"Yes", Mountbatten confirmed gladly before she sank into the contents of a digital folder. "We should be able to sign this first treaty in a solemn manner by the evening so that we can close that chapter formally before the celebratory banquet arranged for dinner -- of which you may or may not have been informed. But yes, Gallia is the main course from this moment." Mountbatten grinned at the thought. "And while Bretonia has a ravenous appetite, and I must admit I feel a little peckish too", she continued, "Mr Asquith here insists that we must withhold ourselves from some of our delights because Gallia can't realistically cover them." Neville Asquith was, to remind, the Whig representative. He raised an eyebrow at the direct reference to him. Mountbatten's tone didn't seem to lead to what they had rehearsed the day before. "But the fears Mr Asquith's party has over another violent confrontation with Gallia stem from the conception that we would be alone in it. Gallia is now too poor to pay all it owes us -- yet a poor nation cannot wage war for long either. I hereby ask: how far is each of your glorious states prepared to go to see what is rightfully yours fall in your hands?"
Mountbatten, not spared from the wild temper that had run through the Mountbattens for generations, let it out in a moment of emotional excitement. This was not prepared, this was pure in situ opportunism. Asquith was here to prevent exactly such deviations official government doctrine, but he was caught by surprise, and although he was visibly upset, he couldn't decide whether to revolt on the spot, or save Bretonia's face and rein in Mountbatten later in private. It may have not been the best idea to rely on the foreigners to gracefully reject the foreign secretary's jingoism, but it is what Asquith's non-confrontational personality shared by many successful politicians could settle on during the very little time it had to react.
The discussion had seemed to take an interesting turn. Crayter had already reclaimed Tau-44 from the Royalists during the war and acquired Tau-31 from Royal occupation during Operation Ice Lance. Borders secured and military rebuilding, Crayter had few aspirations to speak of. A Republic was not an empire, and even the ministers back home knew the people grew tired of fighting. "An interesting question, though Crayter has had its fill of territorial acquisition during both wars. While I think it's fair to say that Crayter wishes to bring the whole of the Taus under our influence as a deterrent against the Outcasts and their slave and drug trade, influence and governance are two things entirely. I think I speak for my fellow ministers back home that we simply want an end to the fighting and a pact that ensures that future conflicts will be short and decisive. Nothing more."
Itō nodded towards the Admiral. Mountbatten's idea was outside of his jurisdiction and fell more into the Shogunate's work. Admiral Okamoto spoke up with a sly smile. "The Empire's agenda went well. Their offensive capabilities are crippled and their people divided as the upswing in terrorism shows. In addition with my personal orders to scorch Lorraine, more than enough crises plague their government for years to come. The Empire secured its claim on Rishiri and will continue to display its presence in the Taus, especially within the suggested Tau-31 segment and Tau-23. While we will also crack down on the local Outcast activity, the Empire also limits Gallia's possibilities to regain any foothold in the Taus by monitoring said systems. If Gallia breaks the current treaty, we'd quickly remind them that a word once given should be honored. We are mostly satisfied with this approach."
He made a brief pause, taking a sip of water, the entire time his eyes rest on Mountbatten. What a most interesting women, he thought as it was clear she proposed something far off what her colleagues had in mind. "We agree with the Crayterians, except for the Tau wide influence, that this pact should ensure a swift end to a possible renewed Gallic offensive against any of us and nothing more. A joint declaration regarding reparations is not out of question - at least not in my eyes - but direct acts of violence to pressure them into compensating us are.. complicated to say at least. Indirect force may be the better alternative. How exactly such indirect intervention may look like.. well, I think that requires no further explanation."
"Please excuse us", Asquith was encouraged to speak up after the foreigners' rejection of Mountbatten's obvious intentions. "When the Foreign Secretary said war, she meant, of course, economic war, and when she said it was to be violent, she only intended to put emphasis. Mrs Mountbatten was surely convinced that this was implied, hence she didn't elaborate, no?", he said and looked at Mountbatten with forced amiability. His personal dignity was important, but it would be more undone at home by the failure of this conference than here for not giving Mountbatten tit for tat.
"Y-yes", answered Mountbatten, desperate to save face. "Sorry", she said as quietly as she could and cleared her throat. "What I wanted to ask was how much each of us can demand from Gallia. We in Bretonia think that, since they have devastated Leeds, they should cover all cost of colonising Carlisle, at the very least, plus pay for repairing whatever damage can still be repaired in Leeds. And because of their economic depression, they should be willing to, er, pay more, not less, to save themselves from a total trade embargo."
Admiral Okamoto quietly exchanged a few words with Itō and the old man. Following their quiet approval, Okamoto took the word once more. "We can fully understand Bretonia's wish to receive a compensation for the horrors committed by Gallia, especially against the population of Leeds. I've been there, ten years ago, before the fall of Leeds. I've witnessed cruelty Sirius did not see until then. Their actions also led directly to the temporary overthrow of Emperor Kogen Jien and the civil war tied to it. The conspiracy around Kishiro receiving aid by the Gallic Crown is still in the heads of some. Their invasion created chaos in the Tau sector, cost the lives of millions of Libertarians too.
In regards of everything the Gallic invasion caused, directly and indirectly, it is also of the Empire's opinion that Gallia should bear the cost tied to colonizing Carlisle. The Empire of Kusari will not raise further compensation demands against Gallia. We consider it sufficient that their economic and military strength was decimated, while our own losses remain minimal due to the current arrangements with the Gallic Union.
However, what the Gallic house permitted to happen, this sheer senseless mass genocide, is an immeasurable debt unable to be repaid through credits or resources. They should be reminded of their moral debt towards Bretonia for all times and every Sirian house should feel obligated to uphold the memories of the tragic circumstances surrounding Leeds and the Gallic invasion. With this in mind, the Empire of Kusari would propose and partake in the construction of a memorial station in orbit of Planet Leeds to stand as a grim reminder of humanity's self-destructive and horrofic side."
