Sakura, was waiting in the officers meeting room aboard the
Dalek, she'd been wondering if this had been what Serenity had felt like when faced with sorting out the mess of the Andean Genocide? Or maybe even the Ardian Diplomatic Convention? The weight of knowing that there were high stakes and knowing what was on the line. How did they do it? Still this wasn't her first rodeo she'd chaired the odd meeting here and there. But the Utman situation had become the main theme of her time as Secretary General and though she wasn't going to be in post for much longer she did have the job of chairing negotiations between the Lahkzovians and the Utman.
However it wasn't going to be easy, Lakhzovia's actions during the affair had been at times highly questionable and some questions still remained. The questionable acts of the Lakhzovians through the crisis made satisfying the concerns of the international community a priority, but the troublesome wild card in this were the Utman themselves, they had the most to gain in this and seemingly nothing to lose, on the other hand Lakhzovia had everything to lose and seemingly nothing to gain. Priority one then was to redress that balance, this was going to be about getting and giving assurances through various different steps and options. Still this was going to be far from a walk in the park and would likely take all of her diplomatic skill to pull off.
That said she wasn't unprepared nor was she alone as she'd borrowed the services of
Commodore David Hastings from the Cross Straits Union where the man was the Commissioner of Defence, she'd asked him along because at present he was the only specifically appointed official to a multinational organisation with a brief that included military matters and it was far better to have someone who's responsibility was similar to hers along than call in a serving officer from a nation. He was present because some of the potential avenues included boots being put on the ground so best to have an experienced opinion.
"Will this work?" Sakura asked
"On paper it's a fair proposal." David said "But..."
"But reality may well be a different matter." Sakura said "Stop the fighting, contain the situation, handle concerns on all sides. Sounds easy doesn't it?"
"It does but it won't be." David said "These guys will want every advantage they can get. Be firm and be fair. But remember the red lines."
Sakura glanced down at a normally white elastic band/plastic wristband she wore, well it had been plastic right up until she'd become Secretary General on her first day in office she'd taken a permanent marker and written
W.W.T.D on it - What Would Tim Do? It was a nod to her predecessor Tim Carpenter of East Moreland perhaps the person who'd thrown more personally into the CTO than anyone else this sort of meeting had always been his strong point, she still carried the letter from his brother in her pocket as well.
She looked up as the door was opened by an East Moreland sailor and Cikniye and Uttaman were shown in to the room.
"Thank you." Sakura said, it had been a good idea to let East Moreland handle the welcoming stuff this was their ship, their turf, now she turned her attention to the two men "Thank you for coming gentlemen, please have a seat, I look forward to a constructive first session. May I introduce Commodore David Hastings the Commissioner of Defence for the Cross Straits Union - he's here to offer his expert opinion on some potential circumstances we may end up discussing."
"Gentlemen." David said
The four sat around the table, Cikniye and Uttaman opposite each other with Sakura at the head of the table and David at the foot.
"For this first session I would like to focus our efforts around firstly establishing a ceasefire and then ensuring that it holds. We would then conclude this session by agreeing when the second one would take place. The purpose of these talks is to firstly stop the fighting and then explore ways forward that are acceptable and to then implement a path forwards that leads to a lasting peace. I am aware of course that there are many components to this, and both sides will have concerns, my responsibility is to help you negotiate through these talks but also to guide you as to what is likely to reassure the international community." Sakura explained
"So I think the appropriate place to start is for both of you gentlemen to lay out your overall view on the present situation. Now please I appreciate this is an emotive issue but I ask that you please try to be objective and constructive."