NationStates Jolt Archive

Papua, 2008

Visiting the Pyekan-Kuogu is not an easy thing for foreigners, but organisations such as the BBC will still try. A camera crew from the west that did manage to infiltrate part of the Empire by trecking over land with local guides delivered the following report shortly before disappearing...

"The motto [Richest State with Powerful Army] may appear from the outside a little suspect, but the people of the Pyekan-Kuogu have every reason to believe in their race's superiority. They work hard day after day and see posters depicting grand parades, their uninformed eyes believing the poor editing tricks to be actual representations of countless millions of tanks and planes, the modernity of which they have no cause to doubt. A retro-thirties tankette appears as if a powerful beast to a man who spends his days dragging a plough behind an ox."

THE PYEKAN-KUOGU OF PYEKI

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/pyeki.jpg


LINKS

Factbook pages in this thread

History (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=13653013&postcount=18)
Government (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=13655754&postcount=21)
Military (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=13655814&postcount=22)
Overview (likely to be changed) (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=13652931&postcount=17)
Geography (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=13646132&postcount=2)
People (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=13646152&postcount=3)
Economy (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=13646155&postcount=4)

Pyeki's RP threads

To sustain you is no benefit, to kill you is no loss (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=555476)
-General overview of the Pyekan-Kuogu's brutal development drive

Geography

Location: South East Asia, bordering the Grand Mongolian Empire, Honako, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Laos, Cambodia
(RL Indonesia, Thailand, Burma)

Area: 3,111,940 square kilometres inclusive of land and water

Climate: Tropical. Monsoonal on mainland. More mild in highlands

Highest point: Hkakabo Razi, 5,881 m

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, gold, silver, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, nickel, bauxite, tantalum, gypsum, lignite, fluorite, lead, coal, some marble, limestone, precious stones, hydropower, timber, rubber, fish, arable land

Natural hazards: Earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes, typhoons, flooding in rainy season, periodic droughts, forest fires

Notes: Strategic location on shipping lanes from Indian to Pacific Ocean, controls only land route from mainland Asia to Malaysia and Singapore, straddles equator

People

Population: 353,093,834 (2007 estimate)

Life expectancy: 65.2 years

People living with HIV/AIDS: 1 million

Major religions: Buddhist (68%), Muslim (14%), animist (3%), Christian (2%), Hindu (1%), none/other/unspecified (12%)

Languages: Pyekan official, many tribal languages, English has moderate understanding amongst upper classes in some major cities

Under construction!


Economy

PPP GDP: US$1,651,670,000,000 (2007 estimate)

PPP GDP Per Capita: US$4,300+ (2007 estimate)

very sorry to do this, but I see some parts that need fixing

Why is south-east asia ruled by a all-japanese government?

You claim malaysia, as seen in the geography, but then you don't. vice-versa with Indonesia.

As Indonesia is more than double of Thailand and Burma's populations combined, I would think that Islam is the main religion, and there would be more Christian and Hindu, and less Buddhist.

I'm pretty sure that there are more AIDS victims.

I'd like to echo TIS's questions.

OOC: I can answer some.

The first page mentions what "Suspension of Disbelief" is. You can essentially craft your own people, government, religion - and set it in your country. You can have an "all-Hood" America, or an all-white China, or all-Asian Egypt. Depending on what the attribute is (military key here), you may have to compensate for some of these attributes by reducing/demeaning others.

Can't answer the second.

Third and Fourth match the first.

I see, cool.

((OOC: First, Pyeki's government isn't Japanese, it's Pyekan.

Second, I don't claim Malaysia. Check the OOC/Sign Up thread. My claim, as stated both here and there, covers Indonesia, Thailand, and Burma.

Third, that's the same as the first question, really. Amazonian Beasts has largely covered it, but I'll elaborate to clarify things. When I dreamed it up, Pyeki was to be a South East Asian nation that revered Dai Nippon Teikoku as the pinnacle of civilisation and sought to emulate it. It sided with Japan in WWII and, accordingly, got a bit of a thrashing by the British and Americans, and rebuilt itself through the Garcat Laur conspiracy and its imaginary Emperor. In ESR, Japan is part of the Kansiovian Federation, where, apparently, they speak Russian and English, so Pyeki has no Imperial Japan to emulate, and consequently I have made it essentially replace that nation.

The authorities have in a fashion followed socialist Burma's RL example with religion, pushing a sort of Buddhism and smashing other leanings.

Fourth is also covered by the suspension of disbelief: this is Pyeki, not Thailand, Burma, and Indonesia. However, having said that, the CIA factbook, used as one of the most ready sources of information, lists those three nations as having an estimated 1,010,000 HIV/AIDS victims in 2003, so it's really not that far out, anyway. Being as Bangkok's red light district would be burned to the ground by the Unwavering Regiment if it ever existed in the Pyekan-Kuogu, and tourism is not on our economic agenda, it's fairly safe to assume that we would have lower rates of infection, anyway.

In reference to AB's mention of compensating for an improvement with a weakness, Pyeki actually probably has even more waterborne diseases and chronic illnesses of other sorts than the RL nations it covers. The relative wealth of Thailand in reality is, in Pyeki, spread across poorer Burma and Indonesia, meaning that in many ways Pyeki's cutting-edge science is less modern than that of Thailand, though marginally above Burma or Indonesia.

Hope that helps!))

Ok, sorry to intrude on your Factbook, just wondering about some things.

((OOC: Quite all right. I'm just going to edit the first post with internal links to all the important posts in my factbook, anyway. I don't know why people get all protective, reserving posts and screaming, 'don't post until I say or the world will end!' and such, anyway. Now to figure out who in ESR would have sold the Pyekan-Kuogu military equipment in the last couple of decades...))

powerful army? is this going to be around how many soldiers/troops you have?

http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=555476

Now that's not nice! I'm Javanese!

No, it's OK, I'm just joking around with you (but I am half-Javanese, other half from Sulawesi)

((OOC: Hehe, sorry, man, it's nothing personal. Needless to say, the Pyekan-Kuogu is not how I'd run a country if I ever really had the chance. On the bright side, the Pyekan ethnicity doesn't really exist, so I can slander them all I like :D

Uh, I'm not sure exactly what Lynion is asking, but we're going to have a very large military with a fairly confrontational doctrine, if that helps you at all. A bit IJA, a bit Tatmadaw. Of course expecting conscripts to shoot down Harrier jets with a bolt action rifle might call our national motto into question, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it!))

i know

since your nation is islolationsit, you probably wouldn't have any relations or even an embassy in my nation, right?

((OOC: I imagine that we have some representation abroad. It's not too clear, yet.

I might have embassies just in a few big, important nations, and give them jurisdiction to represent us in other, smaller states near-by.

