Deltaria

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ZLOUTENE OKO

ELECTION CONSEQUENCES FOR OPRAVIT

Cachtrice, September 7, 5053: Science and Technology Minister Vlastimil Misalko is the defeated FDS candidate for Federal President. ZLOUTENE OKO asked Misalko if he would be running again:

Well no. There are several schools of thought on why Federal President Kriz won while his RLS Party trailed the FDS Party. We can not rule out the electorate simply not liking me. So one idea in the future is consider more likeable Opravit candidates. Another idea is that if Progress rather than Opravit had fielded the FDS candidate, we might have done better. And a third idea would be both Progress and Opravit run a candidate and unite in a runoff. If there is a runoff.

Asked by ZLOUTENE OKO if he was stepping down as Opravit caucus chair, Misalko responded:

Well, I am not ruling it out but I am not planning to do at this time.

ZLOUTENE OKO pointed out that the Federal President thought there would be foreign policy agreement and severe domestic policy disagreement between FDS and RLS, but Misalko said:

That is really up to RLS and what they introduce into the Federalni Parlament. GEPISP and FISSS are really mixed bags of things we could vote for and things we won’t. The FISSS has a number of innocuous ideas but then proposes to let parents opt out of vaccinations based on their ideological views, either political or religious. We consider this fatally flawed national health policy. Similarly, the GEPISP has some proposals that might be acceptable and some that likely are not.

Foreign policy may end up less controversial but we shall see. We see our main international contacts as promoting trade and economic partnerships as well as rebuilding ties with our Majatran neighbors. Our thinking is that we can rebuild our reputation and overcome our pariah status by doing this. We are not ready for international leadership and pretending we are can only lead to disappointment. A little evidence of democracy and internal stability can certainly help.

FDS Opravit Chair Misalko

[Rogue]

OOC Source: Google

Cachtice: Deltarian President Ondřej Kříž and a delegation consisting of Foreign Minister Vladislav Horáček, Trade Minister Jeroným Brotz and several other high ranking officials arrived in Haldor, Dorvik this week to discuss a whole range of topics with Dorvik's leader, State Chancellor Anton von Motha-Geyr, Foreign Minister Alexander Lehrer and Trade Minister Leopold Hartjenstein. The Deltarian delegation was received positively, after landing at Haldor International a convoy with the entire delegation moved to the government quarter in Haldor where President Ondřej Kříž and State Chancellor von Motha-Geyr held a joint press conference, stating the reason for the visit and the close bond Deltaria and Dorvik have always feld for eachother. Then the President and State Chancellor retreated behind private doors while delegations from both sides, including the foreign and trade ministers, departed to other buildings in the vicinity to discuss their own topics. Over the next two days the Deltarian president visited several cultural sites in Haldor and also attended a soccer match between the Deltarian and Dorvish national teams. In the end, another press conference was held, in which both nations expressed their desire to work closer together and "introduce amongst other things a more comprehensive security cooperation between our two states."

After the Deltarian delegation left for Cachtice again a official paper was released detailing what had been discussed. Deltarian trade minister Jeroným Brotz, with the blessing of the MA executive, formally negotiated a extension of the free trade deal signed decades ago between the MEA then and Dorvik, which means that free trade and a exchange of goods will continue between the two sides. Furthermore President Kříž and State Chancellor von Motha-Geyr had agreed to work closer together on defense, sharing limited intelligence with eachother and agreeing to host a international military exercise in the near future. Both sides would also open a line of communication between the Armed Forces of Deltaria and those of Dorvik to improve military communication where possible. In the same document, Deltaria and Dorvik also pledged to work together on the global political and diplomatic stage, ascribing to the common goals of "democracy, progress and stability."

The visit is one of the first major international visits of the new government next to one to Keymon and marks a major shift in Deltarian foreign policy. It is the first time a Deltarian head of state has travelled abroad in decades and is seen as a signature policy of the Kříž administration, which seeks to be a more constructive partner in international affairs while rebuilding Deltaria.

