NationStates Jolt Archive

QNN, Quinntonian News Network

Finance Minister Darby Tchir stood in front of the podium as the White House Press Corps. was assembled before him in sunny Bermuda. He simply walked forward and said, in his rather husky voice, “I am here today to announce various projects that are designed to strengthen the North American presence in the world and provide a more muscular presence for overall force projection in the global enterprise. Firstly, I would like to announce the completion of one of two America Class Amphibious Assault Ships, which is now being staffed and armed, and will be equipped with all of the latest equipment and technology to act as the pre-eminent amphibious assault ship and troop multiplier of this age, including carrying the new JSF, the F-35. This will be transferred immediately to the Canadian Navy, and the next one, to be completed within three months time, will be as well. This marks the first “foreign export” of the F-35, and a new step in the integration of the Canadian Armed Forces with our own. I am also here to announce that a tentative deal has been struck that will see an order of 6 more America Class Ships be laid down within the next few months, to be activated and brought into service i the Quinntonian Navy.”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America_class_amphibious_assault_ship

He stopped only to sip from his glass of water.

“Further, I am very proud to announce the creation of 3 so-called, Arsenal Ships that will be laid down immediately for service in the Quinntonian Navy, marking a commitment to continued Quinntonian dominance of the seas. These platforms will be the battleships of today, carrying a crew of only 58 people, and able to carry as many as five hundred missiles in a load, which would allow firing of that massive amount of missiles in a very short period of time, utterly decimating any targets it wishes to engage.”

http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ship/arsenal_ship.htm

“Again on the Navy front, several ships of the so-called Mothball Fleet are in the process of reactivation and refitting/rearming with the intention to use them to bolster the blue-water effectiveness of some of our military allies who may not have the ability to build warships like these from scratch on their own.”

He took another sip from his water.

“Moving away from the military front, we are pleased to announce that in cooperation with many German and Canadian firms and programs, we are moving towards a greener, more decentralised power grid that will lower our insecure energy dependence. This will happen in various phases, firstly, we will be placing legislation forward with the next budget that will declare a national, and stringent emissions cap on all vehicles sold within the USQ. Further, we will require any new vehicle that comes into the field of industry, whether that be cargo transport or taxicabs or construction equipment, to be low-emission variants, either of propane or of electric and diesel/gasoline varieties. Of course, we will grandfather in any vehicles currently on the road, but they will be levied a new tax that will be applied to green technology research and development. Further, tax cuts and government grants will be available to businesses that need to move their fleets to the new standards, and a package of government grants will be made available for new infrastructure that will no doubt be required and factories that will need to retool in order to provide for new jobs. This alone will be an investment in this year of an estimated $130 billion USD into this project.”

“Further, we will be building a wind-power based electrical system for producing power that will be built in two major stages, one will be constructed in appropriate areas all across the USQ, and the other in the North of Canada, which will serve to provide much of our energy needs, make less structural demands on our infrastructure and decrease the overall production of greenhouse gasses in North America by the time of the project’s completion date, in 2025, by 55%. This is a further investment in both modernising our antiquated energy grid and building thousands of these wind turbines of an additional $65 billion USD over the lifetime of the project, but with an as of yet undetermined investment into modernisation.”

“This is in conjunction to legislation that we are going to introduce that will require all new homes build in the USQ to include full solar panelling on their roofs, and small wind turbines as well, and provide a tax rebate for anyone retrofitting their existing homes with that technology. This, as well as investment in solar farms, tide power generation, geothermal power generation, etc., will total an investment of $85 billion USD in this year.”

He sighs, takes another sip, and asks, “Are there any questions?”

The Press Corp erupts in astonished fury as shouted questions are pelted at the Finance Minister:

“Mark Sander of NBC; with a deficit annually exceeding $100 billion already, how can we possibly sustain spending of this type, with nearly $300 billion of new spending announced today alone, on the eve of the NATO conference?”

“That is a great question, the Prime Minister and our caucus is very optimistic about the economic forecast that this stimulus brings with it, and in keeping with Quinntonia’s role as a world leader, we feel that we need to take major, drastic steps in this direction, which the previous administration has clearly not done to our detriment. There has not been a major investment in energy infrastructure in decades, and we are still using portions of the grid in New York that were constructed during Jefferson’s time. And we owe it to the world, as the largest producer of harmful emissions in the world, to take steps to clean up the mess that we started.”

“Bob Nuefeld, Rueters; With reports coming in of largescale military action all over the globe and with these announcements towards aggressive military orders and spending, what can you tell us about these rumours we are hearing of Prime Minister King’s troubling penchant for overriding her caucus and ministers to push forward her own agenda?”

“I cannot answer for the Prime Minister, and I am sure she will be ready to talk to you all as the conference comes closer, but she is incredibly busy right now preparing for that. I can tell you that Defence Minister Schneider will have more answers for you when he arrives tomorrow here, and he will be holding a press conference explaining the moves.”