Or I might try to find some go-between. A nation that we don't absolutely hate, through whom we can communicate with the rest of the world, which we consider degenerate. At the moment I don't know enough about other nations to know who that might be.

But I don't want this to stop interaction. If you want, you can have an embassy, or say that we have one in your nation, it just might get recalled at any moment, in protest over how much you disgust the Emperor :) ))

General Overview

The Pyekan-Kuogu of Pyeki is defined by firm introspection and rigid authoritarian structure. The masses have in common a number of things: millions achieve little beyond subsistence for their long hours of hard labour; and, their limited organised education deals with only one thing beyond basic practical schooling for the benefit of the economy, and that is the issue of the divinity and miracles of Emperor Pan Yoshimura.

For the past sixty years, Pyeki has suffered in the dark, barely a state, divided by geography, ethnicity, and the legacy of foreign imperialism.

By the end of the twentieth century a force for new order was rising in Pyeki, and would soon bear direct relation to any discussion of Pyekan government. The Garcat-Laur is thought by some to be an ancient warrior sect, while others dismiss the tales as myth for the few traditional stories that give mention to it speak in fantastic terms of the great wisdom and varied prowess of the sect's mysterious membership. Pyeki has many old fables, and Garcat-Laur is but one of a great many otherwise forgotten names or terms used. Still, it is today attributed by a very few foreign, 'experts' to what may be Pyeki's secret police, or perhaps a significant warlord or criminal element.

In truth it is a blanket term that does include the Pyekan-Kuogu's secret police as well as a counter-espionage unit and the body to which they are secretly subservient. Known to none outside Pyeki and a tiny fraction of a percent of the population inside, the Garcat-Laur today is a conspiracy of Pyekan bigshots: Pyekan National Defence Force Captain Jun Tazaki, General Eisei Amamoto, Doctor Hisaya Ito, and Admiral Akihiko Hirata. These men, unknown to foreign publics, governments, and intelligence agencies as to their own people, are behind Pyeki's reformation.

Planning a future for Pyeki the conspirators formed for themselves a secret society and named it after an obscure reference in national mythology. They searched history and the world for a suitable ideology. They wanted to make a lasting way for Pyeki, not merely to secure personal power in their own lifetimes.

Long-term observation by these unnervingly patient conspirators lead them to believe that all foreign models were flawed. Their investigations turned up many religious examples that had significant appeal, but likewise displayed the difficulties in controlling such things as faith. The interpretation of an other-worldly god's wishes could not be out-sourced without losing control of it, and while a people may remain faithful to their understanding of a god, there was nothing to insure that they would remain equally faithful to interpreters or other priestly classes.

The Big Four conspirators discovered examples in Asian history of Emperors never seen by their people, and were impressed with the loyalty that such absent figures could command. They were equally aware of the mortality and human failings of such men, and of east-west interactions that have often put diminutive Asian royals in the shade of towering white men.

Emperor Pan Yoshimura... is a fiction. Millions of Pyekan believe absolutely in his divinity, in his miracles, in his physical presence somewhere amongst them. But he does not exist. He can not fall to an assassin's bullet, he is, in a way, infallible, he can not be captured or otherwise conquered, and an enemy who somehow uncovers the fact of his none-existance is only likely to be ridiculed and resisted all the more keenly. Emperor Pan Yoshimura is a godly being able to evade any threat, walk silently on clouds, take responsibility for any improbable military victories. He is a real man able to correct any misreading of his decree. He is a Garcat-Laur puppet who can't disappoint, fall-down, or reveal himself nor his strings and their operators. If Pyeki falls and its enemies search behind every tree in the territory, the Emperor will go free and continue to inspire his people all the more by his invulnerability, all the while shielding from view those men truthfully in power.

So far as the world knows, a mysterious man named Pan Yoshimura, never seen in public, is totalitarian master of the Pyekan-Kuogu. Only four men know the truth about the Garcat-Laur. They are perhaps the world's most incredible junta.

History

Pyekanma is a term used by the current administration to reference what it calls the Pyekan people's historic mandate to rule South East Asia. Many kingdoms rose and fell in different parts of what is today the Pyekan-Kuogu before the arrival of European settlers, until finally the British, out of India, and the Dutch confirmed the shape of things to come.

Throughout the colonial era, however, Siam remained independent, and the desire for liberation remained strong in the Anglo-Dutch possessions that now constitute Pyeki.

It was only in 1937 that Burma broke from India to become a self-governing part of the British Empire, and it was in this period that resistance took a new form. The Thirty Comrades, many Communists and Socialists as well as nationalists and others, were trained by the Japanese to prepare for resistance to British rule.

By the Second World War, Siam was known as Thailand, and sided with Japan, allowing Imperial Japanese Army forces to cross its territory to attack the British in Burma. Many Burmese, lead by some of the Thirty Comrades, fought along side the IJA against the British, in the Burma Independence Army. It was in this period that the seeds of the Pyekan-Kuogu were sewn. The key figures behind the modern nation revere Imperial Japan as an ideal civilisation, their sentiments no doubt born during the war.

Thailand was successful in taking control of French Indochina after invading Laos in 1942, and the British were driven back in Burma. The Dutch were defeated in their East Indies colonies, and Indonesian independence movements previously suppressed were now welcomed by the Japanese, except where they interfered with the war effort.

As the Japanese began to lose the war, it appeared that Burma would slip back into British domination. Thailand may be forced to give-up Indochina, despite having, in their view, liberated the territory from France. And Indonesia may be brought back under European rule after tasting independence towards the end of the Japanese occupation.

The term Garcat Laur first comes to light during this pivotal era. The best guess of any foreign, 'expert' or indeed even those within Pyeki who are not sufficiently priviliged to be at the centre of government, is that this was a coalition of like-minded individuals from across South East Asia who had in mind a new Empire, and who saw the defeat of Imperial Japan as an aberration that went against the trend of 'de-colonialisation' and the death of European supremacy.

In Indonesia Muhammad Yamin said that all the pre-war territories of the Dutch East Indies should be incorporated into the new state. In Thailand, military leaders felt that Indochina should not be returned to the French after having been honourably liberated, and in Burma those who rejected the BIA's switch from the Japanese to Allied side felt that their country should not be left-out.

The Konfrontasi resulted. A new notion of South East Asian identity was rising in conflict with historic and colonial divisions, and the advocates of Pyekanma declared the Pyekan-Kuogu across the region.

The creation of the Republic of Indochina and that of the Federated Straits Settlements were directly opposed, and the new nation of Pyeki fought both of these as well as the return of European colonists.

