Niamh can you get the Seaforthians on the phone please. King Finley instructed his PA. It took her about half an hour, Finley suspected that King Andrew would be rather snowed under. "Andrew its Finley. I'm just phoning to say that Ui Cenneslaig will be making a statement that we support Seaforth and that Real Marseille have no authority..........if you need anything you've my number." The conversation ended and Finley got busy with several other jobs. It wasn't really a matter he was too worried about but he was determined to show Celtic unity and that meant standing by your friends and that included Seaforth.

---

Following the fall of the Sorority of Materna it was clear that the people of the city of Troyes could not be supported by their homeland. The city relied on a huge humanitarian and economic support from Seaforth and it is no surprise that the inhabitants of the city owed a great deal of thanks to the Seaforthians who today make up 1/3 of the population of the city. In the aftermath the city then swelled to its current size of 3million. Since then the Seaforthians have ensured a strong economy, a stable justice system and a transparent democracy. We have now however seen an armed gang supported by a hoodwinked Aostan Empire convince the people change is needed. I firmly believe that this is nothing more than a rabble rousing minority manipulating public feeling to try and steal away from Seaforth territory they saved from disaster and have nurtured and cherished. King Andrew can be assured that Ui Cenneslaig will stand by our Celtic cousins in this situation and that we will pray common sense prevails and we see a peaceful solution.

King Finley.

Donna Gianna, the Aostan representative, stood to speak.

"From the very first gathering of the nations here it was clear that the Empire of Aosta was determined to see the city of Troyes return to the people of Marseille. The elections for mayor, local council and various other bodies all showed an overwhelming support for the Seaforthians to lose their grasp on the city. Following the fall of the Sorority of Materna the city of Troyes became a humanitarian hub and then was essentially annexed by Seaforth, Emperor Franco X was our monarch at the time, and we are saddened that we did nothing, nor did the world. That is until the first gathering of what was to become this body. The very first matter put on the agenda was Troyes, so to say we have acted against the spirit of this organisation is in our view misleading. Rokkenjima's own Imperial Liason, a Mr.McKenna, stated the existence of a Seaforthian Troyes is "a decision the Imperial Government does not recognize as holding any legal basis" Add to that in August of last year the Empress of Rokkenjima stated " we will see Troyes returned to Marseilles" and yet no one around this table has done anything to make that a reality. We have seen in statements that Rokkenjima are tied to Seaforth through defence commitments and yet the current situation in Troyes is the closest we have come to fulfilling the promise the Empress gave and she would now be willing to use force to halt this strive for independence."

"I now turn to the idea that we have somehow broken this treaty. Nowhere in the treaty does it have an expectation that we report all military acts. Do I expect a blow by blow account of naval patrols from Achkaerin around Gowu, or did we have formal notice of a Rokkenjiman ship visiting Clysperis. The article in question calls for the report of any "relevant" military action. The reason we don't get the patrol information or the port visit information is because they are not relevant. We have been asked by one sovreign nation to help them patrol their waters. This will have no impact on the operations of any other nations navy and therefore the article is not relevant. I believe this now explains why we have reached this point."

She shuffled her notes, "Now what we should be discussing is the way ahead. Rokkenjima, and I believe Achkaerin have close ties to Seaforth and these have yet to be utilised to let Troyes gain its independence. This pathway set out by Mr.Cantona is the best way for us to achieve the aim that this body first unified over. A referendum of the people of Troyes is, in my view at least, a pointless step. The various elections have been landslides by parties in favour of independence. The Reunion Party control 17 out of the 18 seats in the cities council, the Mayor Jean-Baptiste Bret won with a majority of over 90,000 votes. In a city of around 3million people  there have been strikes organised by the party that have shut down the city, 500,000 people took to the streets to march in protest. It is very clear what the people want and any referendum would be a mere formality but I suspect that formality will be needed. What we must do as a body is ensure that this referendum takes place soon and the 1st July has been put forward as a time frame. I therefore suggest we do two things. The first is Achkaerin and Rokkenjima speak with Seaforth about them accepting the timetable and standing by the result. The second is that we offer this organisation as a monitoring body for that vote. In the meantime we shall continue our patrols until asked to stand down."

It was a peaceful night in the Marble Palace, Serenity was sat on the sofa, one arm around  her younger daughter Astrid, while her older daughter Lisa sat on Serenity's other side, they were watching the tv show the Octonauts - it was a favourite of the girls. Also on the sofa was Euphy curled up next to Serenity but behind Lisa.
"Is this the one with the honeybadger in it?" Nettie Taylor asked as she walked into the lounge.
"Yep." Serenity said "We're watching this then Euphy's going to help with them with their homework while I make snacks and then we're watching Moana followed by Brave."
"Movie marathon nice." Nettie said
"Why do I get the impression you're about to tell me I'm not going to be enjoying watching them?" Serenity asked
"Because this happened." Nettie said handing Serenity a summary document on what had happened in Troyes, Serenity glanced at it and looked at Euphy
"I think Val's doing homework help." Serenity said
"So much for our quiet night." Euphy said

