Sergora
12-01-2008, 02:51
The Republic of Sergora
Liberty, Fraternity, Tradition
Contents:
1. Vital OOC information
2. Geography, General Information
3. Government, culture, society and economy
4. Basic information on military service, branches and structure/material.
5. History of Sergora
6. Population, statistics
1. OOC nuts and bolts
Hi all! I used to roleplay a load of NS back some years ago, but life ran away with me, and I haven't got the chance to get back before now. For those I used to play with, here's my former nations: African Commonwealth, Jeitan, Neo-Anarchos and Tiastan. Most of it in the AMW group, I hope you guys are still around.
I have a couple of criteria when I play, as I'm serious about it and would rather just play with people who have the same view on things as I so that neither you nor I waste our precious time :) Here they are:
Realistic roleplaying and numbers
Instead of the rapidly expanding population I've instead decided to RP with a fixed population corresponding with the geography of my nation at approximately 80 million, no more and no less. This keeps RPs consistent with how it would be in real life, and makes conflicts more enjoyable as combat with millions and millions of combat effective troops are impossible to get a realistic overview over and don't make for detailed RP - YMMV, I just don't like it, and I prefer to RP with nations who do the same or are way below me in population so things are kept fair and godmod-free.
Modern tech and fair, -realistic- conflicts
I love military RPs and military history, although I'm kind of an amateur. So, just go easy on me, I guess! Also, I'd rather play with people who appreciate the nature of military conflict rather than trying to win. That means, taking big losses if it makes sense, and making mistakes or devaluating your force on purpose if it makes for dramatic RP or an enjoyable chaotic twist on the story. I do the same, and expect it from a potential opponent.
Other than that, I'm all cool
I'll play with anyone who are online and are interested in relations, good or bad, with my nation(s). If you want to be my neighbour please say so and I'll consider it, I've kept my border descriptions deliberately vague for this reason.
I hope you'll play with me, looking forward to writing with you all!
Geography, General Information
Basic Geographic Information
The Republic of Sergora (Sergoran: Ropublika Sergorja) is a picturesque country somewhere in the Pacific that covers 339,167 square kilometers of land and 3,625 sq. kil. of water, and has a little over 80,000 registered natural citizens. Elevation range from mountains of the Grosostra ("Grey Sisters") in the southeast to the low shores of the pacific ocean in the north.
Climate
Sergora remains well north of the equator and is a temperate continental clime
with summers that can become very hot and steamy in the summer as well as frigid to cold, snowy winters. Temperature extremes are about 38° celsius in the summer to -25° in the winter. Average temperature in summer is 23° to 33° and 0° to -14° in the winter. The average yearly rainfall is approximately 600 millimeters (24 inches).
Terrain
The northern part of the country are great plains, marked by watercourses going northward out into the ocean. Looking towards the south elevation gains, with large swathes of rough hilly terrain going before several mountainous regions, particularly the Grey Sisters mountains. Upland regions include the Groff and Hoxley areas southwest of the major metropolitan zones along with the Fugelberj massif, before they merge into the large mountains forming the extreme southwestern border of the nation. A few other parts of the country sticks out, such as the sandy Stanislav in the northeast and the very humid marshy wetlands found near the far western border.
Natural Resources
Iron ore, bauxite, coal, gemstones, timber, lignite, uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel, arable land, water
Natural Hazards and International Agreements
Flooding remains a severe hazard in certain lower-lying populated areas, and in the years past the republic has been extensively flooded with numerous people dying or losing their homes as a result, and the Sergoran rescue service is a capable and experienced one by now.
Sergora is party to the following treaties and agreements:
- Sergora has agreed to abstain from nuclear tests and cooperate with other states in order to halt proliferation of nuclear and thermonuclear weapons.
- Sergora is party to several environmental protection treaties in order to prevent excessive pollution from sulphur, nitrogen and related materials.
- Sergora has agreed to abstain from whaling and pledged to protect national biodiversity inasmuch is it possible.
Government, Culture, Society and Economy
Government
The President of the Republic is chosen every five years by parliament, and may serve three consecutive terms with popular support. Its power is greater than many more ceremonial presidents however, and he or she has a number of privileges, among them deciding when elections happen and putting down an executive veto on decisions in parliament, although the latter is a weighty decision and almost never used without popular consent.
