Also in attendance, naturally, were the Royal Family including the Princess's brother Prince Jack who dropped in from Lodja accompanied by girlfriend Katyusha Andronikashivili to attend the festivities.

[Achkaerin]

RIVIERE UNVEILS NEW SOLAR DRONE - WILL IT ANSWER "SPACE JUNK" ISSUE?

By Kimberley Thorn: Science and Technology Correspondent

Riviere Corporation has unveiled it's latest product, a solar powered drone called the Phoenix Mk 2, to those who follow technological developments on Mundus Riviere Corporation dabbling in Solar technology is nothing new, they've done solar powered flight with the Phoenix Mk 1 in 2015 and they've done, in collaboration with McKinley Naval Solutions, solar powered sailing with the Sunseeker as seen at last years Festival of Sail in East Moreland. So what is it that makes this one special? Well It was explained by Riviere Corporation CEO Catriona Rowan as follows:

"An inescapable truth for some time has been that the area of space around Mundus has become quite crowded with satellites from a great number of nations, we have two space stations up there, various networks of different types, there's the Theia Space telescope as well. It's a wonder anyone can get out and do any actual space exploration right now, and as more satellites go up there the harder it will become to launch exploration missions. This is a point made most recently by Professor Kessler before he disappeared. What we hope to demonstrate is that a fleet of Phoenix Mk 2's working in tandem with each other can take the strain off the satellite network orbiting Mundus, because these drones are capable of flying higher than air traffic and of staying airborne for years at a time, we believe that we can use a network of these drones in much the same way as satellites are used to receive and relay information, something like an internet signal, maybe some phone carriers. If that works then what we've got is a change of circumstances in that we won't have nations and companies needing to replace every satellite in orbit and that in turn makes the orbit of Mundus far less crowded. By no means are we saying that there won't be satellites up there, we're simply saying that if this works there won't be as many."

It is expected that Riviere Corporation will trial the technology in several phases and if successful submit a proposal, probably with the assistance of the Achkaerinese Government to the OSSC.

ROBERT WESTBROOKE APPOINTED ATTORNEY GENERAL

By David Woods: Political Correspondent

Robert Westbrooke has been formally appointed the Attorney General, following the resignation of Samuel White (pictured above left) so that he can stand as a candidate in the upcoming election. Mr Westbrooke was formally appointed by the Emperor yesterday and sworn into office by Lady Olivia Leonidas on behalf of the Crown - this due to the politically neutral alignment of the office of Attorney General. As is tradition Mr Westbrooke was introduced and commended to the Senate by his predecessor, in doing so Mr White explained Mr Westbrooke's stellar career experience - "He has twenty five years experience as a barrister and ten years experience as a judge in the High Court. He has also written many articles during his career and was editor of the Achkaerin Law Journal for ten years, a publication he still contributes to. He's highly respected within the profession and will serve the office with dignity, respect and above all fairness."

[Achkaerin]

FOREIGN OFFICE UNIMPRESSED WITH WADDEN

By David Woods: Political Correspondent

In a routine Foreign Office questions session in the Senate today the Foreign Office expressed its concern with the nation of Wadden following recent comments made by Sultan Yahya IV, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Chloe Murray (pictured above) standing in for Minister of Foreign Affairs Richard Chambers, who was absent due to a family engagement, took questions on a variety of issues ranging from the Clysperi civil war to Nueva Ardia she was then asked by Shadow Minister of Foreign Affairs Nick Lewis "What does the Government have to say in response to recent comments made by the Sultan of Wadden on water?" The response given by Senator Murray was as follows:

"As the honourable Senator knows Achkaerin is a signatory of the Mundus Convention of Universal Rights, as such we have a policy that ensures access to clean water for all our citizens. We note quite rightly that Wadden is not an MCUR signatory and let's be clear they aren't bound to the document so they can have whatever policy they wish to have on water. However Mr Speaker let us be equally clear with just how wrong, morally wrong, this statement by the Sultan truly is. The Sultan states that 'We believe only those who contribute to the tribe should get water' now on the face of it that might appear to be an innocuous statement however this statement makes the very clear implication that those who do not, for whatever reason, contribute to the tribe do not get water. Now fair enough we do not know what amounts to a contribution but the point is that those that do not contribute appear to have to go without water and as we know a human being can last for approximately three days without water. So what we have here is a policy on the part of a Head of State no less that would appear to condone withholding from people something that they cannot do without. And if that's the case Mr Speaker then this policy most certainly strays into the waters of immorality, the notion that any government would actively pursue a policy so detrimental to its own citizens is frankly unbelievable and disgraceful. This is not an argument nor observation under the MCUR, this is a biological observation rooted in scientific fact, no nation on Mundus should be cheering or applauding this for to do so would be to condone something of great criminality irrespective of a nations position on the MCUR."

