A Silvery Proposition

[NCR]

Prime Minister Emeric Fulminetti formally invites the Prime Minister of Nevada to a meeting in New California, wishing to discuss common strategic interests.

[Alanston]

Russell Nelson, president of Deseret and the Mormon Church, informs the New Californians that although he will not be coming to the NCR for the meeting, the New Californians are more than welcome to send a delegation to Salt Lake City. This delegation must comply with all Mormon/Deseret laws, however, and is strictly prohibited from proselytizing while within the borders of Deseret. The delegation must consist of married men only, and must dress and behave respectfully for the entire duration of their visit. Alcohol, tea, coffee, and tobacco are all illegal within Deseret, and the NCR is informed that none of their delegates may bring any into the state.

[Deseret includes the rest of Navada, Utah, and Arizona.]

[NCR]

Russell Nelson, president of Deseret and the Mormon Church, informs the New Californians that although he will not be coming to the NCR for the meeting, the New Californians are more than welcome to send a delegation to Salt Lake City. This delegation must comply with all Mormon/Deseret laws, however, and is strictly prohibited from proselytizing while within the borders of Deseret. The delegation must consist of married men only, and must dress and behave respectfully for the entire duration of their visit. Alcohol, tea, coffee, and tobacco are all illegal within Deseret, and the NCR is informed that none of their delegates may bring any into the state.

[Deseret includes the rest of Navada, Utah, and Arizona.]

The NCR accepts the invitation, and will send an "appropriate" delegation lead by Mr. Morgenstern, the Minister for Foreign Affairs.

[Alanston]

Mr. Morgenstern and his delegation would be greeted at the airport in Salt Lake City, where they would be taken directly to the government offices, where President Nelson would be waiting for them.

"Welcome to Deseret! Please, take a seat. Would you like some water or juice?" Nelson would ask, gesturing to some juices and water sitting on a nearby counter. Nelson would shake their hands, before taking a seat himself.

[NCR]

<<Thank you, President Nelson, your hospitality is much appreciated.>> says Minister Morgenstern, while taking the offered seat and smiling.
<<I'll gladly accept a glass of fresh juice.>>

[Alanston]

"Certainly," Nelson replies, standing up and serving his guests personally, before taking his seat again. "Now, what brings you to visit Deseret today?"

[NCR]

<<Ah, you're the kindest!>> Morgenstern says, smiling and sipping his juice.
<<Well, the reason is simple. Deseret is a beautiful and extensive country. Actually, it's impressive how you've managed to tame such an harsh and large territory with so little people...>> he continued, pensive.
<<Regardless, times change. When once upon a time the most perilous thing your settlers had to face was the untamed frontier, now dangerous neighbours look at interest at your vast borders.>>
<<Borders which are particularly hard to defend, given their vastity and your low, low population.>> he added, sighing, his face sad.
<<But!>> he continued, suddenly smiling, face brimming with hope. <<We surely can help. After all, we're the neighbour whom you share your longest border with; we share many cultural aspects; and so many of our people speak the same language, like we are doing right now!>> speaking passionately, he continued.
<<As such we propose to you to enter in a Protectorate agreement with us. The aegis of NCR will protect you, and under a common command our troops will better defend the borders. We also want to help you in civilian matters, and as such we will build for you various infrastructures, for the betterment of the standard of living of the good people of Deseret.>> he waited for a reaction, hopeful.

[Alanston]

Nelson would pause for a while to think about this information. "Thank you, we are indeed quite pleased with how we have managed to carve our nation out of this inhospitable land. Especially considering our lack of arable land. But we have not only managed, we have thrived here in this land.

"As for your offer of protectorate status, it sounds promising. However, would the infrastructure be up to our local (religious) codes? As for the protectorate agreement, does this mean we would see an increase in hea-" He would cut himself off here, before coughing and continuing. "I mean, foreign immigrants? We are rather picky with regards to who we allow to settle in out lands, with most having to be converts to the Mormon Church. I do not think my people would appreciate it very much if we signed this agreement with you, and then proceeded to allow an influx of Californians, or any other group of people, into our territory." He pauses to look sympathetically at Morgenstern. "Essentially I need more information before I can consider your offer properly."

[NCR]

<<Of course!>> the Minister responds, enthusiastically.
<<In the NCR, we believe in always making informed decisions.>> he added, playfully.
<<Here's a draft of the agreement. Of course, as civilized people, we can add or remove content if we so desire, for our mutual benefits.>>
<<For example the... err... "Settlers" problem could be fixed modifying this section over here, and making it so that our people have free movement in each other's territories, and maybe temporary residence should they wish so, but for permanent residence proper procedure should be followed. Would that suit you?>>

Other than that, other important points in the agreement are:
-complete FTA, with quickened customs;
-combined defence, with the NCR holding the so-called “supreme command”;
-the right of the NCR to hold region-wide or local referendums (if asked for clarifications, Morgenstern would explain that this is needed to better coexist.
For example, let's say that the project for a building is announced in a town, in place of an already existing park. Some people would voice their dissent, because apperently the people of that particular town care particularly about that park. Should the discontent be enough, the NCR could hold a local referendum for that town, to understant what the majority of people really wants. As such, should the "keep the park" be the majority, the project may be changed so to be adapted to a new location.
This, in mr. Morgenstern opinion, would also help much to ease the concerns about infrastructures being built up to local codes raised by President Nelson.);
-the establishment of an official and secure fast diplomatic channel between the two governments;
-should a NCR citizen commit a crime in Deseret, the right of the NCR to process them in the NCR by use of a special court;
-the right to build buildings & infrastructures, payed and owned by the NCR, but of reasonable free use unless otherwise noted (eg. no tolls or other similar barriers are levied by the NCR to use the built roads). In some cases, Deseret could be asked to provide for personnel and/or for manutention (eg. the manutention of roads).
Mr. Morgensternn also adds that the referendum point should take care of the concerns about infrastructures being built up to local codes and wishes.