The house of representatives, the country's national parliament, has 131 seats that are filled by a coalition of democratically elected parties. The republic is a competitive democracy in the vein of Joseph Schumpeter's theories, and people invest most of their power in the democratic mandate given to leaders. It must be noted, however, that elections don't confer absolute power, and it is common for parliament and president to hold national referendums on weighty and/or controversial issues.
The national constitution of 1899, revised 1972 and 1985 at the latest, commands multi-party democracy, mandatory conscription and universal suffrage among other things.
Culture
While the nation remains largely judeo-christian, the architecture and art of Sergora reveals strong jewish, catholic and pagan roots - Many of the regions largest synagogues, churches and both gothic and baroque castles can be found in the nation.
Music remains a heady mix of folk bands and classical compositions, and the academic roots of the country reflect several heavyweights in science and philosophy, among them Daroslav Janus and Joseph Bonne.
Litterature and cuisine are other areas in with Sergora is well-known among the intelligentsia of other nations.
Society
Sergora has a history of tradition and reflection, and most Sergorans consider one another honest, hard-working people. Democratic sentiment is strong, and social conscience bring many out in support of charity and mutual aid. While there are cutting-edge experimental art and music scenes, Sergora remains a rather conservative culture with regards to keeping traditions and the status quo.
Respect is accorded mostly to people in positions of academic or military importance, although the younger generation tend to turn more to either political parties (most middle-aged Sergorans don't automatically respect their government any more) or trendy pop-cultural icons. On the subject, there are both state-owned public service radio and tv stations, and competitive market channels, and most metropolitan Sergorans enjoy a wide range of cable options.
Economy
Sergora held its first multi-party elections in 1985, following three decades of either Communist, King or Dictator rule, and has succeeded in transforming its centrally planned economy into a market economy - what planned traits in the economy that remain are entirely beneficial, such as national health care and subsidiary aid to homeless or unemployed people. Total government spending is medium to high, and many state-owned enterprises have not been privatized.
Sergora continues to demonstrate economic growth as one of the newest players in the Pacific. The private sector accounts for over 74% of GDP. It enjoys strong trade, fiscal, monetary, investment, business, and labor freedoms. The top income tax rate is fairly high, but corporate taxes are low - it must be noted that corporation excesses are curbed by somewhat stringent laws on their practice - Inflation is low, it was on the rise in the past few years, but it is now starting to regulate. Total government spending is high, and many formerly state-owned enterprises have not been privatized, but corruption is at an all-time low, so the arrangement is seen as ideal for the time being.
Statistics:
GDP: $1,9 trillion
Labor force - by occupation: services 61.2%, industry 33.3%, agriculture 5.5%
Unemployment rate: 5.4%
Population below poverty line: 7,6%
Reserves of foreign exchange & gold: $64.04 billion
Primary export goods: Machinery and equipment, food products, fuels and electricity, minerals and gemstones, chemicals, other manufacturies.
Military service and spending
The Armed Forces of Sergora, known in common parlance as the Armanto Sergorja or the Armanto Fortere Sergorj for long, is the primarily defense-oriented armed forces of the nation. Divided into the Republican Army (Armora Ropublika), Republican Navy (Nataalo Ropublika) and Sergoran Air Force (Flitottor Sergorja)*, the armed forces number 450,000, 150,000 of whom are conscripts serving the 1-year conscription period that is constitutionally mandatory for medically fit males at age 17. The rest of the active personnel are volunteer personnel, and the already large service branches are now considering expansion, as many conscripts desire the well-paid and prestigious life of a Sergoran military career. Annual military expenditure is 1.6 of GDP, or 28,500,000,000 USD.
*There are other organizations with military status, although these are not considered branches in the traditional regard, these include the Military Firefighters, Military Police, the Sergoran Special Gendarmerie, Special Communications Service, the Sergoran Intelligence Services and the Armed Forces Intelligence Service.
Hardware
The army material structure suffers under dictatorship-era material choices and superstructure, and the Armora Ropublika remains the most poorly outfitted of the branches, although much is done to attempt to rectify this. For instance, all soldiers, including conscripts, now have at least basic body armour. Service weapons include:
The ubiquitous SKS Rifle (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SKS) of Romanian and German surplus for conscripts, the G3A3 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heckler_%26_Koch_G3) for crack troops, and a variety of other guns such as the MSG-90 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heckler_%26_Koch_PSG1) and the UZI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uzi_submachine_gun) family of submachine guns. Surplus stocks of the AK-47 and AK-74 are also kept, primarily for urban combat forces.
