The newspaper header was made by myungdae06_ on Discord upon request.President Petralanda: "We were wrong" as protests skyrocket all around Kundrati, the foreign minister resigns[1 July 5473]
Protests have overtaken the country over the last few months, demanding Kasaema to stop participating in a war that never was Kundrati's business. The protests even took over the main square of Kasaema, with police struggling to disperse the protestors and being relegated to protect critical governmental buildings and pathways for people.
The protests also took an economic nature, as people protested the lack of Government response to the economy, which has now been fully turned into a war economy for the sake of economic growth. It is unlikely that the war economy will transition back into a peacetime economy anytime soon, as Luthori has made their intentions clear that they will seek revenge for Kundrati's actions in the Sea of Lost Souls.
The protests also took a violent turn when news broke of the Kundrati embassy being burnt in Beiteynu, a scene scarily similar to the one in Davostag long ago when the Kundrati embassy there was burnt down. At that time, Kundrati demanded war against Davostag as revenge; now, Kundrati wants to live. The protestors surrounding the Beiteynuese embassy have grown in number to surround the embassy area to the point a helicopter landed on the Beiteynuese embassy's lawn to pick up essential embassy staff. This continued until the embassy was empty except for the police, who guarded the empty building. This didn't stop protestors, like their Beiteynuese counterparts, from throwing burning items toward the embassy. Unfortunately, two people were caught on fire and died of burns.
The nation continues to prepare for war as Davostag and Kundrati build defenses, mining as many places as possible and preparing trenches, as well as other areas for Kundrati-Davostag soldiers to hide when war inevitably arrives. Equipment from Davostag, like radars and other essential gadgets, are also arriving slowly alongside preparing more than a million soldiers to fight until the end. Kundrati recently passed a law allowing the government to authorize guerilla warfare to save the country if the armed forces cannot do so - this may not be necessary depending on how a war with Luthori pans out. The Army, Navy, and Air Force continue to do wartime exercises every day, preparing for the inevitable, praying that it never comes, but hopefully ready to meet any challenges ahead; should they fail their task, they are also preparing defenses like the above. It is expected to see air defenses on top of buildings, at least in Kasaema and southern cities. Etxea is a fortress that uses various measures to keep invaders out alongside mines and other equipment.
However, the President noted that Kundrati was shameful for its actions and for "betraying" their once proud allies. In a speech televised nationwide, he said the following:
I will put no doubt whatsoever as to what I think today. We may have won a glorious victory, but it was a stained victory against our old allies. Whatever we may say about it, we were wrong. We were wrong to go after our old allies; we were wrong to go after our old allies. Whatever I say now may not change anything, but I wish this were the start of that.
Kundrati citizens and my government must take responsibility for this wrong. We must correct it and do it unconditionally. We will accept sanctions, embargoes, and the like. I imagine my colleagues in Luthori would agree to that. But we do not want more war.
He also commented on the sacrifices being made by the governments of Davostag and New Endralon & Kizenia:
We do not want any war. But if warmongers prevail in my old friends, we must look to our new friends. These new friends had helped us when we were down when we had self-doubt that we as a nation would survive. Only with their help did we think we could live, even as a zombie or a husk. I believe those in Davostag and NEK are willing to sacrifice everything for us, and I think we're willing to sacrifice everything for them. Their sacrifices shall not go unrewarded. They are true heroes of the Kundrati Union.
As for measures he will take to correct the wrongs of Kundrati:
I have told the Foreign Minister that I will take his resignation, and he has agreed. I do so by appointing Francois Herasymchuk as the temporary Foreign Minister. As for myself, I will be going to nations that have been affected by our actions. Badara. Beiteynu. Luthori. They will be frank with me and tell me about everything we have done to them. I will listen. I will do what I can to try and regain some of their trust, even if it means going down and begging. As for our foreign policy, we will try to make sure that we correct our wrongs however we can. Perhaps we may forbid war as an option to solve disputes. That is something up in the air.
Until then, and until our nation is safe from fear of invasion, Glory to Kundrati.