[PS I lol'd hard at the heathens part, gg]

[Alanston]

Nelson would read over the draft agreement, before replying. "Well, I have three main issues here. First, I do not wish for land to become a settler state for your people. We must maintain final say over immigration and land ownership. I am more than happy to allow work permits and the like, but over land ownership and citizenship, my government must maintain final say. I am not flexible in this regard. We will ensure adequate housing is available for rent, both apartments and houses, so your residents have ample access to housing here in Deseret. Secondly, the exchange for crimes must go both ways, or that point is off the draft. Similarly, religious crimes committed in Deseret, including proselytizing, are to be held in a high regard.

"I do not wish to allow this to be a sticking point, so how about we come to an agreement on this matter, shall we? Any NCR citizen wishing to migrate to NCR must agree to abide by our religious laws, however they will be free to practice their own religions, or..." Here he coughs loudly, muttering under his breath, before continuing. "Heaven forbid, lack thereof, in the privacy of their own homes. They may not proselytize or attempt to convert our citizens in any way. Failure to abide by this will result in their deportation for a set period of time. I would like to make it life, but how about we agree to 25 years? If, however, they do not abide by this and still return to Deseret, they will be tried under our laws. Does this sound agreeable to you?

"Finally, these referendums must not interfere with religious life, or with the national government. They may not override any of our internal laws or religious laws, nor may they involve any discussions about Deseret joining any other nation. All potential referendums or discussions on these matters must go solely through my government. Your referendums may only be on matters of defense and development. Further, if a space is zoned for religious reasons, you may not develop there for any reason, and must find another location, regardless of referendum laws."

[NCR]

Mr. Morgenstern listens carefully to Nelson's concerns, before replying:
<<Of course. As I said, regarding settlers we have no problems over your needs, and thus proposition; we care mostly about freedom of movement for goods and people, but you are free to maintain final say over land ownership and citizenship as you wish.>>

<<Also, the deportation and 25 years ban from crossing the border seems a reasonable and acceptable compromise. To showcase our good intentions and mutual respect, I'll also add that the NCR promises to implement a sort of "sensibilization" campaign: each public craft traveling to Deseret from the NCR, be it train, plane, or bus, will have a person there to explain passengers the main dos and the don'ts in Deseret.>>

<<Lastly, the referendum point is instead a little bit trickier. From your response, I see your prospective, and I understand your concerns; they are valid, and I would be lying to you if I said I wouldn't take similar precautions to ward my people.
However, limiting them to defense and development only is something that seems to work in theory, only to prove insufficient in practice.
As such, I propose the following compromise: let's say the referendums can be called on defense, development and "social issues", the last of which should be a term umbrella enough to also encompass any coexistence problems, and/or NCR-interactions issues.
For the other issues, we will always refer to your government directly if needed.>>

<<Should you find this compromise reasonable, we have a deal!>> The minister adds, enthusiastically.

[Alanston]

Nelson shakes his head sadly, "I'm afraid we're still having some disagreements over the proposed referendums. Your so-called 'social issues' are still too closely aligned to any potential laws relating to religion. I'm afraid I must be strict on the matter of the referendums being solely on defense and development. Aside from that, everything else is acceptable, and I have no other concerns at this time."

[NCR]

<<What if we exclude from "social issues" the most worrisome matters of religious importance? For example, I see you care a lot for proselytizers, and multiple times you've stated that you want them to stay illegal. We could explicitly state that "social issues" don't include the right to hold referendums to let them proselytize, and also exclude similar matters that you rightfully hold dear. Would that be fine?>> The minister adds.

[Alanston]

Nelson frowns, taking a moment to look straight at Mr. Morgenstern before replying. "How about, instead of referendums on coexistance issues and NCR-interaction issues, you brought them straight to my government, and we worked together to solve them? Rather than you holding a referendum on the matter without the approval of my government? Would this not be a better way of solving these issues?"

[NCR]

<<Well, "better" is a relative term I suppose>> Morgenstern sighs. Then he adds, conciliatory:
<<In the NCR we believe that more often than not, talking with the people and making them partecipate directly, instead that through representatives, helps build solid relationships with them. Makes them happy, feel valued. I know it may sound idealistic, but we truly believe it.
I simply wanted to ensure we wouldn't be seen as foreign meddlers from the locals' point of view, especially in little, rural areas.

But, I see that this is driving a wedge among our union, instead of bringing our peoples closer like I wanted.
As such, I'll concede on the "social issue" point, leaving only development & defence like you wanted.

So, if there's nothing else to add, I think we can finally congratulate ourselves on a job well done.>> He finishes, smiling.