Squad support is considered crucial in small group assaults, and support roles are currently served by the PKM (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PKM) multirole machine gun, the domestic Type A4 81mm mortar and the Carl Gustav recoilless Rifle (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Gustav_recoilless_rifle). Heavier-duty close support is maintained by way of armour, attack helicopter and artillery.
The primary IFVs of the Republican Army are the gun-bristling BMP-2 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMP-2) and BMP-3 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMP-3), although many soldiers (mainly the conscript force, but several volunteer brigades as well) still have to make do with the Type R113 domestic carrier, an up-armoured conversion of the aging American M113 APC. The primary battle tank is the T-72 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-72) soviet main battle tank, as well as a variety of other designs, most of which are being phased out.
Helicopters (save naval helicopters) are also under the army's purview, and combat roles are primarily covered by the IAR 330 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IAR_330) and the Mil Mi-8 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mil_Mi-8) and Mil Mi-24 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mil_Mi-24) models.
The mainstay artillery pieces are the ASTROS (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astros_II_MLRS) 127 to 300mm MLRS and the G5 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G5_howitzer) and G6 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G6_howitzer) 155mm Self-propelled Howitzer.
Fleet
The Sergoran Flagship is the NRF Boralgrad Patriarch-class Battle Frigate. A large frigate of domestic design, it hosts a number of large-bore guns and compartments for several naval-variant IAR 330 Puma (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IAR_330#Naval_version) tactical helicopters. After her, the order of battle are the 3 Bremen-class (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bremen_class_frigate) frigates the NRF Patriarch, the NRF Ichtys and the NRF Stanislav, flanked by the 2 Braunschweig-class (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braunschweig_class_corvette) corvettes the NRC Berlin and NRC Fortitude, acquired from recent Sergoran cooperation with the federal republic of Germany. Besides this is a contingent of anti-air/anti-sub/minelayer and supply craft, as well as a potpourri of obsolete attack craft, fleet oilers and a variety of transports and tugs for maintaining fleet operations.
Exact specification, number and armament of crafts remain classified, but is expected to become accessible when the Sergoran Fleet page is online ;)
Air Force
Dominated by Soviet inventory and doctrine, the Sergoran Air Force shows signs of wear and the influence of the all-consuming Soviet Union during the days as a Warsaw Pact members.
The tactical fighter force of the Flitottor Sergorja is comprised of 20 Mig-31b (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikoyan_MiG-31) Foxhound fighters. Other crafts are in service in lesser numbers, such as the Su-27 Flanker (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sukhoi_Su-27) and the Su-24 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sukhoi_Su-24) Fencer fast-bomber.
Although political attempts have been made to scrap them, a strategic bomber force containing mainly Tupolev Badgers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tupolev_Tu-16) and some Bears (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tupolev_Tu-95) remains in operation within the FS. The prestige of the air force and it's leaders hold firm support for medium bombing capability, and the air command of the FS has often claimed the sheer necessity of that very capability in an increasingly hostile world.
Tactical and strategic cargo and transport capability is carried out by the rugged T44 "Orn" (a domestic turbo-prop variant of the Douglas DC-3 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_DC-3)) and the massive Antonov AN-22 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonov_An-22).
Reconnaissance and intelligence duties are handled on the shorter perimeters near the border by Tu-16 RM2 variants, and AWACS detail as well as airforce command, is done by eight Brazilian-issue Embraer R-99 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embraer_R-99) AWACS craft.
Strategic Weapon Stockpiles
From it's time as a Soviet satellite dictator state, Sergora maintains a stockpile of ballistic missiles under the command auspice of the Sergoran Strategic Missile Command, directly subservient to the Chief of Staff. SRBMs are plentiful in the form of SCUD (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scud)-C and -D, as well as a few of the longer-reaching R-12 Dvina (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R-12).
The status of strategic WEAPON stockpiles however, is uncertain. Sergora has ratified the Nuclear Test Ban treaty and has repeatedly stated it's aversion to nuclear weaponry. It is known, however, that other WMD programs were underway, and reports of an active weaponized chemical stockpile has been confirmed as late as 1984. Furthermore, Sergora is not party to the Chemical Weapons Convention, and the United States have decided that Sergora falls under "probable posession", citing the fact that while Sergora denies stockpiles, they don't accept investigations on Sergoran soil.