Most of Pyeki's disputes remain unresolved, and the Pyekan-Kuogu maintains official claims to all of Indochina and the FSS, as well as East Timor, Papua New Guinea, and parts of India. It is also generally understood that the Philippines, Taiwan, and other islands may be within the bounds of yet-undeclared secret claims or ambitions to be pursued in the future as Pyeki tries to completely erradicate the history of European colonialism and the legacy of Japan's defeat.

Awesome.

((OOC: Hehe, assuming that's not sarcasm, thanks, man :) I think that our corner of the world has the potential to be one of the most interesting. I'm interested to see what the deal is with Indochina. If they're still directly influenced by their French colonial legacy, which seems to be the case, it's going to be hard to prevent a second confrontation.

I'm just crossing my fingers for low-intensity warfare, when it happens, or I'm probably screwed taking on the tough Vietnamese and wealthy Singapore at the same time, with India and Australia looking at me through unfriendly eyes.))

Government

Capital: Nay Pyi Taw (legislative capital, seat of the Imperial Court), Yangon (administrative capital, seat of the Panaku)

Government type: Parliamentary Monarchy (officially)

Chief of State: Emperor Pan Yoshimura

Notes: The term Pangkai may be freely translated as the Pyekan nationalist democratic organisation.

This nominally popular parliament carries out in action the Emperor's wishes for his beloved people.

In fact the Pangkai is a facade behind which sit the Garcat-Laur conspirators, and while most Pyekan, even local authorities and military officers, believe the Pangkai to be a body of hundreds drawn from the masses (plenty of you, readers, have voted for individuals who did not end up in office, the difference in Pyeki is that it is seemingly impossible to find anybody who voted for someone that did end up in office), it is not so.

Just four men comprise the core of the Garcat-Laur. Of the other hundreds of alleged Parliamentarians, many more are fictional. Of those that do exist, some very few ultra-loyalists are aware of the bare bones of the Garcat-Laur conspiracy, though only part of its peripheries. The rest are as much in the dark as their constituents and the world outside Pyeki, and find themselves essentially puppets to what they think is the will of the Emperor and in fact is the will of the Garcat-Laur. Even these representatives are often appointed and told that they have won elections, chosen because they have some favourable quality, be it popularity with the people or sheer gullibility, and usually a combination of the two.

Some of the real Pangkai parliamentarians, those to some degree in the know, are zealous officers of the infamous Unwavering Regiment.

Military

Branches: Pyekan National Army (PNA) (includes Unwavering Regiment, Dogfish Unit), Pyekan Imperial Navy (PIA) (includes Imperial Marines, Naval Air Arm), Imperial Pyekan Air Force (IPAF) (includes National Air Defence Force, Parachute Regiment)

Obligation: 16 years of age minimum for selective obligation, male and female, 2 year conscription term and reserve obligation until 45 years of age

Manpower fit for service:
males age 16-45: 66 million estimated
females age 16-45: 69 million estimated

Expenditure as percentage of GDP: 6% official
note- most foreign governmental agencies to comment on the matter believe that the real figure is significantly higher

Unwavering Regiment

This is on face value likely to be taken for an elite division of the PNA. That would be close to the truth, but hardly expansive. Some elements of the Unwavering Regiment's officer corps represent almost the only men outside the Garcat-Laur with even the slightest knowledge of the truth behind the nation's restructuring. However, even these few, mentioned as relatively enlightened members of the Pangkai, fall short of receiving anything like full disclosure, and their levels of knowledge vary.

The Unwavering Regiment is most keenly marked-out by the jaw-dropping fanaticism, indoctrination, and brutality of its ranks. These ranks are filled by the most extreme products of Pyeki's institutionalisation of political education and violence, young men, and sometimes women, capable of extreme acts and, as the name suggests, unwavering in their obedience.

The Unwavering Regiment is deployed to quell domestic unrest once it has reached a critical point, and has extensive experience fighting Islamist militias and left-wing groups as well as ethnic minority rebels across the nation.

Dogfish Unit

The Dogfish, as they are known, are a frightening group. Just one in a million Pyekan is counted amongst the ranks of this small fighting unit. It is a strange thing that the Dogfish frequently lack the discipline of their peers in the Unwavering Regiment. The indoctrination of its members often seems to be equally unusual, appearing far less rigid. This does not mean, however, that the Dogfish are disinterested in the politics of the Pyekan-Kuogu and the restructuring: they are in fact amongst the most committed defenders of these things. Dogfish are characterised by fierce intelligence along with their fighting skills, which are born of Pyeki's somewhat dishonourable equivalent to the Samurai of the nation's most admired cultural neighbour. The above-average smarts of the Dogfish might make them politically dangerous, but it appears that these mysterious warriors channel most of their cunning into the art of killing, being apparently selected from the troubled nation's disproportionately deep pool of diagnosed sociopaths.

The Dogfish are deadly and intelligent, but they are few and their number includes no major public figures, which is owing to their top secret operations: as such, the formation is not considered a likely source of possible future leadership challenge, and continues to receive fierce training and to be given first refusal on the brightest minds and fittest bodies of the Pyekan military's human resource rosta.

Pyekan National Army

Regular Strength: 1,440,000

Equipment List:
Over 2,000 tanks, approximately 4,000 other armoured vehicles, 550 self-propelled guns, almost 2,000 towed guns, approximately 2,000 heavy mortars, over 300 MLRS, over 1,200 anti-aircraft guns, over 800 MANPADS, approximately 300 other SAMs

Pyekan Imperial Navy

Regular Strength: 120,000

Equipment List:

Approximately 380 vessels or more, 135 aircraft

Battleships- 1 (building)
Cruisers- 1
Aircraft Carriers- 1
Submarines- 4
Frigates- 14
Corvettes- 38
FAMCs- 30
Patrol- ~120 (offshore, coastal, and riverine)
Transport/Landing Craft- 56 plus ~50 smaller
Support- ~40
Survey- 5
MCM- 20
Helicopters- ~90 (may not all be operational)
Fixed Wing- ~45 (may not all be operational)

Imperial Pyekan Air Force

Regular Strength: 80,000

Equipment List:

Approximately 840 aircraft of which some 380 are fighter jets, numerous gun and missile systems

if there is a war, I will stay as neutral as possible - until you attack Honako. Then your dead.

((OOC: Hehe, assuming that's not sarcasm, thanks, man :) I think that our corner of the world has the potential to be one of the most interesting. I'm interested to see what the deal is with Indochina. If they're still directly influenced by their French colonial legacy, which seems to be the case, it's going to be hard to prevent a second confrontation.

I'm just crossing my fingers for low-intensity warfare, when it happens, or I'm probably screwed taking on the tough Vietnamese and wealthy Singapore at the same time, with India and Australia looking at me through unfriendly eyes.))

No sarcasm. A long, long time ago under another nation I read Pyeki's factbook (I think that was 2004 or 2005) and was surprised to see you back here.

