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*Incoming transmission*
Comm ID: [TAZ]Doc Holliday
To: The Bretonian Crown
To Whom This May Concern,
I am extremely angry right now so I'm dispensing with pleasantries.
Recently, some of your animals known as Queen Carina's Privateers have been attacking Zoner ships around Gran Canaria and in the past, in the Taus. I find this to be repulsive. In the past, our relations with Bretonia have been mixed. Diplomatically, I have been insulted but we have also had the kindness to take in many Bretonian refugees to Gran Canaria at the Port Jackson camp which my medical staff has been providing medical and other forms of aid during their stay there.
I bring this item to your attention: http://discoverygc.com/forums/index.php?sh...mp;#entry688081
This was an illegal bounty placed on Zoner ships with false claims. We are NOT enemies of Bretonia as some say but it seems that some are trying to make us that way. If I was, I wouldn't be providing a good deal of funding to your medical institute on Cambridge and giving dental seminars. So, I'm not ASKING the Bretonian Crown to deal with this, I DEMAND that they do. I've been nice in the past but I can see it doesn't seem to resonate. Perhaps a few demands will:
-We DEMAND this bounty be deemed illegal and that anyone trying to collect will be prosecuted.
-We DEMAND the Queen Carina's Privateers be brought to justice....ALL of them. If not, we will cage them up like the animals that they are.
-We DEMAND reparations for the crews of the ships that have been attacked.
Now, if we can't get these what I believe are quite reasonable demands, then, as acting chairman of the Zoner Council, I will take a few actions of my own.
-I WILL issue a counter bounty on anyone who takes a Zoner ship on the affor mentioned bounty.
-I WILL null and void the Port Jackson agreement with Bowex and no refund will be given. Mind you, those refugees already there will be taken care of. They did nothing to deserve retribution.
-I WILL cut the funding the Cambridge Medical Institute on Cambridge. As I'm told, they won't last long without it as the Bretonian government is spending so much on it's war with Kusari.
Now a couple of lies spread by these Privateers:
-That we are supplying the Kusari war machine via trade. Not true. Yes, we DO run deuterium to Ames Research facility in the Kepler system by using the Taus, Kyushu space and Shikoku space. That is a route and nothing more.
-That we allow Corsairs on Freeports. It's no lie but what they don't tell you is that so are BMM miners, various shipping company's personel, Bounty Hunters and others. And guess what! While they are there, no one is killing each other! What happens in open space later isn't our problem.
So, I do expect some kind of response sooner than later. I won't apologize for being so angry either but I've had enough. Either put your pets on a leash or we'll cage them ourselves.
Dr. John Henry Holliday
[TAZ]Ambassador
Acting CoZ chairman
Comm. ID: Sir Arthur Caithness, MP and member of the Bowex Fringe
Subject: Privateers
---Message Begins---
I wish we could speak on better terms, Ambassador Holliday, I truly do.
The actions of the QCP are an outrage, I fully agree! Being an old shipper myself, I find pirates of all colours disgusting, be they Corsair, Molly or Privateer.
However, we cannot deem the bounty illegal, since it is beyond our remit as a government. I shall do my best to push a Special Proposal through Parliament, but it may take some time. I'll try as hard as possible, but you know how long the drafting and voting takes, I suppose.
I agree that these so-called Privateers must be brought to justice, since they're mere pirates acting outwith Royal or Governmental authority. However, as you yourself mentioned, our illustrious Armed Forces are busy fighting not only the Kusari Naval Forces, but also Corsairs based from Freeport One and Planet Gran Canaria (formerly Planet Sydney)!
If we had men free from one of these duties, such as the war with Kusari (who are occupying our home), or, for instance, the Corsairs, who seem to launch from your safe harbours, and take advantage of your 'neutrality', we would hunt down this menace.
As it stands however, we cannot spare the resources, unless you were able to assist us with the Corsair problem.
If you are taking the 'what happens in other peoples' space' is not our problem, I'm afraid that we'll have to do the same regarding these scoundrels. If you come to the negotiating table with a similar offer to ourselves, we would much appreciate it.
--------Incoming Transmission-----------
---Speaker: Honorable Grand Admiral Marvin J. Orphelia---
-------Federation Juggernaut Midsummer Night UNDISCLOSED LOCATION----
Finally, Hostilities may end, and diplomacy shall resume...