Sergora has no known biological or radiological weapons stockpiles.
The capacity to deliver weapons is thus far unknown, although Sergora has a number of NBC warfare directorates - Their operations are not open to foreign or public interests, but they have published several open reports detailing what is primarily civil and military defense perimeter projects and hazmat crews, for the defense of Sergoran lives in the event of an NBC attack.
((Strictly OOC: Sergora has limited stockpiles of irritant, incapacitant and lethal chemical weapons.))
History of Sergora
Located in an (unspecified) area of eastern europe / central asia, the area of present-day Sergora was first inhabited in prehistory. Fossils of jawbones and other skull parts indicate that humankind were present at approx. 31,000 years ago, making it a part of archeological history. In ancient times Thracian and Indo-Aryan tribes shared ownership of the areas till it's assimilation in the Roman Empire under Trajan after several hard fought conflicts. Faced with successive Goth invasions however, Roman administration retreated again in about 300 A.D.
In the dark and middle ages, the area was a scene of turbulent conflict, falling under the raids of both Huns, Magyars, Persians and Tatars, setting the stage for many of the great migrations of the medieval times. In early Modern times, though, conflict arose again, and Sergora saw itself being under Ottoman rule, then later a fractionalized "Balkan" of warring Principalities, Electorates and Holy Roman Republics - A concluded area would first arise in 1914, when the powerful principalties of Sergerj and Ora both elected a the powerful Count Matthius as king. By clever maneuvering Matthius had the burgeoning merchant and aristocratic classes give up their political power and exemption of taxes, leading to the era of absolutism (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_absolutism) in Sergora.
From then on, Sergora went on to consume the weaker kingdoms and principalities around her, leading to the King's Empire of Greater Sergora - Political trysts reduced the site of KEGS however, and it was a weakened Sergora that participated in the World War 2 under the command of the German Wehrmacht in 1942, losing their beloved king Matthius the Third to cruel dictator Janosh Arnbitor. In spite of popular resistance to Arnbitor and aid to jews, homosexuals and other dissidents facing deportation to Germany, an estimated 400,000 "undesirables" met their end under Janosh' reign through deportation or the actions of Einsatzgruppen.
Following the war to it's bitter end a Sergora with a military in shambles after SS recruitment and defeat, Sergora was conquered by Stalin's forces and became a soviet republic. Integration into the federation of "socialist" republics came slow under new a line of party chairmen with Ian Torjan sitting the longest, and food shortages as well as brutal opressive measures slowly turned the political and civic life against the Party. Ian remained leader for a horrible forty years, his election starting in 1945 and ending in 1985 to the joy of all. As Sergora remained on the fringes of the Soviet Union the Russian leaders did not find the nationstate important enough to intervene in 1985 when huge riots, strikes and battles in the street ended Soviet rule. Ian remained dictator until the end of the year however, as the newly constituted parliament voted for him in the interest of conciliation. Public unrest increased, and Torjan fled the nation with vigilante mobs hot on his heels - a new multiparty constitutional assembly gathered and created the democratic republic of Sergora as known today.
Population, Statistics
With over 80 million citizens, Sergora is one of the more populous nations in greater Europe. However, the fertility at 1.41 child per mother remains very low, and immigration and good health care remains one of the reasons for the current population demographic. As of 2008 there are more than 6 million foreign citizens registered in Sergora, most from Turkey, but many from Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Serbia.
Christianity remains the largest denomination in Sergora, with about 52 million adherents. The majority are Prostetant, although only narrowly, with a P/C split of about 26,5/25,5 million faithful. After this is Islam as largest religion with 4 million adherents, and then Buddhism and Judaism with about 100,000 adherents.
Standard Sergoran is the primary language of Sergora, spoken by nearly every single citizen. English is the accepted secondary language, and taught in every school at the 12th year of age. Other languages taught are Chinese, French, Italian, Spanish, and Russian. Also, both Japanese, Latin and Greek are offered at college level all throughout the country.