Definetly - this looks like it could be an epic rp :)

((OOC: Well, no offence, but we're not exactly wetting ourselves with fear over the Sheikhdom... Honako itself is a lot more intimidating ;) Actually we are probably going to kick off a war with Honako first, unless someone else gives us reason before then, but we've both expressed an interest in a relatively small scale conflict, because neither would want to commit to the sheer size of a direct all out war between such large nations.

I'm pleased to hear that so many people remember my old factbook, considering I never found the time to really get the nation off the ground. I'm hoping that Pyeki will stick around, this time, and grow into something new.

This may backfire on me some day, but there's a chance I may ask you, Questers, for your thoughts/advice when I get around to designing our battleship and cruiser. The cruiser is going to be a WWII relic, as yet it's not absolutely clear from which nation we acquired it, but hopefully that'll be worked out (if not, I'll just say we impounded a Japanese cruiser at the end of the war). It's just going to need a sort of modernisation, but probably a limited one, given our technological base.
The battleship is a pretty ridiculous effort to recapture the glory of the Yamato et cetera, almost certainly Admiral Hirata's doing simply because he needs it to make him feel like the Admiral that he believes he is. Again it'll probably be a half-way house between WWII and really modern warships, because we lack the technology to make it really cutting edge.

Anyway, its construction is being described in my first proper IC thread To sustain you is no benefit, to kill you is no loss, the motto of the government's manpower-driven development scheme.))

((OOC: I am sorry if I am intruding on an unfinished factbook, it looks finished to me. I just want to clear up some issues with your history. Some of my history will conflict with what you have here. As for sources, I use wikipedia. If you have a more reliable source, I'd love to see it. I am aware of the CIA World Factbook. Changes & comments in red.

Japan was successful in taking control of French Indochina after invading Laos in 1942, and the British were driven back in Thailand. The Dutch were defeated in their East Indies colonies, and Indonesian independence movements previously suppressed were now welcomed by the Japanese, except where they interfered with the war effort.

No, It was Japan who occupied Indochina and surrendered to Indochina - not the French. This was key in our independance from France. French is the official language for OOC reasons.

As the Japanese began to lose the war, it appeared that Burma would slip back into British domination. Japan may be forced to give-up Indochina, despite having, in their view, liberated the territory from France. And Indonesia may be brought back under European rule after tasting independence towards the end of the Japanese occupation.

Japan DID give up Indochina under circumstances described above.

In Indonesia Muhammad Yamin said that all the pre-war territories of the Dutch East Indies should be incorporated into the new state. In Thailand, military leaders felt that Indochina should not be returned to the French after having been honourably liberated, and in Burma those who rejected the BIA's switch from the Japanese to Allied side felt that their country should not be left-out.

Err...I like it where we liberate ourselves on August 19, 1945 and have elections on the 2nd of September that same year.

The creation of the Republic of Indochina unlike that of the Federated Straits Settlements which was directly opposed, was in the spirit of the Pyeki and the new nation of Pyeki fought both of these as well as the return of European colonists in the FSS.

Those in Indochina felt that the Thai/Pyeki who were supposedly 'liberating' everyone were not and just casting the shadow of Asia-on-Asia colonism. Not welcomed by Indochina who had had bad experiences before with China. (I believe).

Most of Pyeki's disputes remain unresolved, and the Pyekan-Kuogu maintains official claims to all of Indochina and the FSS, as well as East Timor, Papua New Guinea, and parts of India. It is also generally understood that the Philippines, Taiwan, and other islands may be within the bounds of yet-undeclared secret claims or ambitions to be pursued in the future as Pyeki tries to completely erradicate the history of European colonialism and the legacy of Japan's defeat.

Nothing wrong with this or anything I didn't quote although it appears we can't have the two IPAP (Indochine-Pyeki Amitie Pont) or in English, the two Indochina-Pyeki Friendship Bridges. I was hoping I wouldn't have to worry about our nearly 2,800 km long border. Oh well. Also, do they drive on the left or on the right in your nation because RL Thailand drives on the left as does Indonesia I believe but Burma is different. RL and My Indochina drive on the right.

((OOC: Well, I've only started to change history from 1945, so far as I can tell. Let's see what we've got, here.

No, It was Japan who occupied Indochina and surrendered to Indochina - not the French. This was key in our independance from France. French is the official language for OOC reasons.

Thailand invaded French Indochina in 1940, and Japan over-saw the cease-fire arrangement in which the French ceded disputed territories to Thailand. I suppose I should expand that paragraph, though, to clarify that the Thai's didn't get the whole of Indochina despite having been nominally declared the victors.

Indochina, having been French, was occupied in part by Thailand and in the main by Japan, but when Japan surrendered the Pyekanma movement felt that Indochina -or at least the parts of it ceded to Thailand- should have been incorporated into the new Pyekan-Kuogu.

Japan DID give up Indochina under circumstances described above.

...I know :)

Err...I like it where we liberate ourselves on August 19, 1945 and have elections on the 2nd of September that same year.

Again, I'm not too sure what the problem is, here. Maybe you're taking Pyekan nationalist ambitions and opinions as a record of historical fact? In 1945, Pyekanma advocates looking to the future feared that France would re-take Indochina, as briefly happened in reality, so a realistic concern, no?

They had a claim to much of Indochina based on the French-Thai war, which I've already mentioned, and saw fit to include all of Indochina in their 1945 claim to statehood as the Japanese withdrew. This is why we would have had a Konfrontasi that included not just Indonesia and Malaysia, but virtually all of South East Asia. Obviously, in the end, the Pyekanma movement failed to get the rest of Indochina, or even to hold on to the parts of it that had been occupied by Thailand before the Japanese invasion.

Those in Indochina felt that the Thai/Pyeki who were supposedly 'liberating' everyone were not and just casting the shadow of Asia-on-Asia colonism. Not welcomed by Indochina who had had bad experiences before with China. (I believe).

I'm a bit confused, here, with the alterations you've made in the quote and then what you add afterwards, sorry. I'm saying that Pyeki directly opposed the creation of your state and of the FSS, not that your people opposed it or anything. As in reality Indonesia tried to stop the creation of Malaysia, so in ESR Pyeki tried to stop the creation of the FSS and of the Republic of Indochina, and, like Indonesia, we failed.


Nothing wrong with this or anything I didn't quote although it appears we can't have the two IPAP (Indochine-Pyeki Amitie Pont) or in English, the two Indochina-Pyeki Friendship Bridges. I was hoping I wouldn't have to worry about our nearly 2,800 km long border. Oh well. Also, do they drive on the left or on the right in your nation because RL Thailand drives on the left as does Indonesia I believe but Burma is different. RL and My Indochina drive on the right.