Eager to leave her gaffe behind as soon as possible, Mountbatten proceeded by plan. "We expected that Kusari would have its own demands too, but all that matters to us is that Kusari supports us in our own. If you change your mind, you can expect Bretonia's backing. Here are our intended demands to Gallia, in more detail." The foreign secretary displayed three lines of text on the hologram. "The Leviathan accords stipulate that Gallic corporations should be responsible for paying the reparations, so we see it fit that each covers its part. EFL would perform free maintenance over Bretonia's EFL infrastructure for the next 10 years, GMS would rebuild all destroyed infrastructure in formerly occupied Bretonian systems within the next 10 years, and IDF would finance the colonisation of Carlisle also for the next decade. And most importantly, since Gallia has openly disregarded the Leviathan clause about the war crime trials, we will demand that every surviving captain and above from the Dax fleet be extradited to us. The BIS has been entrusted to procure a list of names. These are our demands, no more and no less. I ask Crayter to lay out theirs before we proceed to the means of enforcement."
Ward listened closely as both parties put their terms on the table. The deviation from talks of the pact concerned her somewhat, but given the devastation caused by Gallia against them, especially Bretonia, it was understandable. Not quite productive given the purpose of the pact, but understandable. "I believe that Bretonia's demands have already encompassed what Crayter would desire from Gallia for the most part. The Republic had already begun dealings with EFL prior to the Kusari invasion, which we feel will suffice to cover the active lanes within Tau-31. Aside from ensuring the security of mining rights within Tau-23, Crayter has no other demands."
With everyone in agreement, Mountbatten announced the end of the day's session. She had to produce the final form of the new treaty with her lawyers by the evening, but the foreign delegations were free to do as they liked. A moderate amount of entertainment was present for them, but the real celebration was saved for the next day.
Tomorrow, the delegations convened again and this treaty was presented to them:
Quote:
Treaty of Harris, First Chapter
Hereby, the state of war between the Empire of Kusari (further: Kusari) on one side, and the Crayter Republic (further: Crayter) and Natio Octavarium (further: Natio) on the other side, ends.
Kusari will return Barra Anchorage to Crayter.
Kusari recognises the Tau-31 System as a territory of the Kingdom of Bretonia (further: Bretonia) and Crayter.
Bretonia recognises the Tau-29 System as a territory of Kusari.
Kusari has full rights to position a military outpost at the Tau-31 Jump Gate in the Tau-29 System.
Kusari will allow Crayter to peacefully tow the remains of the Helios from Tau-29. Crayter will compensate Kusari with 50,000,000 credits worth of niobium or beryllium, or in currency.
Bretonia will allow KNF ships of all sizes and up to one fleet at a time to be present in the Tau-31 System for the sake of performing action against pirates and criminals or upholding the clauses of this treaty. In exchange, Kusari will cover 50% of the planned cost of the Stokes Station reconstruction project.
Kusari, Crayter, Natio and Bretonia will form a defensive pact against the House of Gallia.
Treaty of Harris, Second Chapter
Neither Kusari,, nor Crayter, nor Bretonia, will claim state ownership over the Tau-23 System. Tau-23 is designated a system under mutual protectorate. Any corporations registered in Kusari, Crayter or Bretonia will be allowed to exploit the resources of Tau-23 at their own will and divide them among each other, without state involvement unless there is no other solution. No Gallic corporation nor the Gallic state will have any kind of access to Tau-23. The system's legal tenants have the right to turn such back, arrest, confiscate or destroy. Military forces from Kusari, Crayter and Bretonia may patrol Tau-23 for the purpose of fighting piracy and protecting the system against Gallic entities.
Bretonia will send a list of demands to Gallia. These will include and be limited to:
Gallia is reminded to follow all decisions of the Leviathan Accords, except as said here.
Gallia will immediately extradite Admiral Louis Dupouy, who was in command of the Dax Fleet during the Glassing of Leeds, to Bretonia.
Gallia will immediately notify Bretonia if any surviving legitimate members of the DeFrance dynasty are found in Gallia and extradite them to Bretonia as soon as possible.
EFL will provide free maintenance to all elements of the EFL TLaGs network in New London, Leeds and Tau 31, for the following 10 years.
IDF will rebuild or finance the reconstruction of what prewar spatial infrastructure is left to rebuild in Leeds within the next 10 years.
GMS will finance the colonisation of Planet Carlisle for the next 10 years.
If any of these demands is not met by Gallia, then Kusari, Crayter and Bretonia will place a total embargo on all and any ships coming to and from Gallia.
After a lengthy debate to discuss the terms of the treaty, it was a rather hefty relief to see the end product. While not the perfect set of terms, particularly around the second half, given the people and factions present it was likely the best that could be drawn up. Ward certainly seemed pleased with the outcome, and held no reservations about putting her name to paper on the Republic's behalf. "Crayter can certainly accept these terms, as agreed jointly during yesterday's discussion."
Following a lengthy, whispered discussion between Okamoto, the Itō and the old man, the Admiral was ready to speak on behalf of the house Kusari.
"The house of Kusari is satisfied with this results. However, a small remark on behalf of the Kusari Kaigun: For the unlikely case that one of the parties of this defensive pact considers it a "fruitful idea" in the nearby or later future to provoke a war with Gallia in the shadows and then call for the pact's aid.. let's put it simple: We'll know."
He smirked to himself, knowingly that the whole negotiations have been watched by KOI units, in space on board the vessels and on the surface through the guards who escorted them. "We are most happy that we found a suitable solution for all sides. May this be just the first step in normalizing our relations."