Birth Censi are as follows:
Age structure:
* 0-14 years: 14.7%
* 15-64 years: 67.3%
* 65 years and
Population growth rate: -0.023%
Birth rate: 9.8 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 10.05 deaths/1,000 population
Net migration rate: 2.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population
((Evidently, a work in progress. I will try to have the rest up as soon as possible. Feedback is very welcome))
Liberty, Fraternity, Tradition
Contents:
1. Vital OOC information
2. Geography, General Information
3. Government, culture, society and economy
4. Basic information on military service, branches and structure/material.
5. History of Sergora
6. Population, statistics
1. OOC nuts and bolts
Hi all! I used to roleplay a load of NS back some years ago, but life ran away with me, and I haven't got the chance to get back before now. For those I used to play with, here's my former nations: African Commonwealth, Jeitan, Neo-Anarchos and Tiastan. Most of it in the AMW group, I hope you guys are still around.
I have a couple of criteria when I play, as I'm serious about it and would rather just play with people who have the same view on things as I so that neither you nor I waste our precious time :) Here they are:
Realistic roleplaying and numbers
Instead of the rapidly expanding population I've instead decided to RP with a fixed population corresponding with the geography of my nation at approximately 80 million, no more and no less. This keeps RPs consistent with how it would be in real life, and makes conflicts more enjoyable as combat with millions and millions of combat effective troops are impossible to get a realistic overview over and don't make for detailed RP - YMMV, I just don't like it, and I prefer to RP with nations who do the same or are way below me in population so things are kept fair and godmod-free.
Modern tech and fair, -realistic- conflicts
I love military RPs and military history, although I'm kind of an amateur. So, just go easy on me, I guess! Also, I'd rather play with people who appreciate the nature of military conflict rather than trying to win. That means, taking big losses if it makes sense, and making mistakes or devaluating your force on purpose if it makes for dramatic RP or an enjoyable chaotic twist on the story. I do the same, and expect it from a potential opponent.
Other than that, I'm all cool
I'll play with anyone who are online and are interested in relations, good or bad, with my nation(s). If you want to be my neighbour please say so and I'll consider it, I've kept my border descriptions deliberately vague for this reason.
I hope you'll play with me, looking forward to writing with you all!
Geography, General Information
Basic Geographic Information
The Republic of Sergora (Sergoran: Ropublika Sergorja) is a picturesque country somewhere in the Pacific that covers 339,167 square kilometers of land and 3,625 sq. kil. of water, and has a little over 80,000 registered natural citizens. Elevation range from mountains of the Grosostra ("Grey Sisters") in the southeast to the low shores of the pacific ocean in the north.
Climate
Sergora remains well north of the equator and is a temperate continental clime
with summers that can become very hot and steamy in the summer as well as frigid to cold, snowy winters. Temperature extremes are about 38° celsius in the summer to -25° in the winter. Average temperature in summer is 23° to 33° and 0° to -14° in the winter. The average yearly rainfall is approximately 600 millimeters (24 inches).
Terrain
The northern part of the country are great plains, marked by watercourses going northward out into the ocean. Looking towards the south elevation gains, with large swathes of rough hilly terrain going before several mountainous regions, particularly the Grey Sisters mountains. Upland regions include the Groff and Hoxley areas southwest of the major metropolitan zones along with the Fugelberj massif, before they merge into the large mountains forming the extreme southwestern border of the nation. A few other parts of the country sticks out, such as the sandy Stanislav in the northeast and the very humid marshy wetlands found near the far western border.
Natural Resources
Iron ore, bauxite, coal, gemstones, timber, lignite, uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel, arable land, water
Natural Hazards and International Agreements
Flooding remains a severe hazard in certain lower-lying populated areas, and in the years past the republic has been extensively flooded with numerous people dying or losing their homes as a result, and the Sergoran rescue service is a capable and experienced one by now.
Sergora is party to the following treaties and agreements:
- Sergora has agreed to abstain from nuclear tests and cooperate with other states in order to halt proliferation of nuclear and thermonuclear weapons.
- Sergora is party to several environmental protection treaties in order to prevent excessive pollution from sulphur, nitrogen and related materials.
- Sergora has agreed to abstain from whaling and pledged to protect national biodiversity inasmuch is it possible.
Government, Culture, Society and Economy
Government
The President of the Republic is chosen every five years by parliament, and may serve three consecutive terms with popular support. Its power is greater than many more ceremonial presidents however, and he or she has a number of privileges, among them deciding when elections happen and putting down an executive veto on decisions in parliament, although the latter is a weighty decision and almost never used without popular consent.