Yeah, we're unlikely to be friends IC, I'm afraid. Hopefully we can still get along OOC.

The Pyekan-Kuogu still sees itself as the successor to Imperial Japan and the rightful guardian of East Asia. We feel that we have legitimate claims to part of Indochina because of the French-Thai war and the disputes that caused it in the first place, and our view of the FSS is summed up by my history, too.

As to where we drive, well it's less of a problem as most people in Pyeki don't have cars or even motorcycles. Still, the road system is little more than a death trap. It's possible that no law is enforced on the matter, except that the Army drives wherever the hell it feels like, and anyone who gets in the way better be ready to get run over.))

OOC: All I have to do is drop a big bomb on the battleship, and its gone :D

OOC: want to ally and and blow the ship up, greal?

OOC: All I have to do is drop a big bomb on the battleship, and its gone :D

Not such a good idea. I mean, that would see Germany coming into South Asia uninvited, so if you were to do it I recommend you run it through the ones who are at real risk of attack by him, which includes me and Questers etc.

Plus, we are perfectly capable of blowing it up if we want to. ;)

OOC: All I have to do is drop a big bomb on the battleship, and its gone :D

That's a... rather simplistic way of looking at it.

Also the FSS isn't going to look kindly on Arabs or Germans messing around in our region.

As Honako said, South Asia is our playground :p

Btw: The game's afoot.
http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?p=13661943#post13661943

Mussleburghian Message

We The People's Republic of Mussleburgh would like to inquire as to wether your great nation would like to buy arms? Currently we have for sale:
Main Battle Tanks:
170 M60T
650 M60A3 TTS
105 M60A1 RISE Passive
750 M 60A3
600 M 60A1
100 M 48T5
1200 M 48A5
Armored Personnel Carriers:
100+ Otokar Yavuz (8x8)
240+ BTR-80 (8x8)
102+ FNSS Pars (8x8)
Aircraft:
80 Northrop F-5
155 F-4 Phantom II
Not only this but we would love to hear of any trade deals or embassy exchange programs you may have.
Asli Aslan

The Pyekan-Kuogu has a great interest in trade partnerships with Mussleburgh, as the nation continues to be shunned by -and to shun- many nations around the world for historical and ideological and other reasons.

Turkish armoured vehicles are of interest to Pyeki, which has a moderate defence production industry but often struggles to incorporate up to date technology into the systems it produces. Yangon wishes to engage Mussleburghian firms in helping to update production facilities in Pyeki to produce APCs and combat vehicles based upon the Yavuz and FNSS machines.

While Pyeki's armour production capacity is significant and its ship-building industry not small, producing high performance jet aircraft has been a greater challenge. Yangon places an initial order for fourteen (14) F-5 and twenty-six (26) F-4, but further approaches authorities in Mussleburgh about the possibility of co-operation on aircraft development, production, and upgrade. The prospect of producing a Super Phantom is highly appealing to the Pyekan-Kuogu, but slightly beyond the nation's individual means.

Pyeki would be prepared to provide significant funding to such projects, but would require an input of modern technical knowledge, and wonders if Mussleburgh could provide such.

Notably, the Imperial Navy has a requirement for a new VTOL fighter to operate from small carriers, of which it has just one in service, and from small, poor-quality airstrips throughout the thousands of islands that constitute much of the Empire.

Yangon is also keen to step up export of timber, rubber, rice, and gems to Mussleburgh, and further has to offer jewelry, furniture, textiles, shoes, and clothing, and other simple manufactures. Above top secret is a communique delivered by the newly appointed Pyekan ambassador to Mussleburgh suggesting co-operation on atomic energy projects. Pyeki has been mining uranium in Burma for years, and is known to have a significant nuclear research programme, but as yet has not achieved construction of either a functional power plant or nuclear weapon.

The Pyekan-Kuogu has a great interest in trade partnerships with Mussleburgh, as the nation continues to be shunned by -and to shun- many nations around the world for historical and ideological and other reasons.

Turkish armoured vehicles are of interest to Pyeki, which has a moderate defence production industry but often struggles to incorporate up to date technology into the systems it produces. Yangon wishes to engage Mussleburghian firms in helping to update production facilities in Pyeki to produce APCs and combat vehicles based upon the Yavuz and FNSS machines.

While Pyeki's armour production capacity is significant and its ship-building industry not small, producing high performance jet aircraft has been a greater challenge. Yangon places an initial order for fourteen (14) F-5 and twenty-six (26) F-4, but further approaches authorities in Mussleburgh about the possibility of co-operation on aircraft development, production, and upgrade. The prospect of producing a Super Phantom is highly appealing to the Pyekan-Kuogu, but slightly beyond the nation's individual means.

Pyeki would be prepared to provide significant funding to such projects, but would require an input of modern technical knowledge, and wonders if Mussleburgh could provide such.

Notably, the Imperial Navy has a requirement for a new VTOL fighter to operate from small carriers, of which it has just one in service, and from small, poor-quality airstrips throughout the thousands of islands that constitute much of the Empire.

Yangon is also keen to step up export of timber, rubber, rice, and gems to Mussleburgh, and further has to offer jewelry, furniture, textiles, shoes, and clothing, and other simple manufactures. Above top secret is a communique delivered by the newly appointed Pyekan ambassador to Mussleburgh suggesting co-operation on atomic energy projects. Pyeki has been mining uranium in Burma for years, and is known to have a significant nuclear research programme, but as yet has not achieved construction of either a functional power plant or nuclear weapon.

Reply From The People's Republic of Mussleburgh

We would be willing to help and license you to produce the Yavuz and FNSS and we can tell you that the aircraft you ordered are on their way. We can also update and improve your factories for a sum. As for a VTOL fighter we can sell you designs for the shells and outer parts of the F-35 Lightning II however at this point we will not give you plans for the electronics.
We would be happy to create a trade deal in which we sell you electronics, factory components and so on for primary materials yet to go through enrichment.
We Welcome Your Response:
Asli Aslan



Top Secret Military Communique From The People's Republic of Mussleburgh
You wished to discuss Atomic Power? We would be willing to set up a joint laboratory based in Mussleburgh using scientists from both our nations. Once this laboratory has been set up and has successfully produced nuclear power and enriched uranium we would be willing to send our scientists to your country to do the same while our engineers work on building our first Nuclear Power Plant and Nuclear Weapon.
We Welcome Your CODED Response:
M1 I74

An Official Message from the Indian Foreign Office
Upon news of the sale of weapons to Pyeki India hereby doubles tariffs on all exported goods to Turkey. We have lowered relations to "Cold" and are considering ceasing all trade and economic parternships with your nation. We will not accept nation's selling weapons to the enemies of India and the world whilst we are at fighting battles with this nation. Your side has been made clear, and the tariff rise and trade cease will only be prevented by the non-sale of these goods, which India would prefer to buy themselves even than see go to this terrible nation,

Ekanga Bai,
Indian Confederacy Foreign Minister

Secret Communication - Pyeki's Eyes only

We have the Government-in-Exile of your nation.
You refuse to acknowledge our government

Why not turn those two statements into the following?