[Rogue]

OOC Source: Forbes

Cachtice: The Deltarian Armed Forces have long been a symbol of continuity in Deltaria. Sometimes for good reasons, but in the last few decades they were primarily known as a institution so big that it thought it could dictate the everyday lifes of Deltarian citizens. With the National Reconciliation Act it now seems as if the military has finally, officially, stopped interfering in civilian governance. Now the military is seeing a new purpose. President Kříž has on several occasions stated that the military will remain important, as it not only functions as the defense force for Deltaria but also the one of the wider Majatran region. Therefor a new bill has been proposed named the FRISARM. The bill seeks to invest a additional 50 billion into the Armed Forces annually, a massive increase. These funds will first go to increasing the size of the military and modernizing its equipment. Due to the introduction of conscription, a lot more soldiers need to be equipped and trained, also increasing the need for more support equipment and a larger airforce for support. According to estimates from the Military Bureau of Assesments the Army alone is believed to grow to nearly 1.5 million active soldiers, of which 500.000 will be carreer soldiers while a million will be conscripts. Initially the government had believed 3 million soldiers would be a goal to reach, but president Kříž announced he would lower the conscription age from 18 to 28 to 18 to 23, lowering the number of conscripts in the Armed Forces. Besides the active soldiers to be present in the Army the navy and airforce will also receive conscript, bolstering their ranks and allow them to properly man vital posts. To incentivize the conscripts in all branches, the military has introduced a "participation fee", which corresponds to 2/3rd's of the salary from regular carreer soldiers, meant to stimulate conscripts and make sure they maintain a healthy financial book. Furthermore conscripts will only be deployed abroad during times of major war, with the Ministry of Defense opting to exclude conscripts from serving in minor conflicts, which in reality means most conscripts will simply be deployed for training and defense purposes while the carreer soldiers will be deployed in more minor conflicts.

Besides the changes in personel the Armed Forces will also heavily invest into new facilities with a planned 10 more airbases, 15 new military bases and two new major military ports planned to be constructed which are supposed to "greatly improve military response time and logistics". Besides that new equipment, such as the T14AD MBT, will receive additional upgrades and be expanded upon, with the military seeking 1500 active main battle tanks, 3000 armoured fighting vehicles of different kinds and a variety of artillery and other support to support the increasing size of the army. The airforce is currently in the process of developing a new variant of its multirole fighters together with newly privatized defense company Blesk. These developments will likely see the military become one of the largest institutions of its kind on Terra, with a estimated 5% of the Deltarian GDP allocated to defense by the end of the decade. The military is maintaining its ownership of the Ushalande shipyards through the Ministry of Defense as well, with Polohovací Hrana being maintained as a state owned enterprise to keep ammunition and equipment production in government hands. All other defense companies are either in the process of privatization or have already been privatized, with the increase in spending for the Armed Forces giving them enough opportunity to obtain new contracts. A assessment of the Armed Forces was also concluded, which showed the immense scale of Deltaria's Armed Forces, which is the single largest military organization in Majatra and one of the largest globally, with that role only likely to increase.

With President Kříž dedicated to maintaining and expanding military development it is likely that the Deltarian military will continue to be one of the major forces on the globe, even as economists wonder if the massive spending on military hardware and maintenance is worth the burden it has on the national economy Kříž seems determined to keep it a priority, likely with the National Reconciliation Act fresh on his mind and using the pretext of Deltaria being Majatra its primary defender to justify his approach.

[Drax]

ZLOUTENE OKO

OPRAVIT SEES FDS AS NATION’S LEGISLATOR

Cachtice, March 18, 5054: Anezka Vanickova, Former POK Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, asked by ZLOUTENE OKO if she thought FDS could win in the next election, responded:

Quite frankly, rather than worry about next time, I think what Federalni Demokraticka Strana (FDS) needs to do is embrace what we did win. We won the Federalni Parlament. We have been selected by the Sovereign People to bring forward legislation to shape the society of Federace Deltarska, oversee its national security structure, protect its safety net, restore individual liberty, and lay the foundation for economic recovery.

We do congratulate Federal President Kriz in his outreach to Dorvik and Keymon. Very positive steps.

But it is FDS that has been given the authority to determine what should be law and what should not. and certainly we will consider what RLS brings forward. The FISSS, GEPISP and FRISARM all contain good provisions along with the unacceptable. So we will weigh them.

But I will be one of the voices saying to the FDS, we were elected to legislate by the Sovereign People not the RLS. Let’s get on with it. For instance, do believe shortly Opravit will propose an Education Bill; if it gains overall FDS approval education reform can begin.