The house of representatives, the country's national parliament, has 131 seats that are filled by a coalition of democratically elected parties. The republic is a competitive democracy in the vein of Joseph Schumpeter's theories, and people invest most of their power in the democratic mandate given to leaders. It must be noted, however, that elections don't confer absolute power, and it is common for parliament and president to hold national referendums on weighty and/or controversial issues.
The national constitution of 1899, revised 1972 and 1985 at the latest, commands multi-party democracy, mandatory conscription and universal suffrage among other things.
Culture
While the nation remains largely judeo-christian, the architecture and art of Sergora reveals strong jewish, catholic and pagan roots - Many of the regions largest synagogues, churches and both gothic and baroque castles can be found in the nation.
Music remains a heady mix of folk bands and classical compositions, and the academic roots of the country reflect several heavyweights in science and philosophy, among them Daroslav Janus and Joseph Bonne.
Litterature and cuisine are other areas in with Sergora is well-known among the intelligentsia of other nations.
Society
Sergora has a history of tradition and reflection, and most Sergorans consider one another honest, hard-working people. Democratic sentiment is strong, and social conscience bring many out in support of charity and mutual aid. While there are cutting-edge experimental art and music scenes, Sergora remains a rather conservative culture with regards to keeping traditions and the status quo.
Respect is accorded mostly to people in positions of academic or military importance, although the younger generation tend to turn more to either political parties (most middle-aged Sergorans don't automatically respect their government any more) or trendy pop-cultural icons. On the subject, there are both state-owned public service radio and tv stations, and competitive market channels, and most metropolitan Sergorans enjoy a wide range of cable options.
Economy
Sergora held its first multi-party elections in 1985, following three decades of either Communist, King or Dictator rule, and has succeeded in transforming its centrally planned economy into a market economy - what planned traits in the economy that remain are entirely beneficial, such as national health care and subsidiary aid to homeless or unemployed people. Total government spending is medium to high, and many state-owned enterprises have not been privatized.
Sergora continues to demonstrate economic growth as one of the newest players in the Pacific. The private sector accounts for over 74% of GDP. It enjoys strong trade, fiscal, monetary, investment, business, and labor freedoms. The top income tax rate is fairly high, but corporate taxes are low - it must be noted that corporation excesses are curbed by somewhat stringent laws on their practice - Inflation is low, it was on the rise in the past few years, but it is now starting to regulate. Total government spending is high, and many formerly state-owned enterprises have not been privatized, but corruption is at an all-time low, so the arrangement is seen as ideal for the time being.
Statistics:
GDP: $1,9 trillion
Labor force - by occupation: services 61.2%, industry 33.3%, agriculture 5.5%
Unemployment rate: 5.4%
Population below poverty line: 7,6%
Reserves of foreign exchange & gold: $64.04 billion
Primary export goods: Machinery and equipment, food products, fuels and electricity, minerals and gemstones, chemicals, other manufacturies.
Military service and spending
The Armed Forces of Sergora, known in common parlance as the Armanto Sergorja or the Armanto Fortere Sergorj for long, is the primarily defense-oriented armed forces of the nation. Divided into the Republican Army (Armora Ropublika), Republican Navy (Nataalo Ropublika) and Sergoran Air Force (Flitottor Sergorja)*, the armed forces number 450,000, 150,000 of whom are conscripts serving the 1-year conscription period that is constitutionally mandatory for medically fit males at age 17. The rest of the active personnel are volunteer personnel, and the already large service branches are now considering expansion, as many conscripts desire the well-paid and prestigious life of a Sergoran military career. Annual military expenditure is 1.6 of GDP, or 28,500,000,000 USD.
*There are other organizations with military status, although these are not considered branches in the traditional regard, these include the Military Firefighters, Military Police, the Sergoran Special Gendarmerie, Special Communications Service, the Sergoran Intelligence Services and the Armed Forces Intelligence Service.
Hardware
The army material structure suffers under dictatorship-era material choices and superstructure, and the Armora Ropublika remains the most poorly outfitted of the branches, although much is done to attempt to rectify this. For instance, all soldiers, including conscripts, now have at least basic body armour. Service weapons include:
The ubiquitous SKS Rifle (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SKS) of Romanian and German surplus for conscripts, the G3A3 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heckler_%26_Koch_G3) for crack troops, and a variety of other guns such as the MSG-90 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heckler_%26_Koch_PSG1) and the UZI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uzi_submachine_gun) family of submachine guns. Surplus stocks of the AK-47 and AK-74 are also kept, primarily for urban combat forces.
