10-14-2016, 02:07 PM
Greetings
The Confederation is honored to address the Liberty Navy and other Republic of Liberty this day. With the recent assistance from the Liberty Navy as well as other Liberty pilots over the attacks at Freeport 11 from the Core, the Confederation would like to extend heartfelt appreciation for helping saves those lives, as well as offering aid and supplies should you require it in the future.
On to other matters though. Given such attacks on the Freeport, and the increased presence of the Core, we cannot afford to have such an attack happen again on any Zoner station. The lives lost, and the brutal nature in which the attacks were carried out, is something we do not wish to occur again. With that in mind, we have focused our attention currently to the Liberty system of Pennsylvania, which currently houses Bethlehem Station as the only habitable installation within the system. With the rare research teams visiting Planet Erie, or the atmospheric tests carried out by the IRG on Planet Bruin, the system is occupied primarily by Zoners. As such, a recent vote took place concerning the safety of the Zoner assets within the system.
The Confederation of Freeports have thus voted to include Pennsylvania as a protectorate system under the CoF, and have agreed to have a revised NFZ placed over the system. Now, before assumptions are to be made, please note that it is a revised NFZ. While a normal NFZ would outright deny any hostile actions, this would have certain allowances in place:
- Combat between gunship and smaller vessels is permitted system wide, but are prohibited within 10K of any Zoner installation.
- The presence, passage, and combat of cruiser class vessels is permitted in Pennsylvania, however, combat between these entities is prohibited within 20k of any installation except in self defense. Any vessel initiating combat with such vessels within 20k of any permanent or semi permanent installation is grounds for a fine or ban under Confederation Law.
- The presence, and passage of Battleship, and Carrier class vessels is permitted in Pennsylvania, however combat involving such vessels is prohibited except in self defense. Any vessel initiating combat with such vessels liable for a fine or ban under Confederation Law.
- Any group or vessel found to be in combat with a Zoner vessel within Pennsylvania will be required to make an official communication to the Confederation explaining the circumstances. Should they fail to respond or fail to have a compelling reason the commanding officers or superior organisation of said group will be contacted, and will be liable for a fine or ban under Confederation Law.
- The presence, passage, and combat of cruiser class vessels is permitted in Pennsylvania, however, combat between these entities is prohibited within 20k of any installation except in self defense. Any vessel initiating combat with such vessels within 20k of any permanent or semi permanent installation is grounds for a fine or ban under Confederation Law.
- The presence, and passage of Battleship, and Carrier class vessels is permitted in Pennsylvania, however combat involving such vessels is prohibited except in self defense. Any vessel initiating combat with such vessels liable for a fine or ban under Confederation Law.
- Any group or vessel found to be in combat with a Zoner vessel within Pennsylvania will be required to make an official communication to the Confederation explaining the circumstances. Should they fail to respond or fail to have a compelling reason the commanding officers or superior organisation of said group will be contacted, and will be liable for a fine or ban under Confederation Law.
You will note that the rules do allow conflict within the system, should it arise. It is only within a 10-20k radius, depending on the vessels, that is prohibited. Larger vessels we ask respect such, given the range of Battleship-class weapons. This is to ensure the safety of those aboard Bethlehem Station, and an effort to not have a repeat of the Freeport 11 incident, and the actions that led up to those atrocities.
Of course, such a decision does not come lightly, and given our cooperation in the past as well as our close proximity to your home system of New York, we wanted to reach out to you directly. With Liberty movements across the Texas and California, Pennsylvania we would imagine is a strategic passage into the New York, with Colorado being the access to Kusari, and Texas having direct access to the Rheinland. What we have noticed though is that, with the recent shifts in jumphole alignments, Pennsylvania is less traversed and has seen many months now of zero conflict. We hope, with this NFZ in place, that it will continue. With the frequent use of Bethlehem Station and the use of her Biodomes for food transported to Manhattan, I'd image the Liberty would benefit from having a system-wide NFZ that would protect the transports importing as well as exporting goods for the Liberty.
While we had hoped this would have been viewed as beneficial for the Liberty nation as well, especially given there have been zero conflicts within Pennsylvania involving the Republic of Liberty in months, it seems one of your Liberty pilots is less than thrilled over such, though we suspect he cared little for reading what exactly the Pennsylvania NFZ actually covers. Hopefully though with this comm he will see that it is not meant to hinder the Liberty, but more to safeguard the two Zoner installations within Pennsylvania, as well as those travelling to and from New York, whether it be Zoners or those friendly to the Republic of Liberty.
We hope this comm reaches you soon, and is viewed favorably, knowing that the purpose is to safeguard those who call Pennsylvania their home.
Thank you all for your attention.
Regards,
Confederation of Freeports