So I am not looking at the next election but the task at hand. Undo the damage done by our predecessors.

Opravit's Anezka Vanickova

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OOC Source: The Moscow Times

Cachtice: Is the reign of terror from the Deltarian military over? In a suprising twist, a number of high ranking generals and officials within the Deltarian Army as well as two admirals and a airforce commander, have been arrested by Federal Police and SUVO units in a suprise raid of military headquarters in Cachtice. The raid came just months after President Kříž had proposed legislation to parliament that would grant the military even more resources and maintain the conscription in place. According to analysts it was a attempt by Kříž to keep the military happy and abide by the NRA. But as months progressed the military, behind closed doors, kept demanding more, seeking to create a "mega armed force". Kříž and his cabinet started to get nervous and decided to act. With the support of intelligence agencies and the Federal Police, they identified the main leaders of the military that were demanding and guiding policy. After weeks of preparation, large units of the SUVO would raid the military HQ in cachtice while Federal Police would arrest admirals in the port of Balgrad. The operation went suprisingly smoothly, with conscription seemingly hitting the military in the back as conscripts refuse to act as their superiors were arrested. Afterwards all were transported to the highly secured prison complex in Hradnice, where they are now awaiting trial. The Ministry of Justice has placed charges of high treason and crimes against humanity at the leaders their feet, deciding to also prosecute them for the decades of decay that plagued Deltaria and killed hundreds.

It is a bold move by the Kříž administration but one many believed to be necessary. As the main instigators of military pressure on civilian governance are now behind bars the SUVO continues to monitor the military ranks, with some close to the former leadership already having been fired from their positions. President Kříž has appointed one of his former colleagues, sergeant Miroslav Vykukal, as the new chairman of the joint military command staff, with Vykukal now allowed to appoint other generals to the body. Furthermore Kříž has hinted on reverting the policies proposed several months ago, stating that he will "work with the new command staff in developing a new military strategy that is substainable, while still keeping our Armed Forces strong", it likely means a downsize of the military, with conscription likely to be scrapt and earlier plans for major expansions also put on hold. Nothing is clear yet but all these developments have seemingly put a formal end to the terror of the military and have made the NRA practically defunct, as the military no longer dictates policy. But as the military still has hundreds of former loyal officers in its ranks, what will SUVO monitoring mean? And will the Deltarian Armed Forces now be the branch where pain is inflicted? As developments come by the day, the military might now be in the place to receive damage, as it has for decades been the one to inflict it on the nation itself.

[Rogue]

OOC Source: CNN

Cachtice: The Deltarian military, long a source of fear for subsequent civilian administrations, has been broken by President Kříž his crackdown on it which has, for real this time, put an end to the immense influence the military once held over Deltarian society. Over 700 officers, 15 generals and dozens of soldiers have either been dismissed, fired or arrested in what is already being dubbed a Great Purge of the military. The military leadership did not know what was coming and with the backing of Federal Police and the SUVO President Kříž has broken the back of the might military influence on his country. But this has shown its effects on the military as a whole. Dessertions within conscripts ranks are being reported left and right and the entire command structure has been turned upside down, with little to no leadership left in the ranks of the military as a large amount of experience officers are now gone. This has left the government with a headache and a situation that needs to be quickly resolved. This resolution has come in the form of a proposed reform package named NARLAM which would see major reforms for the military and all its branches be introduced. The proposed reforms, currently being discussed in Federal Parliament, would see the formal end to conscription. It would make the command structures within the military fully answerable to the President, giving the civilian branch more control over the military. Furthermore the command structures themselves would be completely reformed, with new commands for the airforce and navy as well as a new brigade structure, to replace the divisional structure in the army. Much more has been proposed in the NARLAM reforms which have the ultimate goal of reducing the size and costs of the military, giving the civilian government more control over the military and increasing combat readiness and modernization within the Armed Forces, partially funded by its decrease in size.

