[Sweden]: Call to Germany

[Connor]

"I agree to these terms and they seem more than reasonable given the circumstances. Here is the Leasehold of Land Agreement for your ratification:"
Document

"I have no doubt at all that in time we will see Germany as a full member state within the Nordic Council and your position as an observer state is purely your nation in its infancy and dedicating its commitment to unity and cooperation in Europe. This is the start of an exciting relationship." the Ambassador glances at a response from the Secretary General before returning to the conversation "and on the subject of this, I am pleased to say that the Secretary General of the Nordic Council Secretariat has approved your observer status. You will be officially accepted to take your seat in the Nordic Council Chambers with a representative of your choice, all I ask is that you provide me with their name. Your flag will be erected immediately and we will have your details scribed onto the conspectus."

"Ah! I am glad you have brought up the subject of trade! Before we discuss imports and exports I'd like to discuss the possibility of a substantial purchase of containerships which, from my limited understanding of shipbuilding, I understand Germany is at the very forefront of modern technology within this sector?

Vaka

 

[Vaka]

"The document has been signed by Federal Chancellor Helmut Kohl. We are sending it back to you now. Please let me know if there is any other paper work that needs to be filled. I will take care of it immediately."

"We will be sending Gebhardt von Moltke to take up the seat on the Nordic Council Chamber. He is, I believe, our top ambassador. He is wonderful to work with and will represent us well. He will be leaving first thing tomorrow morning. It will be a proud sight to see our flag being raised along side the other great nations of the Nordic Council. I feel this will be an important moment in history not just for Germany but for Europe as a whole."

"Back to the matter of trade, we have just unveiled the new Dallas Express-Class and Kobe Express-Class Container Ships. The Dallas Express class has 4890 TEU space for cargo containers. The Kobe Express class has 4612 TEU space for cargo containers. The ships are virtually identical beyond that except in speed. The Kobe Express is slightly faster at 24 kn compared to the Dallas Express top speed of 21.5 kn. Since you had said previously that you were interested in buying new containerships, I had our Ministry of Finance put together some numbers for you. For the Dallas Express Class we would like to offer them for $53,484,375.00 per unit. For the Kobe Express Class we would like to offer them for $50,443,750.00 per unit. One caveat to these prices though. We would like to keep the prices that we give you and the other Nordic Council Members kept confidential. We understand that we are in a rather lucrative position with these vessels with the great ship builders of the pacific currently not building any new vessels. We intend to charge a premium on these vessels until we run into competition. These sales should be another great boost to our balance sheets and help us place orders for more military hardware."

"My next question is the issue of tariffs as it pertains to other Nordic Council members. I would assume that there is a blanket free trade agreement between member states. Also to the prices of military hardware between member states. We would like to offer our full catalog to the other members of the council as I'm sure our military brass would also like to buy equipment from them. "

"I am sure our ambassador will have many more questions for the council. When is the next time they will be in session?"

Connor

 

[Connor]

"Perfect! We will arrange the deployment of the appropriate forces immediately to ensure the network is in situ within the next fourteen days." this document is secured within the Department of Foreign Affairs before notification is sent to the Department of Defence for mobilisation of the appropriate forces to Germany, as agreed. All mobilised personnel are detailed within the Swedish Strategic Defence Network organisation and the German Ministry of Defence is remained informed throughout any movement.

"The Nordic Council is undergoing immense changes as we speak. Ambassador Gebhardt von Moltke is welcomed to the chambers. To my knowledge the next sitting will not be until the completion of the reformed Stockholm Treaty, hopefully in the coming months however of course this is entirely subject to international events. I can speak on behalf of the council when I say all signatory states should be committed to the free trade between one another however, at this stage, this is entirely discretional and there is no blanket agreement." before continuing the Ambassador takes a quick sip of water "I completely respect and understand your commitment to keep these prices exclusive to the Nordic Council and I can honestly say that this is exactly the kind of commitment we are elated to see grow within the council. I would like to put forward consideration for a bulk order to the value of $1,069,687,500.00 for twenty Dallas Express-Class Container Ships, how does this sound?"

Vaka

 

[Vaka]

"Our shipyards are eager to get work. They will begin construction as soon as funds are transferred. You will be pleased with the Dallas Express-Class Container Ships. We have just finished phase one of our merchant fleet with contains 10 of these vessels. We have found that the ship often exceeds our exceptions when it comes to speed and fuel efficiency."

"With phase one of our merchant fleet now awaiting orders, I see no reason to delay starting maiden trading voyages to Stockholm. We would like to import Mineral Fuels (incl. Oil), Paper (incl. Paper Items), and Pharmaceuticals to start. Weekly if as all possible. We are willing and ready to export any of our trade items to Stockholm should you need them."