You have the Government-in-Exile of your nation.
You acknowledge our government.

Deal?

-Dong Nguyen

An Official Message from the Indian Foreign Office
Upon news of the sale of weapons to Pyeki India hereby doubles tariffs on all exported goods to Turkey. We have lowered relations to "Cold" and are considering ceasing all trade and economic parternships with your nation. We will not accept nation's selling weapons to the enemies of India and the world whilst we are at fighting battles with this nation. Your side has been made clear, and the tariff rise and trade cease will only be prevented by the non-sale of these goods, which India would prefer to buy themselves even than see go to this terrible nation,

Ekanga Bai,
Indian Confederacy Foreign Minister

((OCC. What! *smacks head and curses little time on the computer due to exams*))

Shipment of weapons and blueprints have been redirected to India and we await a Indian offer. All Pyeki citizens on their way to Mussleburgh have been sent back to the port they came from. None of Pyekis money had been received yet so this was not stealing. All nuclear plans with Pyeki have been abandoned by the Mussleburghian government as 'unwise'. The offer made to Pyeki now stands for India. Right down to the Secret message which has been resent to India.


((OCC. Sorry Pyeki I have probably pissed you off real bad by doing this but I didn't realize you were at war with India. Sorry I tried not to god mod as much as possible.))

((OOC: Well, fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how you look at it, there is a difference between me and my government. I'm okay with it, Nay Pyi Taw and Yangon are less than impressed!))

Behind the scenes, the Garcat-Laur conspirators regard the Indochinese approach with some interest.

To simply drop decades of policy over night would be quite a thing, and in itself the pro-western congress mustered in Indochina was not worth the price, but, the junta had to ask itself, what was the potential propaganda and political value of a handover by the Indochinese authorities? In these tense times, what sort of message would it send to the world?

The Emperor and his Parliament and military would appear to be in absolute control, not worth challenging from within. Even expatriots would seem to be within reach, so what use sponsoring internal rebels? It could perhaps be made to appear that the only reason for Pyeki's decades of hostility to Indochina was that nation's stubborn belligerence, which suddenly ended when the National Army attacked India, sending a strong message.

The timing was too good. In the past, it would have appeared -as was actually the case- that the deal was pushed by Indochina, not Pyeki, but since it came immediately after a show of force by the Empire, it would appear that Pyeki's regional superpower status had been confirmed.

This sort of prestiege was no small part of the compound fuel driving the junta.

Mekong south/west bank, Indochinese-Pyekan border between Nong Khai and Vientiane

Over the waters of this mighty crocodile sprawled across South East Asia, Pyekan and Indochinese forces have stared one another down for more than half a century. Even now, amphibious light tanks and armoured personnel carriers line the Empire's side, ready to thrust into territory once occupied for a brief moment and lost for several generations since.

But today's is an unusual sight sure to catch the interest of Indochinese border guards. A detachment from the infamous Unwavering Regiment, renowned as a fighting force that has never surrendered during any clonflict in its bloody history, appears under a flag of truce.

Amongst the elite soldiers is one General Eisei Amamoto, most decorated serving officer in the National Army and member of the Pangkai (Parliament), authorised to discuss matters of recognition and reconciliation between the two neighbours...

Shipment of weapons and blueprints have been redirected to India and we await a Indian offer. All Pyeki citizens on their way to Mussleburgh have been sent back to the port they came from. None of Pyekis money had been received yet so this was not stealing. All nuclear plans with Pyeki have been abandoned by the Mussleburghian government as 'unwise'. The offer made to Pyeki now stands for India. Right down to the Secret message which has been resent to India.



An Official Message from the Indian Foreign Office [SIC Encoded]
After hearing the wise news you have stopped shipments of weapons we are content with where your nation's actions showing your support for India. Tariffs have been lowered, though the same action will be taken if you trade weapons with this nation whilst we are still fighting. We thank you for your consideration in this time.

Nuclear co-operation is not needed in India, as we already have functioning nuclear power and some 200 nuclear weapons. However, the offer is interesting as we are interested in the future in developing our nuclear power industry, therefore co-operation may happen. Also, if your nation is deemed friendly and our relationship developed we are always willing to help close friends defend themselves, and nuclear weapons production is one way of doing that.

Ekanga Bai,
Indian Confederacy Foreign Minister

Mekong south/west bank, Indochinese-Pyekan border between Nong Khai and Vientiane

Over the waters of this mighty crocodile sprawled across South East Asia, Pyekan and Indochinese forces have stared one another down for more than half a century. Even now, amphibious light tanks and armoured personnel carriers line the Empire's side, ready to thrust into territory once occupied for a brief moment and lost for several generations since.

But today's is an unusual sight sure to catch the interest of Indochinese border guards. A detachment from the infamous Unwavering Regiment, renowned as a fighting force that has never surrendered during any clonflict in its bloody history, appears under a flag of truce.

Amongst the elite soldiers is one General Eisei Amamoto, most decorated serving officer in the National Army and member of the Pangkai (Parliament), authorised to discuss matters of recognition and reconciliation between the two neighbours...

OOC: This means that Pyeki is relinquishing all claims over Indochina. Just to be sure you are aware of that.

Also, would any of them be illegal immigrants or would they all be legal?

IC:

The Gendarmerie Border Patrol had noticed this. It certainly was unusual, especially because they had no idea of the trade off for recognition and peace. The Border Patroller radioed his superior of the activity. This went up the chain-of-command until it reached Dong Nguyen. Nguyen sent a a radio down the chain of command. A Gendarmerie Terrorist Squad member who had assisted personally in the capture of the Government-in-Exile held this radio. He had the exiled minister of defense with him.

The other members of the Government-in-Exile would be sent over as soon as the Gendarme sent the command to President Nguyen. The dealings would be tricky but they had to be done. This would prevent any future Konfrontasi which had plagued the Mekong river for so long in the past. The Gendarme threw the radio across the river. He shouted, "Utilizer si vous plait," hoping that they would understand français. The treaty was prepared and as soon as they talked details out, Dong would give the command to have the treaty handed over and the rest of the Government-in-Exile transported.

The only other alternative to this outcome would be the start of another Konfrontasi. The Anti-Terrorist Gendarme had his pistol read. Two Border Patrol Gendarmes had their AK-47's ready to kill the general and political representative if the talks went sour. There was going to be no fooling around and it was time for peace or war and elimination of all that was in between - meaning the decades of tension which had lasted between the two countries.