AEROBREAKER TAKES RECORD

By Kimberley Thorn: Science and Technology Correspondent

Team Breaker, a group of students from the University of Artaxia, have taken their second land speed record - having already taken the record for a Solar Powered vehicle last year with their Dawnbreaker vehicle they've taken the land speed record for a human powered vehicle with the Aerobreaker (pictured above), with an existing record of 89.58mph the team had initially aimed for 92mph but following a weekend of attempts they broke the record with a run hitting speeds of 94mph. The Aerobraker was piloted by renowned cyclist Sammy Lawson who described the experience as "Possibly the weirdest stint of cycling I've ever done." Team Breaker's leader Kit Davenport spoke with us after the successful run had been confirmed saying:

"I wasn't sure if we were going to manage this one really not because I doubt the ability of the people involved but we had a catalogue of things thrown at us this weekend, crosswinds, gusts, fog, rain basically pretty much everything in the weather box that could grind us to a halt. We just got that few minutes of clear sky and a dry road and just had to hope Sammy could do it. I would like to thank Riviere Corporation for their continued support of the team and I look forward to the next one."

Shortly thereafter Riviere Corporation CEO Catriona Rowan, who was present for the record attempt, stated: "It's brilliant to see success like this especially for students who want to challenge the world. They do all the theory, they do all the calculations we simply build the vehicle and make sure it runs safely our entire input on this is in the safety department it's not about Riviere it's about this group of students, maybe in a few weeks I'll sit down with Kit and Luke (Ayanami) and we'll come up with the next one. And if we do then it'll be another interesting ride."

DID FOX'S JUST BLOW WORLD CUP WIDE OPEN?

By Nick Watson: Sports Correspondent

As the Rugby World Cup approaches the conclusion of the Round Robin Stage the quarter finalists are slowly being determined as game numbers run out and points differences look ever larger. However following the sixteenth match day in the Round Robin there's an air of optimism around the tournament because the predicted top two in the table are not the two that are presently there - yes East Moreland's Honeybadger machine sits as predicted at the top of the table having defeated all opposition thus far but sitting second in the table at the moment are Achkaerin's Fox's, now this might not initially seem significant however a top three order of East Moreland, Achkaerin and then the Iwi has the potential to defy the pre tournament expectation as explained by now retired former Fox's Captain Tovan Holtz:

"When you come into a tournament like this there's a lot to contend with, there's what the pundits say, there's the form of the various teams and players and then there's the belief both within the squad and that of the supporters. The pre tournament expectations of the Round Robin group stage were that the Morelanders and Maori would sweep all before them except possibly each other, which would in the knockout stages place them on opposite side of the draw potentially allowing them to lock out the final. From a neutral standpoint we'd undoubtedly all like to see the best two sides in the world square off in the winner takes all game at the end of this, but that's not presently on the cards. The hard earned draw that Achkaerin got against the Iwi and now the victory over the Iwi by East Moreland in conjunction with the Achkaerinese victory over Phuebra have propelled Achkaerin up to second in the table with the Iwi third and East Moreland at the top. Now as a player you try not to look too far ahead lest you tempt fate but if that were to be the finishing order then East Moreland and the Iwi would end up on the same side of the quarter final draw and potentially meet in the semi finals which would leave the other half of the draw pretty much wide open, and of course strange things have been known to happen in finals, this tournament could now be a bit more open than it was twenty four hours ago."

Also aware of the subject was Fox's coach Rayne Churchill who said the following: "When we were preparing for this tournament we were preparing for the most likely route to the final if we were to win it which involves having to play both of East Moreland and the Iwi at some stage in the knockout round, but so was every other team except those two. Now I won't deny that on paper being able to avoid one of those teams would be advantageous but we're taking this one game at a time and when we get to the quarter final we'll see where the chips fall in terms of which team ends up where but whoever we play there are no easy games at this level."