Connor

 

[Connor]

"Excellent, we would be more than happy to arrange this, our primary ports for Mineral Fuels (incl. Oil) is Gothenburg, Paper (incl. Paper Items) is situated in Norrkoping and Pharmaceuticals in Umea. Whether you want different ships to collect these or if you'd rather a single vessel make it's way around Sweden is up to you! Given your position in the Nordic Council we will be waiving the tariffs on goods. In turn, we would be looking to match your three resources and are looking to import Motor Vehicles, Computer and Electronic Products and Medical Instruments - which ports are these situated in?"

Vaka

 

[Vaka]

"Our exports all flow out of the port of Hamburg. I think assigning one vessel to come loaded with export item and leave with a shipment of a import item should be more than enough. That should tie up three vessels nicely on a weekly route. Did you have a route in mind for the vessels to take? Also would you like to fill out the international shipping manifests or should we?"

"Another item has come across my desk here about a new situation brewing in Romania. It seems Romania is keen on reuniting with Moldova. We hope it will be diplomatic if that is to be the case. But we do fear that the people of Moldova might not get a say in the matter. We are currently trying to reach out to the Romanian Government on clarification on statements by their head of state Petre Mocanu. If this were to escalate do you think an emergency meeting of the Nordic council should be called?"

"We have also confirmed the arrival of Major Frank Sundqvist here in Nörvenich. We are excited to hear his recommendations."

Connor

 

[Connor]

"We will complete the international shipping manifests for the Swedish vessels, if you do so for the German it should for fill our legal obligations. Vessels should follow international shipping lanes through to the Baltic Sea and to ensure their legal protection should remain within the Swedish EEZ where they will be monitored by law enforcement." the Ambassador pauses, flipping a new page in his notebook.

"I am unaware of the situation in Romania, in all honesty. I think this development bring a very real risk to modern democracy and absolutely warrants an emergency summoning of the chambers following your discussion with their government; there is a very real risk that this could escalate beyond reasonable control. Please keep me updated on this situation, I will pass comment to the Department of Foreign Affairs who will proactively begin to the monitor the situation and it's developments - are you in any position to deploy a peacekeeping force or any form of military deployment should it be required?"

Vaka

 

[Vaka]

"Fantastic. Which port did you want the exports delivered to? Also the vessels ordered by your government have been delivered. I think you'll be extremely pleased with your purchase. If you are still in the market for additional trade vessels I would like to also offer another recently unveiled ship the New Hapag-Lloyd Dalian Express-Class. These new ships are behemoths capable of shipping 7506 TEU worth of cargo containers."

"We are currently trying to obtain as much information on the Romanian Governments intentions regarding Moldova. From what little we have been able to find out, It seems Petre Mocanu seems damned and determined to annex Moldova. I do think he might even risk a war to do it. We don't have any specifics yet. We are still trying to contact the Romanian Government directly but I imagine they will give us the run around. We can certainly form a military task force should deployed forces be needed. The 1st Panzer Division will not be complete for a few months. But it is roughly 75% complete. It was built for each battalion in the 1st Panzer Division to work completely independent of the rest of the division should the need arise. We of course have no Aircraft although some transport aircraft have been ordered."

"The next issue is a sensitive one. Some time ago the Romanian Government ordered [4,000] MATADOR anti-tank systems from our GDE. They are ready for delivery, however we are planning on giving them a story about delays in the production of these weapons in order to buy time. I do seriously doubt they will start an invasion without a critical part of their armed forces. They have also ordered [10] Bergepanzer 3 and a Point-class Sealift Ship. I'm not sure how much these purchases will help them if the worst were to happen. I am currently privately ordering shipments of any weapons from GDE to Romania halted until we can decide what we are dealing with. We do seek Sweden's council on this matter in how to proceed next."

"I do hope this is all talk coming from Romania, but I do feel we need to get ahead of this thing lest it spiral out of control."

Connor

 

[Connor]

"We will accept your exports in the Port of Stockholm, where they will be distributed throughout the country.

I have to be honest, the last thing we need at the moment is a war to wade through, we need to avoid armed conflict by all costs - perhaps the offer of a neutral environment between the two governments in order to reconstruct their differences, this is something I am sure the Nordic Council can facilitate, the organisation hasn't publicly made their views clear and would serve as a perfect location for the two of them to settle this madness. However, it needs to be made clear that...- if we have to, we can do. I understand the predicament you're in with weighing up the economic benefit of defence sales with that of peace and prosperity, I can already tell we have very different views in terms of defence sales; Sweden has traditionally been very protective of domestically produced equipment. Personally, I would recommend refusing the sale of defence equipment to Romania until we can confirm their motives, I want to limit the blame from within the Global Assembly being placed on Germany. The reputational damage of looking like you're funding an illegal war would be detrimental to your relationship with many member states in the assembly."