“James Prophet, LA Times; While I am sure voters will be thrilled about the initiatives that you are taking, won’t the new taxes on all of our now condemned cars punish the average person who maybe can ill-afford that new money? Also, what impact will a massive, government funded and run energy conglomerate have on our energy sector and the jobs of millions of Quinntonians?”

“Well, this will be my last question, but I can assure you that our Party has always had the best interests of the Quinntonian people at heart, we believe that a sacrifice in the short term will provide our children with a more secure and healthier future. Thank you.”

And with that, he walked off the stage to a cacophony of vainly shouted questions.

Later, a memo was leaked that there would be more annoucements of new spending in the near future.

WWJD
Amen.

Bermuda

"Looks like MI-6 called it right," Christina said, sipping her coffee. It was seven in the morning, and she was already dressed for yet another day of running around, trying to wrangle Quinntonian officials. The television, playing more or less continuously in the background since five-thirty, had caught her attention when the Quinntonian finance minister had mentioned new military expenditures. She glanced at Strathairn, who was doing his tie in the bathroom mirror. "Yo. Andrew." She tossed a piece of crumpled up paper in his general direction, and he turned to look.

"What?" Tie half done and eyes bleary from not enough sleep, the prime minister left off his morning grooming and shuffled over to the television.

"Intel called it right, the Quinntonians are building an arsenal ship. Looks like a slightly different design than ours, more heavily automated, but the general idea's the same." Strathairn grunted. It had only been a matter of time before the Quinntonians conducted a bit of industrial espionage on the heavily classified Sovereign of the Seas class, a heavily armed force projection platform that had been in the works for some time. The Sovereign had been under construction for the better part of a year at Clydebank, assembled in a covered drydock to hide it from prying eyes. The government had made no secret of the fact that they were building a modern answer to the old battleship, a vessel designed to project massive power within missile range. The Quinntonian version appeared to be of similar design but with certain modifications to optimize it as a bombardment platform; the crew had been slashed and the missile loadout was entirely of Tomahawk cruise missiles rather than heavy anti-ship missiles. It fit the Quinntonian doctrine that placed almost all offensive firepower on carrier aircraft, and spared no expense on automation or technology.

"Well, I suppose ours'll be ready first," Strathairn said gruffly. "Damn. I was hoping we'd be able to close the ship gap a bit." It had been a vain hope, considering the Liberals' general dislike for massive spending, but it would have been nice all the same. "Hmm, perhaps we should issue some kind of low-key press release congratulating the Quinntonian defense establishment and the CIA for their exemplary partnership on this project. Something just a bit sarcastic but not enough to comment on, how does that sound?" Christina laughed softly.

"Well, King already doesn't like us, and the Quinntonians can take a joke well enough."

Several Hours Later

For immediate release:
Her Majesty's Government expresses its approval of the Quinntonian spending announcement, which is welcomed for its environmental concerns. As allies and citizens of the same planet, the British people wish to signal their pleasure that the United States has undertaken a revolutionary programme to improve the environment. Such programmes serve to show that the United States is a world leader not only in defence spending, but also in social consciousness.

Further, H.M. Government is duly impressed by the work of the Central Intelligence Agency, which has proved its worth as a guarantor of the free dissemination of information throughout the free world. It is not without a certain respect and chagrin that H.M. Government greets the announcement of the new Arsenal Ship project, and it looks forward to the continued dominance of the western alliance in terms of naval power. With the hope that the Quinntonian Government will accept this advice in the spirit which it is given, H.M. Government reminds them that military power must ever be used to promote freedom, which we trust the United States shall ever do.
Office of the Prime Minister,
Victoria II Reginæ

Paris, France

Following a day of negotiations, Caesar Romulus flicked off the TV in his personal suite and looked to General Marius, "An arsenal ship?"

"Yes, my lord."

"What is that?"

"Some have called it the replacement to the battleship for modern times. It is a vessel that holds an extraordinary amount of missiles, incredibly durable, it is able to be controlled remotely, through data links, allowing command staff to command the boat from a safe distance and putting the minimum amount of lives in danger and may mean that some ships, aircraft and soldiers would no longer be necessary. The closest comparable ship is the Kirov class battlecruiser in the Russian Navy."

"And this ship would put us at an incredible disadvantage once operational, yes?"

"Yes."

"So why haven't plans crossed my desk for construction by the Marina?"

"Intelligence has yet to get any details on the plans as yet, my lord."

"Well get them! Now!"

"Yes, my lord."

Hail Ceasar!

In Akink, contary to the flap caused in Rome, GSIC had already dismissed the US arsenal ship as a military asset of the lowest interest. In order that it should represent anything of a threat against the BDR, a condition of total war should have to exist, and a whole US fleet would have to be on hand in any case.

"What" Vercingetorix had asked the naval intelligence section with which he had become lately associated, "can be the value in lives protected or manpower removed of a vessel that can not defend itself without the presence of a fully manned battlefleet?" Others had simply asked why this should add any menace to the armoury of a nation with stealth and heavy bombers, guided and ballistic missile submarines, armoured battleships, and cruisers, and they had received nothing more enlightening in reply than a lot of shrugs and upturned palms.