Squad support is considered crucial in small group assaults, and support roles are currently served by the PKM (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PKM) multirole machine gun, the domestic Type A4 81mm mortar and the Carl Gustav recoilless Rifle (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Gustav_recoilless_rifle). Heavier-duty close support is maintained by way of armour, attack helicopter and artillery.
The primary IFVs of the Republican Army are the gun-bristling BMP-2 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMP-2) and BMP-3 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMP-3), although many soldiers (mainly the conscript force, but several volunteer brigades as well) still have to make do with the Type R113 domestic carrier, an up-armoured conversion of the aging American M113 APC. The primary battle tank is the T-72 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-72) soviet main battle tank, as well as a variety of other designs, most of which are being phased out.
Helicopters (save naval helicopters) are also under the army's purview, and combat roles are primarily covered by the IAR 330 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IAR_330) and the Mil Mi-8 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mil_Mi-8) and Mil Mi-24 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mil_Mi-24) models.
The mainstay artillery pieces are the ASTROS (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astros_II_MLRS) 127 to 300mm MLRS and the G5 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G5_howitzer) and G6 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G6_howitzer) 155mm Self-propelled Howitzer.
Fleet
The Sergoran Flagship is the NRF Boralgrad Patriarch-class Battle Frigate. A large frigate of domestic design, it hosts a number of large-bore guns and compartments for several naval-variant IAR 330 Puma (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IAR_330#Naval_version) tactical helicopters. After her, the order of battle are the 3 Bremen-class (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bremen_class_frigate) frigates the NRF Patriarch, the NRF Ichtys and the NRF Stanislav, flanked by the 2 Braunschweig-class (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braunschweig_class_corvette) corvettes the NRC Berlin and NRC Fortitude, acquired from recent Sergoran cooperation with the federal republic of Germany. Besides this is a contingent of anti-air/anti-sub/minelayer and supply craft, as well as a potpourri of obsolete attack craft, fleet oilers and a variety of transports and tugs for maintaining fleet operations.
Exact specification, number and armament of crafts remain classified, but is expected to become accessible when the Sergoran Fleet page is online ;)
Air Force
Dominated by Soviet inventory and doctrine, the Sergoran Air Force shows signs of wear and the influence of the all-consuming Soviet Union during the days as a Warsaw Pact members.
The tactical fighter force of the Flitottor Sergorja is comprised of 20 Mig-31b (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikoyan_MiG-31) Foxhound fighters. Other crafts are in service in lesser numbers, such as the Su-27 Flanker (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sukhoi_Su-27) and the Su-24 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sukhoi_Su-24) Fencer fast-bomber.
Although political attempts have been made to scrap them, a strategic bomber force containing mainly Tupolev Badgers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tupolev_Tu-16) and some Bears (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tupolev_Tu-95) remains in operation within the FS. The prestige of the air force and it's leaders hold firm support for medium bombing capability, and the air command of the FS has often claimed the sheer necessity of that very capability in an increasingly hostile world.
Tactical and strategic cargo and transport capability is carried out by the rugged T44 "Orn" (a domestic turbo-prop variant of the Douglas DC-3 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_DC-3)) and the massive Antonov AN-22 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonov_An-22).
Reconnaissance and intelligence duties are handled on the shorter perimeters near the border by Tu-16 RM2 variants, and AWACS detail as well as airforce command, is done by eight Brazilian-issue Embraer R-99 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embraer_R-99) AWACS craft.
Strategic Weapon Stockpiles
From it's time as a Soviet satellite dictator state, Sergora maintains a stockpile of ballistic missiles under the command auspice of the Sergoran Strategic Missile Command, directly subservient to the Chief of Staff. SRBMs are plentiful in the form of SCUD (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scud)-C and -D, as well as a few of the longer-reaching R-12 Dvina (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R-12).
The status of strategic WEAPON stockpiles however, is uncertain. Sergora has ratified the Nuclear Test Ban treaty and has repeatedly stated it's aversion to nuclear weaponry. It is known, however, that other WMD programs were underway, and reports of an active weaponized chemical stockpile has been confirmed as late as 1984. Furthermore, Sergora is not party to the Chemical Weapons Convention, and the United States have decided that Sergora falls under "probable posession", citing the fact that while Sergora denies stockpiles, they don't accept investigations on Sergoran soil.