[Incoming Transmission]
[To: Council of Zoners]
[Source: Bretonian Foreign and Colonial Office]
Esteemed Ambassador Holiday, delegates of the Council of Zoners,
The recent actions of the group styling themselves "Queen Carina's Privateers" are utterly despicable and threaten the peace and stability of the region bordering Bretonia around Omega 49. On behalf of the Bretonian Government, I with to officially condemn these attacks and express my own private anger at such unprovoked terrorist actions by this group of Bretonian citizens.
Allow me to address the points raised one by one. Firstly I should point out that the Bowex Fringe Party of the Right Honourable Arthur Caithness, MP, is currently in opposition in both Houses of the Bretonian Parliament and, as such, his statements reflect his own views and those of his party, but are not representative of Her Majesty's Government.
Following on from this, I can confirm that, after legal consultation, the bounty on Zoners has indeed been declared illegal by the Bretonian Home Office and any individuals attempting to claim it inside Bretonian space shall find themselves under arrest for assault.
With regard to your second point, I am unsure of precisely what you are demanding. If you are asking for permission to arrest and engage the privateers within your space then, certainly, you may do so. If you wish to request the extradition of any privateers in Bretonian custody then, again, you may do so, though currently there are none. We would, naturally, inform the Council of Zoners upon the arrest of any privateer beleived to have committed offences against zoners. The group known as "Queen Carina's Privateers" have already been denied docking rights or supplies from any bases under the control of the Bretonian Armed Forces or the Bretonian Police Authority due to their piratical nature and are not granted safe haven in any of our space. I cannot see what more you request for us to do unless you are demanding that the BAF devote their limited resources to hunting down the QCP for you, which I regret to inform you is simply not a realistic option. The Bretonian Armed Forces are currently fighting a war for the very survival of our nation and their duties are to defend Bretonia, not to defend the Council of Zoners. If I might say so the Zoners are currently not fighting a war nor, indeed, do you have many enemies at all and therefore you are far more capable than we are at present of devoting resources to hunting down and dealing with these pirates. Rest assured we will not stand in the way of you doing so.
As for demands for compensation, however, I cannot accept, for the following reason: to compensate zoner vessels for their losses from QCP attacks would imply that the Bretonian Government accepted some measure of responsibility for these attacks. In fact, we are in no way responsible for them whatsoever - accusations from certain delegates that the QCP were SENT to Gran Canaria by the Bretonian Government are utterly outrageous; in fact we sent numerous messages in the direction of ex-Admiral Sir Andrew Stuart in the light of the most satisfactory Bowex-Treaty explicitly demanding of him not to jeapordise our efforts by doing so, which he has evidently ignored utterly. The sorry fact is that neither the Bretonian Crown, Ministry of Defence or Admiralty have any measure of control remaining over the QCP - they are unruly thugs with their own agenda that, I am sad to say, has been growing steadily more apart from our own over recent months. Your statements that they are "our pets" are simply untrue; if they were genuinely under our control, do you think we would allow them to cause us so many problems? We cannot take responsibilty for their actions by compensating you as to do so would set an obvious precedent that would lead to us becoming innundated with claims for compensation whilst, in practice, we could not possibly stop the QCP from continuing to wreak havoc however much we may wish to. I am sure you understand the impossibility of our situation.
We are offering you all that we reasonably can. Kindly do not further jeapordise our relations by making offers of us which you know we cannot meet. This channel shall remain open for further negotiations and it is my express hope that we may reach some amicable settlement over this most unfortunate matter.
Yours sincerely,
Lord Charles Canning
9th Earl of Malmesbury
Foreign Secretary of Bretonia
[Incoming Transmission]
[To: Council of Zoners]
[Source: Bretonian Foreign and Colonial Office]
Given the lack of any official response to my previous communique regarding this matter, I can only assume that the Council of Zoners have accepted my reply or have unilaterally withdrawn their demands relating to this issue.
The Bretonian Government is most pleased to assume that we have been able to reach an accord over this unfortunate business.
Yours faithfully,
Lord Charles Canning
9th Earl of Malmesbury
Foreign Secretary of Bretonia