The new structures and changes proposed would, according to RLS legislator Silvester Bosko, "Remove military influence in our government while ensuring the creation of a ready and able force that is manageable and quick, able to perform a variety of missions while not being to much of a burden to the national economy." The NARLAM reforms are however also a risk, military academies would be centralized and a lot of the ideas in the proposed reform have never been tried within the Deltarian military, prompting some to fear it might only increase the chaos within its ranks. But according to President Kříž there is no choice, "Those responsible for treason have caused us to be in a peculiar situation that requires immediate action. NARLAM tries to address every problem we have had so far, its worth a try." The current state of the Armed Forces is also a national security risk, experts have stated that if the crisis continues Deltaria will find itself defenseless in case of war due to a military that is to large, doesnt have the resources to provide adequate logistics and doesnt have the leadership to lead such a large force. NARLAM is currently being discussed by the Assembly with most legislators already indicating they would vote for the proposal, with the State Council also looking favouribly upon it it seems that the reforms are more then likely to pass.

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OOC Source: Politico

Cachtice: President Kříž has suffered both wins and losses on the legislative front this week as one of his major legislative proposals failed to pass while the other was adopted. Kříž came into office on a platform of rebuilding Deltaria. This platform included three major policy directions, a major reform of the healthcare system, economic reform to give the economy room to recover and a new pragmatic and constructive foreign policy. The last promise could already be seen in full swing as Kříž was the first Deltarian leader to visit abroad in decades, visiting Dorvik and Keymon and signing several lucrative deals with both. The economic promises made by Kříž also finally went underway this week as the State Council approved his economic program GEPISP with a comfortable majority, which introduces a independent central bank, the privatization of all state banks, a major taxcut for corporations (from 40 to 25%) and a major investment program for state governments, which will collectively receive 100 billion to be used on local infrastructure, job creation programs and other economic programs. After its passing Kříž stated that this was, "the first big step to economic recovery, allowing the private sector the rebuild itself, rebuilding trust in the financial sector and giving local government the tools to kickstart their economies." Investors already seemed positive about the passage of GEPISP, which was possible in large part due to support from a large number of FDS legislators which voiced support for the president's economic agenda.

But the President also suffered legislative defeat at the same time, with one of his major policies rejected in the Federal Assembly. The FISSS reform, which seeked to allow for private healthcare to lower general costs, restricting advertisement of harmfull substances and changing the organ donation policies, was rejected by the Federal Assembly as the entirety of the FDS voted against. The reason for their rejection of the reform were two clauses that would restrict acces to abortion and create a "opt-out" for parents when it came to vaccination. According to FDS legislators these provisions made the bill, "politically charged" and thus they were forced to reject. This has put President Kříž on a 2/3 streak when it comes to his promised programs, with some conservatives seemingly annoyed that he was not able to pass the healthcare reform. A budget report suggested that the costs of healthcare will continue to increase as private healthcare remains banned, preventing for some form of price competition and thus increasing costs. Other offices have rejected these claims however. Despite the rejection of FISSS the President his approval ratings remain relatively high at 61% as the economy is starting to show signs of a possible major recovery, thanks in part to GEPISP, and his foreign policy as well as crackdown on the military are received positively by voters. President Kříž also stated he does not seek to propose additional healthcare reform this term, saying that,"we will reevaluate our approach and see what we can do to still improve our healthcare system." with the President also not excluding the use of his executive order privilige in achieving such goals.

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OOC Source: Wikimedia Commons

Cachtice: Deltaria will repay all debts it owed prior to the communist takeover of the country. That is the message President Kříž delivered to investors during a bussiness conference in Naban. The conference was attended by bussiness leaders from throughout the nation and was attended by the President, who was scheduled to speak there and describe the governments pro bussiness attitude. The speech ended with his announcement about debt, which was suprising considering that it was not seen as one of his governments policies to reimburse all debt. This means that the Deltarian government will also record the full number of debt in its own statistics. The president further elaborated on the plan behind it saying:

It is clear our previous governments failed the Deltarian people and failed to fullfill their obligations. Therefor we will hereby pledge to repay all loans that existed prior to us defaulting on that debt. I will work closely with the Federal Ministry of Finance to develop a comprehensive strategy to repay our loans and ensure a healthy financial balance for Deltaria. Deltaria does not wish to neglect its responsibilities and seeks the confidence of the people and the markets by repaying its debt

The announcement caused a spike at the stock market, with investors positive about the taken path. It is however still unclear how Deltaria intends to repay it exactly, with the Federal Ministry of Finance only stating that "a plan is in development to use the surplus from our newly growing economy in paying our debt obligations."