Sergora has no known biological or radiological weapons stockpiles.
The capacity to deliver weapons is thus far unknown, although Sergora has a number of NBC warfare directorates - Their operations are not open to foreign or public interests, but they have published several open reports detailing what is primarily civil and military defense perimeter projects and hazmat crews, for the defense of Sergoran lives in the event of an NBC attack.
((Strictly OOC: Sergora has limited stockpiles of irritant, incapacitant and lethal chemical weapons.))
History of Sergora
Located in an (unspecified) area of eastern europe / central asia, the area of present-day Sergora was first inhabited in prehistory. Fossils of jawbones and other skull parts indicate that humankind were present at approx. 31,000 years ago, making it a part of archeological history. In ancient times Thracian and Indo-Aryan tribes shared ownership of the areas till it's assimilation in the Roman Empire under Trajan after several hard fought conflicts. Faced with successive Goth invasions however, Roman administration retreated again in about 300 A.D.
In the dark and middle ages, the area was a scene of turbulent conflict, falling under the raids of both Huns, Magyars, Persians and Tatars, setting the stage for many of the great migrations of the medieval times. In early Modern times, though, conflict arose again, and Sergora saw itself being under Ottoman rule, then later a fractionalized "Balkan" of warring Principalities, Electorates and Holy Roman Republics - A concluded area would first arise in 1914, when the powerful principalties of Sergerj and Ora both elected a the powerful Count Matthius as king. By clever maneuvering Matthius had the burgeoning merchant and aristocratic classes give up their political power and exemption of taxes, leading to the era of absolutism (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_absolutism) in Sergora.
From then on, Sergora went on to consume the weaker kingdoms and principalities around her, leading to the King's Empire of Greater Sergora - Political trysts reduced the site of KEGS however, and it was a weakened Sergora that participated in the World War 2 under the command of the German Wehrmacht in 1942, losing their beloved king Matthius the Third to cruel dictator Janosh Arnbitor. In spite of popular resistance to Arnbitor and aid to jews, homosexuals and other dissidents facing deportation to Germany, an estimated 400,000 "undesirables" met their end under Janosh' reign through deportation or the actions of Einsatzgruppen.
Following the war to it's bitter end a Sergora with a military in shambles after SS recruitment and defeat, Sergora was conquered by Stalin's forces and became a soviet republic. Integration into the federation of "socialist" republics came slow under new a line of party chairmen with Ian Torjan sitting the longest, and food shortages as well as brutal opressive measures slowly turned the political and civic life against the Party. Ian remained leader for a horrible forty years, his election starting in 1945 and ending in 1985 to the joy of all. As Sergora remained on the fringes of the Soviet Union the Russian leaders did not find the nationstate important enough to intervene in 1985 when huge riots, strikes and battles in the street ended Soviet rule. Ian remained dictator until the end of the year however, as the newly constituted parliament voted for him in the interest of conciliation. Public unrest increased, and Torjan fled the nation with vigilante mobs hot on his heels - a new multiparty constitutional assembly gathered and created the democratic republic of Sergora as known today.
Population, Statistics
With over 80 million citizens, Sergora is one of the more populous nations in greater Europe. However, the fertility at 1.41 child per mother remains very low, and immigration and good health care remains one of the reasons for the current population demographic. As of 2008 there are more than 6 million foreign citizens registered in Sergora, most from Turkey, but many from Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Serbia.
Christianity remains the largest denomination in Sergora, with about 52 million adherents. The majority are Prostetant, although only narrowly, with a P/C split of about 26,5/25,5 million faithful. After this is Islam as largest religion with 4 million adherents, and then Buddhism and Judaism with about 100,000 adherents.
Standard Sergoran is the primary language of Sergora, spoken by nearly every single citizen. English is the accepted secondary language, and taught in every school at the 12th year of age. Other languages taught are Chinese, French, Italian, Spanish, and Russian. Also, both Japanese, Latin and Greek are offered at college level all throughout the country.
Birth Censi are as follows:
Age structure:
* 0-14 years: 14.7%
* 15-64 years: 67.3%
* 65 years and
Population growth rate: -0.023%
Birth rate: 9.8 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 10.05 deaths/1,000 population
Net migration rate: 2.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population
((Evidently, a work in progress. I will try to have the rest up as soon as possible. Feedback is very welcome))