Vaka

 

[Connor]

"On the subject of defence equipment, I have just received notification from the Defence Materiel Administration of their interest in the Sachsen-Class Frigate - is this something you'd be interested in selling?"

Vaka

 

[Vaka]

"We have placed a Internal Arms Embargo on Romania from exports from our State owned GDE until the situation is resolved. We have has some contact with the Romanian Government. They do plan on quote " Intend to only quash armed resistance before placing a commander in charge of Moldova. We have had word from the Spanish Government that they are currently sending a carrier group to the region as a show of strength. We have also spoken to many other nations about imposing an arms embargo on Romania. All that we have spoken with have taken our advice to at least pose an internal arms embargo on Romania. We are currently still holding all ordered equipment in the Port of Hamburg until the situation can be completely resolved. We are frankly embarrassed about the situation and will do our due diligence in future in regards with whom we sell arms to."

"The Sachsen-Class Frigate is our most advanced Frigate design. We currently do not have the ability to produce it with our current ship yards configurations. We would however be willing to sale the domestic production rights to the Sachsen-Class Frigate. I must stress the complexity of the ship deigns and the exotic materials used to build the hull will make construction extremely expensive. Our shipyards should have completed their upgrades and gain the ability to produce the vessels in January. We would be willing to sell the Domestic Production rights for a year for a sum of 1.35 billion dollars. The price may be high but if your familiar with the Sachsen-Class you no doubt know that it is the most advanced frigate in the world. If your still interested we can have some paper work drawn up by our ministry of finance which will then have to be approved by the ministry of defense. It should be a simple matter now that we are observers on the Nordic council."

"Ireland has inquired about our admission to the Nordic council. We explained to them the process in which we joined in our observer role. We told them of the fine level of organization, cooperation, and brotherhood we have experienced. They seem very interested to hear more about the Council. I have instructed them to contact your office for additional information. I will add that during our talks they mentioned how they had recently welcomed Russian troops to be stationed at Haulbowline Naval Base near Cork. I fear that Russia might be trying to influence western European nations for some unknown reason. Russia might be trying to fill the vacuum left by the dissolution of NATO. This could be an excellent time for the Nordic council to bring the nations of Europe together. Ireland could be that first step. What would you think about the Nordic council expanding its sphere of influence to include more of mainland Europe? What could Russia be up to? We know they are quite close to Argentina and your nation knows all too well how they feel about international law. I'm troubled that with the Americans taking a back seat in world politics, traditionally authoritarian nations are getting ready to take their place. Maybe I am over reacting here but I would love to hear your thought on the subject."

Connor

 

[Connor]

"We are remaining objective with the situation between Romania and Moldova - I suspect with the up rise in tension in the region and their borders with some of the major players in the global arena we should anticipate and prepare for the highly likely outcome of a significant multinational deployment to the region which... unfortunately... may not be the best thing to resolve the ongoing conflict. I am hopeful that some tension from Spain may draw the two characters away from one another and encourage interoperability between Moldova and Romania. I support the arms embargo and strongly believe this is a good move to strong arm their opinion - but please take my word that the Kingdom of Sweden support you and we understand you cannot predict the future or have foresaw this outcome. There's no need to be embarrassed, just ensure you act inside the confines of the law."

"We have shipyards capable of producing this vessel, but we would not have a need to retain domestic production rights for an entire year. I am eager to replace aging vessels in the Swedish Royal Navy, you can be assured that I am aware of the extreme capabilities of Sachsen-Class Frigate - we only intend to purchase seven of these vessels, is there any room to negotiate on price given the number we're intending to produce? Given the value of production alone is in the region of six billion. I'd be interested in having the paperwork drawn up for us to read through."

"Irelands interest in the Nordic Council certainly peaks my own interest in their objectives; especially given your intelligence that they're cooperating closely with Russia and I suspect Argentina whom have traditionally been sworn enemies of Sweden from the offset. Russia is hungry for power. Infact, what am I saying, both Argentina and Russia are hungry for power and I suspect Ireland is just a pawn on their matchmaking efforts. Sweden has an extensive maritime intelligence presence in and around the North Sea, Norwegian Sea and Baltic Sea which we will continue to monitor to identify trends in foreign players presence near to our mainlands. The Nordic Council is certainly becoming a spectacle that many nations are watching to see where it goes. I'll keep Irelands intent under my hat for now and review their position at a later date, but the last thing we need right now is a dagger in the middle of our spine as we begin the early stages of growth within the council. NATO was historically exclusive and held in high regard. With the United Kingdom currently 'pending', I will await their result before going any further in this matter."

