Of course, the battleship and pair of cruisers your father had given you weren't new, but refurbished last-generation warships were still extremely powerful, especially from a former powerhouse of the second fleet such as the Victor zi Britannia.
Daddy dearest really proving himself. Them coming from the Victor zi Britannia Fleet is a silent nod, I guess.
Great update and nice information about our marriage prospects.
[ ][LX] Stay out of it, your reach should not exceed your grasp.
[ ][LX] Take him in, regardless of risk, Xingke is a valuable piece on his own.
Well, this choice is really heavy. Staying out of it will not have any obvious repercussions for us. Only in the unlikely scenario of the Empress faction coming out on top would we end up regretting it. For all others it does not matter in a positive way.
On the personal level getting the gratitude and better relation with the Empress is a nice boni and not all factions would go ballistic on us for sheltering Xingke. But the risk for some repercussions is there. The dice are fickle and without any information, it is extremely hard to make an educated guess. From the given information, it is far more likely for a faction, which wants to curtail Xingke to come out on top in the political struggle.
The Ethiopian one was in charge and was able to stop the Empress from actually sending out more troops. They were not disgraced and Ethiopia actually proved to be a "friend" to the Federation. They did not go for getting Indonesia into their sphere of influence. So I can see them retaining their primacy or grip on the "ruling seat". Eunuchs and EU are far less likely, because they both got nothing positive to them. The Eunuch ambassador/delegate was known to have further increased the tensions with the IC and not lower them. For the EU, well they did jackshit.
I can actually see a good case being made for the Britannian faction to gain some traction, with such a powerful display by us and an official treaty showcasing our interest in Australia, it looks like Britannia will increase its presence in the region. Then you have the obvious connection between a Britannian Prince and a member of the social elite from Japan. So, they should see the clear rise of a powerful Britannian player in their backyard and this one has demonstrated a certain amiability or friendliness towards Federation issues.
Another point is that if worst come to worst and Xingke would get exiled, by sheltering him we would be a prime candidate for getting his services till he can return to the Tianzi's side. Of course, this would only work if the Federation does make a diplomatic incident out of it.
Not so sure about it. With our extreme lack of information, I would lean strongly towards staying out of it. But before I decide I would read what other questers think about it.
[ ][AL] Euro-Britannian Hosts
[ ][AL] Japanese Delegation
[ ][AL] EU Ambassadors
[ ][AL] Rus Republic Envoy
[ ][AL] Joint African Union Representative
[ ][AL] Ethiopian Delegation
Euro Britannian Hosts: Having informations about the hosts is always useful. They have a multitude of ways to make or break a conference. Furthermore, with this incident happening in their territory they are the prime candidate for providing as much information about it as possible. Then we have their semi-vassal nature towards Britannia, meaning we should be able to throw our weight around them and have it count for something.
Additionally, this incident nearly started a war between them and the Russian Republic and with Cornelia starting her big plan in the near future having some more insights into the direct neighbor to this conflict may prove useful.
Japanese Delegation: With their last scientific inventions they have shown the world they are a serious force on the scientific playground. Personally, I can see them somewhat investing into space. It is a massive prestige generator and would not alienate the big three in a direct way. Showcasing your own "power" without harming relations with everyone else, seems like a perfect way to show Japanese Greatness.
With Suzaku being with the last delegation, I doubt he would be here. I could see some members of the economic elite being present. Maybe someone substantial like Kirihara or another named canon character.
Overall, I don't think they would be the best target for information gathering.
EU Ambassadors: The only other member of the big three. Going by their anti-psionic stance and how their "shadow rulers"(or players) want to stop another extinction from happening I think they would be somewhat if not totally opposed to a space race or even a big investment into scientific pursuits in that direction. If we wanted to go that way, knowing about your enemy is the first step to make it happen. Except ourselves(at least in implication) they can throw the biggest weight around. Therefore, even without anything else knowing about the biggest player on the table should be enlightening.