((OOC: Heh, don't worry, I'll tell you what Pyeki is and isn't doing, mate.

I'd assume that a lot of Pyekan refugees would have tried to flee across the border over the years. In the Empire, Indochina is on a list of banned destinations (like, Yanks can't go directly to Cuba), so from our point of view they're all at least nominally breaking the law. From yours, well, it's up to you, but probably you've had a lot more refugees than your visa system could easily cope with, so I imagine a lot of people smuggling goes on in our part of the world. Presumably a lot of people would try to sneak into Indochina and then from there escape to the west or something, and criminal elements in your country would probably be making a killing off exploiting them.))

General Amamoto's usually stern face gave just a little twitch, the momentary raising of one eyebrow, as alternate Defence Minister Bunrot appeared on the opposite bank. Amamoto, secretly a member of the Garcat Laur junta, was expecting to start difficult negotiations, and was surprised to see a key dissident almost within reach.

The Pyekan were clearly in no hurry -the dispute was already generations old, after all- and the General took a moment to step back from the bank and sit at a radio set established near-by. The frequency-hopping set, difficult if not impossible to intercept, let several snipers, concealed in the treeline and often using shallow tunnels to move from one hide to another, know to mark Bunrot and await further instruction.

In time, Amamoto took-up the radio from the Indochinese side and attempted first speaking in slightly broken English. French was not widely understood in the Empire, which had been at various times occupied by British, Japanese, Dutch, and in parts Portuguese invaders, but had experienced only limited Francophone interaction. The General was fluent in Pyekan and Japanese, and had a working knowledge of English and various limited degrees of understanding of numerous lesser tongues used throughout the Empire.

Eisei Amamoto wanted to meet with senior officials from Indochina, ideally on one of numerous small islands dotting the river that divides the two nations.

He was reticent in talking over the radio, but expressed his Emperor's belief that settling things between Indochina and Pyeki was not entirely a straight forward matter. Though Nay Pyi Taw considered all of Indochina rightfully part of the Empire, it must be noted that parts of the current border under Indochinese control are held to be part of Pyeki-proper. It seems that even if Pyeki recognises Indochinese independence, it has not yet in its own mind settled on the exact borders of that would-be nation.

-snip-

((OOC: Border security on our side of the border would be tight. Like 1 Gendarme/20 km of border. Most likely they get in by bribing the border security for either the proper papers or just to be allowed through. This would result in a 65/35 illegal/legal immigrant mix.))

Dong Nguyen's broken english could be heard over the radio, "Greetings, Pyekans. I be Dong Nguyen. I hold presidency of Indochina. We, Indochina, have a deal for you. We shall turn over all officials of Pyekan Exiled Government but it is not for nothing. It is in exchange for Pyekan recognition of the Republic of Indochina. Allow me to clarify that last statement. We require that the Pyekan Empire recognize the Republic of Indochina as a sovereign state and that the Pyekan Empire relinquish all claims over the sovereign territory of the Republic of Indochina.

"The sovereign territory of the Republic of Indochina is defined as all 99 departments which each Prefect of the Congrés represents. This includes the department in which a car bomb was exploded recently. The department I am referring to is west of the Mekong. To summarise, the borders are remaining the same as the borders decided at the conclusion of the Border Skirmishes. If you wish to add any clause or other parts to this agreement, feel free to do so. We may negotiate an entirely different agreement if this is unacceptable."

Pyekan Military Aviation

YAP-11 Fireback

Pyeki's first domestically produced fighter entered service in late 1954, two years behind overly optimistic plans laid-out by the first generation of Generals to lead the post-war junta.

A prop-driven fighter, it was already several years off the pace and was immediately relegated to the counter-insurgency role, where it remains in updated form to this day.

Named Fireback in reference to a native bird, the crested fireback, it is of unusual push-prop configuration with twin tail booms that support a single tail plane. The Fireback closely resembles the Saab 21, though it is not clear that Pyeki secured any direct Scandinavian assistance in development of the aircraft.

Today's Firebacks have been upgraded, chiefly by the replacement of the piston engine with a turboprop and placement of a simple radar in the starboard boom.

Specifications (Fireback-II upgrade)
Crew: 1
Span: 11.55m
Length: 10.21m
Empty Weight: 3,300kg
Loaded Weight: 4,320kg
Powerplant: 2,000hp YAP turboprop
Maximum Speed: 447mph
Ceiling: 11,000m
Rate of climb: 825m/min
Range: 500 miles
Armament:
fixed- 2x13mm machineguns, 1x25mm cannon
optional- 57mm, 100mm rockets, 180mm anti-ship rockets; 8x13mm machinegun pod, freefall bombs, cluster bombs, napalm tanks

YAP-16 Super Fireback

Demonstrated in 1957, the Super Fireback was Pyeki's first jet fighter, created by replacing the Fireback's engine with a primitive turbojet. Lay-out was modified such as by the raising of the tail plane so as to remove it from the jet's blast, but in over all performance the Super Fireback was only slightly advanced over its conventional cousin.

Entering service only in 1959, the YAP-16 had a top speed of 500mph, attainment of which was said to be extremely harsh on the engine, and as such it was far behind contemporary fighters, and dreams of it serving as a fighter accompaniment to the attack-focused YAP-11 were soon forgotten as it too was relegated to surface attack.

Fitted with RATO rockets and new landing gear and flaps, the YAP-16 was picked-up by the Imperial Navy and used as an anti-ship weapon, using rockets and bombs backed up by cannon and also being deployed in martyrdom squadrons, which were used briefly during the Konfrontasi of the 1960s, when Pyeki tried without success to destabilise the FSS and the Indochinese Republic.

YAP-23 Boejanana

Though the Empire was struggling to keep pace with foreign aircraft developments, the Firebacks were sufficiently accomplished designs to spur the junta in more ambitious efforts. If nothing else, the domestic machines were vastly more affordable than western aircraft capable of doing the same job.

With two capable attackers in low-rate production, the Empire tried again to develop a true fighter. Bafflingly, at the start of the 1960s, Pyeki began its quest from partial plans of the Fw.Ta.183, a wartime design that had been slated to replace the Me.262 in the Luftwaffe. It is rumoured that ex-Nazis may have helped the Empire, with some foreign journalists and Nazi hunters claiming that they, along with former figures in the Imperial Japanese Army, lived for years after the war in beachfront mansions in Bali, paid for by the Emperor.

The ultimate result was the YAP-23, Pyeki's first 600mph fighter, entering service in 1968. Still incapable of supersonic performance in level flight, the YAP-23 was deemed a viable fighter but once again failed to put Pyekan pilots level with potential enemies. Disappointingly, it would soon be relegated to ground-attack after a few years as a stop-gap fighter while a successor was developed.