Vaka

 

[Vaka]

"We can have an agreement made for the domestic production of seven of these vessels. The price would be 900 million dollars. We know the price is high but we understand the enormous value in our intellectual property. Thousands of man hours have gone in to the development of this vessel and it is my responsibility to make sure those investments in both time and money start to pay dividends. Again we will be able to produce these vessels ourselves in January. If you would like to wait until the first of the year, we can produce the Sachsen-Class Frigate for you ourselves."

"I do appreciate the idea of the Nordic council wanting to remain exclusive. Each member needs to be able to be able to help pull its weight so to speak. This is where I would like your opinion on where Germany, while its rapid response forces are still being built, can best help the Nordic council. We are about to begin the formation of two submarine squadrons. We want to work closely with your naval command to assist in monitoring and protecting the littoral waters of the Baltic Sea. Our class 206A submarines are purpose built for this mission. They will be able to work closely with our Oste-class vessels. The Type 423 Oste class are purpose built SIGINT/ELINT and reconnaissance ships. We can have our data up-linked together to help provide information on all vessels coming into and leaving the Baltic Sea. Do you think this vessels could be better used else where? Germany is ready to start pulling its weight. Just tell us where we might be best used."

Connor

 

[Connor]

"Oh, I can completely understand your intellectual property rights are paramount and we have no intention of insulting the outstanding performance of your German designers in the development of this vessel. For this kind of price tag we'd been looking to ensure that this vessel is removed from your storefront and retained within the Nordic Council in order to retain the integrity of the our national security - this vessel is extremely advanced and extremely well-versed to modern military opponents. I can have the transfer arranged the second a plausible contract is provided, I trust I can leave this in your very capable hands to arrange?

You should know that the Nordic Council retains an extremely top secret surveillance network that is capable of monitoring all maritime traffic in the Baltic Sea - we will look into regional patrols imminently, we're intensely in the process of developing the structure of our Armed Forces not only to incorporate localised response but also to encourage interoperability. I have no doubt that Germany will be a key regional player in no time, we are encouraged by your avidity."

Vaka

 

[Vaka]

"We would be willing to entertain the idea of removing the Sachsen-Class Frigate from the GDE and making it available solely to the members of the Nordic council. Since this will have ramifications that would directly effect the Council itself, we would feel more comfortable if Sweden were to draw up a properly binding document to look at and go over. It should note of the plans for the Sachsen-Class to be held by the Council in perpetuity and to be added to a Council Member Only Catalog. I find the idea of a members only catalog very intriguing. It would help strengthen the national security of each nation in the council along with making sure there is a consistent equipment doctrine among members armed forces. If this is to go forward and is well received, we might be interested in adding additional equipment to that catalog."

"Our naval forces will just monitor shipping in out territorial waters for the time being and leave greater Baltic monitoring to the council. We would like to have a few joint exercises with the Royal Swedish Navy to help jump start interoperability. The new ships being built won't be done for some time though. But as soon as they are ready I would like to have some time set aside for joint exercises in the Baltic. We currently have joint exercises planned with Great Britain to be held here at the Bergen-Hohne Training Facility. It covers an area of 284 square kilometres, which makes it the largest military training area here in Germany. It is perfect for large scale exercises especially for one of the Amoured variety. We would like to offer Bergen-Hohne Training Area for large joint Nordic Council exercises. Interoperability is going to be of the upmost importance going into the new millennium. We hope that the ground work for possible future joint military engagements will be laid down in Bergen-Hohne."

"We are receiving word from the Spanish that Romania and Moldova has agreed to peace talks. Hopefully this situation can be resolved quickly and without anymore blood shed. We have to applaud the Spanish and their ability to get both sides to come to the negotiating table. Another great victory for diplomacy."

Connor

 

[Connor]

"I have forwarded you a Domestic Production Rights Agreement for your review regarding the provision of such for the Sachsen-Class Frigate, if you are happy I would be keen to see your relevant officials ratify the document as soon as possible. I am sure you will be pleased to see we have extensively recognised Germany as the primary legal entity for all matters regarding this DPR and our access is purely for production, nothing more and nothing less."

Document

Vaka

 

[Vaka]

"I have read over the Domestic Production Rights Agreement and have signed it. I'm currently faxing it back over to your office. I have followed the design of the Sachsen-Class Frigate since its initial inception and I am excited to know shes about to sail for the very first time.

Connor

 

[Jay]

Following the arrest of former Vice President Jean-Francois Fontaine in France for his illegal activities in arming Candian Rebels, the Federal Police would seize all government records and interactions with Mr. Fontaine. The following conversation was recorded and transported to the German Federal Police for archive and use in their investigation.