Only problem here is how much could Milly get about them. While I think she would have some useful contacts or people to do it for her, I would not expect anything amazing here.
Rus Republic Envoy: Another faction that was close geographically to the event. With nearly having started some war over it, they should have their own data about it. Any information about them should allow us to judge Cornelia's venture more easily. It could also grant us some way in towards it. Interest in space per se, I doubt they would have. Like Euro-Britannia I think we would get the most out of them through explaining the military applications of it.
Joint African Union Representative: Another faction maybe able to pursue space. With them finally coming together there is a new powerful block in Africa. After their witch hunts and V.V. comments I think they have fallen into the Praetorian camp. Meaning they are either hidden enemies or future ones. The actions of Bradley did most certainly not help. I doubt they would be that open to us and I can see them somewhat leaning towards a European stance. EU has invested again and again into Africa. Even though some of those plots, regarding Ethiopia for example, failed, I would still see the EU in a strong position regarding them. Therefore, at best we would get information about a potential enemy or at this conference a bothersome obstruction.
Ethiopian Delegation: With the exception of Euro-Britannia, I can see them as being the friendliest towards us. They would be there not with a massive interest, but with an eye towards the future. Ethiopia is on the way to becoming a significant regional player and making plays to expand. With a Britannian faction on the rise inside their empire, I can see them seriously considering our words regardless which direction we may take.
[ ][PS] Downplay the importance of space as a whole, your aims will benefit from it.
[ ][PS] The Final Frontier and the value of extraterrestrial exploration.
[ ][PS] The value of scientific research specifically.
[ ][PS] The military necessity of the ultimate highground.
[ ][PS] National pretige and the political realities of space.
[ ][PS] The business of space and the profit to be had.
[ ][PS] Potential benefits for international cooperation.
1.) Most likely the stance from the EU and has a certain ring towards self-interest for us. Personally I don't see that much use in this with some minor exceptions. With our last action we could have come on the radar of the Praetorians. By at least openly stating our disinterest in space we could throw a smokebomb and hide our true intentions for some time.
2.) If this option does not put us on the radar of the Praetorians I don't know what will. This would be a far-flung prediction for the future and mostly inspire people outside. Politicians will hardly move for dreams.
3.) This stance is less about politics and more about science, obviously. I think it would be appreciated by Japan. It would take some heat out of this topic. Not as extreme as the first one, but I think this would be one of the options with a low chance of starting a space race.
4.) You want nations to care about space, what better way is there than to tell them if the others get there first they will be doomed. I think both Russian factions would respond towards this, but such a message will raise tensions and has a chance of starting a space race.
5.) Getting such a message out would interest the ones below the big three. In direct contest, they should all know they can't hold a candle to any of the big three, but in something like that they could see themselves upstaging them. I think such a message would influence most of all Japan and maybe led to them starting a space program. The same could go for the other "minor" powers. Of course, if minor faction start something like that it would be prudent for the big ones to follow through and showing them how it is done. This could go either way, they start out ahead and make some achievement and then the big ones take notice.
Overall, I think this has the highest chance for getting some nations to start a space program.
6.) Milly! Milly! Milly! We know from the omake that Milly has an interest in diversifying the portfolio of "her" conglomerate. Showing her and the world the possibilities for space may get the Ashford Coorparation to field the bill for the initial space attempts from the Britannian side. This would also open cooperations between us in the future and play well into why we choose her to come with us.
7.) If Euphy was with us, this would be a good chance to try this. So, while the notion of international cooperation is nice and we would certainly profit from hammering out some compromise. The future for that is bleak. We know OOC about Cornelia throwing a torch into a big pile of sakuradite that will light up the region. Therefore, I think wrong place, wrong time and wrong person.
In the end we have to define what we would want out of this and I kind of lean towards the business option. The event per se was mostly concerning regarding the potential loss of life, if it would have hit a populated region. It was not a scientific event and this is not the location for scientists to talk about it. This is a round table of politicians and their delegations talking aobut the real-life problems this has raised for them.