Once the homework had been started Serenity, Euphy and Nettie all headed into the kitchen. "Ok let me just ask... what level of silliness is this?" Serenity asked as she switched the oven on "Is this how to lose support for your cause day? In what world does anyone think that the international community is just going to nod at this? Say yes to this and what stops the Gungnir just declaring any random village in Nya Aland as sovereign territory."
"That's not the main problem though." Nettie said
"Much as I admire the garbage fleet protest league worthiness of this affair yeah I know." Serenity said leaning against the wall and sighing "What happens when Andrew picks up the phone and calls me, calls Asuna, calls David etc."
"It gets messy." Nettie said
"You need to get in front of it." Euphy said
"I know." Serenity said with another sigh "Nettie talk to the foreign office get a statement out about this."
"Ok." Nettie said
"How'd you fancy a detour to Seaforth before we go to Rokkenjima for the Youth Diet?" Serenity said looking at Euphy
"I'm game." Euphy said
"Sakura should be finished in Clysperis by morning so let's get her down to Marseilles to talk to Sauzee and Deschamps." Serenity said "Meanwhile I go to Seaforth and  try to reason with Andrew before this gets out of hand."
"Do I need to talk to Adam about the military?" Nettie asked
"Yes, you know the drill." Serenity said
"I do." Nettie said, she walked away as Serenity looked at Euphy
"Sure you still want to hang around this madhouse?" Serenity said
"Totally." Euphy said before she gave Serenity a kiss "Now dinner to make, films to watch and we'll pack later."

---

The Achkaerinese Government continues to recognise that the city of Troyes is the sovereign territory of the Republic of Marseilles, we do not believe it to be a Seaforthian protectorate because sovereignty over the city has at no point been ceded to Seaforth, this is the fundamental principle of sovereignty it can only be granted by the land owner. Therefore as there be no evidence that the government of Marseilles has granted sovereignty of Troyes to this 'Republic of Troyes' we do not  recognise it as a sovereign state and continue to assert the position that Troyes is part of the Republic of Marseilles. On that basis we do not recognise any suggestion that the waters and airspace of Troyes are not Marseilles water and airspace, nor will the Achkaerinese government recognise as legally enforceable any referendum held without the consent of the government of Marseilles.

To: Asuna Anselmo, Empress of Rokkenjima
Serenity Azurewind, Empress of Achkaerin

   While the policy of the Empire of Fusan with respect to the territorial integrity of the Republic of Marseilles remains unchanged, wherein we recognize the city of Troyes as being illicitly occupied by Seaforthian forces, we are nonetheless left deeply troubled by the actions taken both by the organization known as "Real Marseilles" and by our nominal allies in the Empire of Aosta on the 12th of April. Though we recognize the right of the people of Troyes to determine their own future, they cannot be forced to choose their fate at gunpoint. Furthermore, to our knowledge, the Republic of Marseilles has yet to recognize the so-called "Republic of Troyes", nor has it yet made any moves to reincorporate the territory, let alone welcome Aostan vessels into its territorial waters. Thus, without the expressed permission of the government in Montaulon, we find that Aostan military activities within their territorial waters, ones which Seaforth claims as its own as well, are inherently provocative at best and are at worst illegal under international law.

   While reports from inside Troyes are difficult to come by at this time, we recognize that both the First Empire of Rokkenjima and the Empire of Achkaerin have ongoing security commitments to the Kingdom of Seaforth. Should the Kingdom view that its own territorial sovereignty, even if the grounds to claim such are flawed at best, has been violated, or should a member of its armed forces or its civilian populace within the city be killed, and as such both nations are called to assist the Kingdom of Seaforth in countering this threat, though the Empire of Fusan is not obligated to assist, we are nonetheless prepared to offer what assistance we can to our allies against a belligerent force which threatens the stability of our region. We are likewise prepared to dispatch forces to the region in the coming days so as to monitor the ongoing crisis.

   Nonetheless, we agree that the use of force can only be justified should extraordinary diplomatic efforts be exhausted first, and thus, as a nominally neutral party in this affair, we would be prepared to facilitate negotiations between the Republic of Marseilles and the Kingdom of Seaforth to resolve this present crisis. Nonetheless, I will restate that the official policy of the Empire of Fusan is that the city of Troyes is not and will not be an independent state without a fair and open vote on the part of its citizens, unmolested by either the Seaforthian military and government or forces belonging to Real Marseilles.

To: Prime Minister Konishi, Fusan
Empress Serenity, on behalf of Gowu

As I'm certain you're aware developments are presently unfolding in Troyes which may raise challenges in the region we share, challenges I feel may have been lessened via the ADSN. I will be calling for talks to address that aspect, however, what's done is done and, while I have released a statement on behalf of Chrysanthemum Throne on the matter I do not wish to act without consensus with our two closest neighbours; Fusan and Gowu. I still support the vision as outlined by the ADSN Joint Statement on Troyes, yet the developments we've seen in the past few hours places not only Rokkenjima, but Achkaerin as well, in a difficult position in regards to our obligations to the Kingdom of Seaforth. Meanwhile, as the prospect for such things to go from being contained to expanding beyond the initial move, I can imagine that there are many conversations happening within Fusan as I write this.

Thus far the only actions I have taken are issuing a reminder as to Rokkenjima's defense obligations and dispatching a Task Force to monitor the situation. I would like to, if possible, coordinate future actions and ensure that we're all on the same page as I feel we all share the goal of a free Troyes, reunited with Marseilles. I still believe that diplomacy has the potential to work here and, depending on what feedback I receive from you, I am prepared to see if Kōshaku Rhodes is able to engage with the Seaforthians to ensure that the situation does not spiral out of control.

I await your replies.

Yours;


Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima
Princess of Littlebrook