[Drax]

ZLOUTENE OKO


Former Interior Minister Chrobak

A COLD WAR??

Stefanesti, March 22, 5055: After giving a guest lecture at Samuel Mareno University in Stefanesti to economics majors on methodology for military equipment and vehicle cost calculation for purposes of budget estimates, former Interior Minister Slavomir Chrobak responded to ZLOUTENE OKO asking the national security outlook post Vorona fiasco. Chrobak responded:

At the time I left office, no one was actually planning an outright war. There is as always some conflict short of war but nothing for us to worry about. There is talk in intelligence circles about the possibility of a cold war. Our evaluation is that the possible centers for such competition in the short term are seven. Experience has taught this can take two forms; a race for allies in economic alliances or an arms race. The latter would be completely disastrous for five of the seven including Federace Deltarska since their economies are not strong enough to handle it without their populations suffering a great deal.

The former frankly would be quite beneficial to all concerned. Trading and economic partnerships would very likely help everyone. Unfortunately this type of cold war is really no more likely in the immediate future than an actual arms race. This is not to say some economic partnerships are not emerging; only to say not in a cold war way as yet.

Asked by ZLOUTENE OKO what our best course for national security looked like to him, Chrobak answered:

First and foremost we must get our economic house in order. This includes raising the standard of living for our population rather than dreaming of building empires on their backs. As we do this we need to evaluate and properly organize our armed forces and address five things and plan to pay for them as our economy improves. First, have we got enough ground, naval and air power to resist an outright invasion. Believe we all know the answer is yes but we need to know precisely why.

Second, suppose some enemy submarines closed on us with ICBM’s and took a shot at us; how would we prevent this. Do remember a Lidova Fronta administration started an ASW wing which is still extant in Ushalande; what else prevents a submarine based missile attack.

Third, while there is no apparent reason to have aircraft carriers defending our shores, if we want to try and protect our Majatran neighbors as well, it is hard to see why some carriers are not crucial. Our large nuclear powered carrier is expensive and a strain but it really carries a lot of air cover for any operations outside our own immediate territory. The question should be when we rebuild our economy, do we want to bring back our other nuclear carrier or build two smaller conventional carriers.

Fourth, outside Majatra, it is clear we have no ideology or values worthy of export, but we likely should be in a position to work in conjunction with other nations through the World Congress to contribute about two divisions with air cover and naval protection in a joint expedition should the need arise.

And fifth, what of nuclear power? Clearly opinions differ, but my thinking is we need to be at forefront of saying production should cease, those that have them should account for them and start to commence to begin to handle degradation and environmental hazards. We are aware of four nations that have accounted for them in this way. Proud to say Federace Deltarska is one of them.

Interim Interior Headquarters

[Rogue]

OOC Source: CNBC

Cachtice: Crime in Deltaria is on the rise. As the private economy returns and grows it seems as if organized crime have found enough opportunities to grow with it. Organized crime has increased by 120% in just one year time and sometimes major ports like Ushalande "feel like a coke production plant" according to workers there. Over 10 workers from the port in Balgrad have already been arrested on suspicions of working with organized crime in smuggling goods into the country and several journalists, politicians and high ranking officials have already been threatened. This has prompted President Kříž to announce new measures in combatting organized crime. In a statement he said: "The new private economy has given criminals the guts to use our growing wealth for their own benefit and single handidly threaten our new democratic institutions. This is unnacceptable and i will work with state, republic and federal government to combat these criminals."

The president then issued another statement announcing his first signed executive order, named NO.1, which gives state governments the right to search bussiness property suspected of housing illegal activity as well as extending federal "temperary confinement" from 2 days to 2 weeks, allowing state and federal police to keep suspects in jail for 2 weeks instead of the previous 2 days when suspected, after this they need to be either officially charged or released. The new measures, which expand on already existing crime legislation, seeks to give authorities more options when dealing with organized crime. Furthermore the President, "will be in contact with the Federal Ministry of Internal Affairs and Justice to seek for additional measures that should aid authorities in combatting organized crime and cut off the driving factors behind organized crime." The executive order is expected to take effect next week.