Resembling the MiG-9 'Butterfly' Fargo, it was soon retrofitted with a large 37mm cannon for surface attack and anti-bomber work.


YAP-30 Besra

The Besra, named for another local bird, appeared in 1976, and was in some respects an evolved YAP-23, finally realising many of the objectives set for the prior aircraft, and giving Pyeki its first supersonic aircraft, though it was only capable of Mach speeds at significant altitude, and more recently foreign observers have questioned the validity of Pyeki's claims. Unfortunately, by the time of Besra's introduction, in other countries MiG-23 and MiG-25 had been in service for some years, and the F-15 Eagle was just appearing, making the supersonic debate seem fairly academic.

Unlike earlier models, Besra was designed with the intention of making both a fighter version and an attacker, since most earlier projects had ended up being relegated to attack duty in any case. Top speeds of 709mph for the attacker and 712 for the fighter hardly suggest cutting edge performance, and the Besra was still primarily a gun and rocket rather than missile fighter, but it was undeniably a step forwards for the local aviation industry.

Besra has a range of some 650 miles, extendable to 960 with drop tanks, and the fighter version was the first Pyekan aircraft to deploy guided missiles, namely the Type-30 beam-rider, initially capable only of attacking subsonic targets, though later versions could handle supersonic targets as well.

The principle difference between the two versions was that the attacker weighed slightly more, having minor armour additions to critical areas of the underside, and mounted one 37mm cannon and two 25mm, while the interceptor version had three 25mm guns.

Besra most closely resembles the MiG-17 Fresco, and began immediately to replace the YAP-23. It was Pyeki's best fighter until 1984.

YAP-39 Buzzard

The YAP-39 represented the maximum extent to which the Yangon fighter could be developed as an interceptor. Capable of better than Mach 1.2 (Pyekan sources claim Mach 1.4) and a 400 mile combat radius when fitted with drop tanks, it was also the first Pyekan fighter to be armed with heat seeking missiles. Still, the Type-38 was a rear-aspect missile of short range, an improvement over the clumsy Type-30, would not be capable of anything other than tail-chase engagement until further developed some years later.

The Mig-19-like YAP-39 became Pyeki's front line fighter, backed-up by the Besra's fighter version.

YAP-46

Looking to provide a strike jet to match the advancement of the YAP-39 fighter, Yangon introduced in 1992 the YAP-46. This was essentially a ground-attack version of the YAP-39. Its top speed was just over Mach 1.1, which could be achieved with the use of afterburners in its two turbojets, range was around 1,200 miles, and fixed armament was two 25mm cannon with 100 rounds per gun.

Hardpoints could carry 2,200kg of stores including drop-tanks, free-fall bombs, cluster bombs, napalm tanks, 57mm and 100mm rockets, Type-38 IR-guided air-to-air missiles, and Pyeki's first guided air-to-surface missile, the radio guided Type-45.

Outwardly, YAP-46 is similar to the Nanchang Q-5 Fantan.

BAI-59 Sunbird

At the turn of the century, the YAP-39 was still Pyeki's best fighter. 2005 brought the first Sunbird, produced by the Bangkok Aerospace Institute. The BAI-59 was a deviation from the Yangon designs, and was to be Pyeki's first Mach 2 capable aircraft, and the first to carry semi-active radar homing missiles, namely the Type-60. The Sunbird serves as a dedicated fighter, supported by the Buzzard and decreasing numbers of Besra fighters.

BAI-59 looks much like the Shenyang J-8 Finback



Future Attack Aircraft

[i]Soon

Dong Nguyen's broken english could be heard over the radio, "Greetings, Pyekans. I be Dong Nguyen. I hold presidency of Indochina. We, Indochina, have a deal for you. We shall turn over all officials of Pyekan Exiled Government but it is not for nothing. It is in exchange for Pyekan recognition of the Republic of Indochina. Allow me to clarify that last statement. We require that the Pyekan Empire recognize the Republic of Indochina as a sovereign state and that the Pyekan Empire relinquish all claims over the sovereign territory of the Republic of Indochina.

"The sovereign territory of the Republic of Indochina is defined as all 99 departments which each Prefect of the Congrés represents. This includes the department in which a car bomb was exploded recently. The department I am referring to is west of the Mekong. To summarise, the borders are remaining the same as the borders decided at the conclusion of the Border Skirmishes. If you wish to add any clause or other parts to this agreement, feel free to do so. We may negotiate an entirely different agreement if this is unacceptable."

General Amamoto may surprise Nguyen by not immediately disputing Indochinese claims west of the Mekong. Instead he mentions disputed islands on the river itself, where the river constitutes the border, and part of the Pyekan border with what he calls Kampuchea, specifically the Prasat Preah Vihear temple complex.

Yangon and Nay Pyi Taw consider these disputed islands and the temple complex to be part of Pyeki, and, says Amamoto, he is authorised only to discuss relinquishing the wider Imperial claims of the Pyekan-Kuogu in Indochina.

Over all, the most important thing for the Indochinese to understand was only just becoming clear.

Since the 1946 creation of the Pyekan Kuogu, Emperor Pan Yubande had sat at Nay Pyi Taw. Earlier this year, he had, 'ascended to heaven' and been succeeded by his son, who was coronated Emperor Pan Yoshimura. The 62 years of the Yubande Era had seen the Kuogu's establishment and the failed Konfrontasi of the 1960s, following the failure of which Yubande had apparently lost momentum and his military government had become fatigued.

In the few months since the declaration of Year Zero of the Yoshimuran Era, the new cadre of Generals and newly elected Panaku, of which Amamoto was a senior member, had reinvigorated the Pyekanma Doctrine and invaded the Indian controlled Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Reconniassance flights over East Timor and Papua New Guinea had increased four fold, and Imperial vessels and jets had begun once again routinely to violate Indian, Timoerese, Papuan, Federal, and Indochinese waters and airspace as if to test defences and political resolve.

It was clear that the young Emperor planned to regain the initiative and make good on his father's claims, and Amamoto did not try to disguise the fact that strong Assault Divisions were facing areas of Laos west of the Mekong.

The implication was that Indochina could conceed to lesser demands on a few Mekong islands and the Prasat Preah Vihear, or perhaps face a new war in which Pyeki's objective was to sieze everything west of the river.

Perhaps Amamoto would put forward more conditions after this, but for talks to proceed the Pyekan needed some indication that the Indochinese might give up minor border disputes in order to gain wider recognition. Clearly, Pan Yoshimura and his new government needed a victory to show their people as they engaged Indian forces in the Bay of Bengal.