The new assault ships were of more interest, however. Coupled with these, the arsenal ships may be seen as part of a lazy-man's gunboat diplomacy fermenting in Washington's strategic think tanks.

Fortunate, then, that the Fifth Five Year Plan had recently initiated more than a third of a trillion dollars of military reshaping in the BDR with a view to countering just that sort of meddling... even if it had been originally designed to frustrate British interests in Africa, not so much Quinntonian. Either way, it was more proof of the strength of foresight in the Democratic Republic's revolutionary leadership!

In a closed session of the Central Committee of the League of Beddgelen Communists, Chairman Igo had warned that the next decade was likely to be fought (for as a revolutionary and a Geletian, he did not see decades being spent any other way) in Africa. Such weapons, he clearly felt, were supportive of his view.

"Since London, Washington, and Sithin lack the stomach for direct confrontation with Rome and Kyiv, and since genuine revolutionists have taken-up the fight in that desperate continent, we can expect to deploy our new submarines, when we have them, to interdict imperialist police actions and interventions on behalf of tottering neo-colonial puppets and against freedom-fighters across Africa. The more spendthrift and sanitary the enemy becomes in his efforts in repression, the more forceful we shall be in laying our hands directly against the bloody affair. These new weapons are throbbing symptoms of the enemy's consumptive cowardice in contrast with the irrepressible spears of BIRPA and frigates of Beddgelert."

Sithin

Quinntonian announcement of increased military spending would be regarded with significant interest in Spyr... while many would have preferred to see billions funneled into anti-submarine vessels for the North Pacific, the arsenal ship and new assault vessels might point to an increased USQ readiness for confrontation with the feudalists and, if Public Safety's analysis of London's response was correct, the British might also be preparing such vessels. A sign that the Popular Front of solidarity against the feudalists might at last blossom into victory!

Those Party officials with a less optimistic view would note that such vessels were not optimal for a conflict with Kiev and Rome, and would be better suited for strikes against lesser powers... effective equally against the African apartheid regimes Spyr opposed and the freedom fighters it supported.

Re-activation of mothballed vessels was a much clearer sign of good things to come, Spyran observers assuming many such vessels would be bound for service with the Baltic Federation. The intentions of Washington and London might be unclear, but Qasarian at least seemed to share Sithin's conviction that Kiev was the greatest threat facing the modern world.

Of much greater interest than military expenditures were changes in Quinntonian energy and environmental policy, which seemed to present significant opportunities for PRS exporters. While the failure of the tricar in the 1970s had dashed Spyran hopes of entering the North American market for personal automobiles, the PRS had spent decades struggling to reduce its reliance on petroleum, much of which was imported over long distances from sources whose reliability was uncertain. As a result, alternatives had been sought, and Spyran vehicles retrofitted or built to use such fuels as compressed natural gas or diesel mixtures rather than straight petrol... reduced petrol use had reduced operating costs and harmful emissions, but in markets such as those in North America where gasoline was viewed as a more certain commodity, such benefits did not always outweigh the costs of conversion or acquiring new equipment. New USQ requirements could allow Spyran manufacturers to expand their market share for equipment and heavier vehicles, and perhaps once the North American consumer was used to seeing the logo of Daihatzu or Chidao on buses and excavators, an opportunity might arise for the second coming of the teardrop electric.

The main members of the Baltic delegation sat around in an office near the convention centre discussing wording for speeches and such activities. Having addressed most of the main issues, they looked to the news.

“What?” exclaimed General Kashninski “What are they spending all that money on? They will be sitting ducks, surely”.

“Looks to me like you did a good job getting our equipment sorted” said a rather happy Volterov; everything was going well internationally. “So long as we get what we need, we shouldn't worry about what they are spending their money on”.

“Well I suppose not, it just seems excessive” replied the bemused Kashninski. “Well shall we send them a message or something?”

“Well we could just send them a sort of official thank-you, it couldn't hurt anyway. The rest of it is neither good nor bad for us so we may as well not mention it, its not like they would take any advice on spending anyway” suggested a tired Tomas Mistrikova, hoping privately that the conference would just hurry up and start before looking at his watch.

“Good idea” responded Volterov “We should send ones to Cassanos and Germany as well. Also send a message to Spyr; I want to open full diplomatic relations once this conference is over; just an official heads up sort of thing, they seem to be almost as anti-Kievan as us”.

OOC: Thanks, Gurg, your chat on the off-board forums has inspired Imperator Marius.

Paris, Gaul

Imperator Marius walked into the Caesar's office once again after a several hours long phone conversation with his staff in Rome and strategic advisors throughout the Empire. “My lord, I wonder if I could speak with you?”

Caesar Romulus Magnus scratched his eyes as he looked away from the computer screen to the old army officer, “What is it, Marius?”

“My lord, I have just spoken with my advisors and staff,” Marius stated, his arms perfectly relaxed at his side, “we have set about obtaining the plans for an arsenal ship, however, there may be another way of countering this weapon.”

Caesar Romulus lifted his head and looked squarely at Marius, “How is that?”

“Submarines, my lord.”

Caesar closed his eyes, resting his elbows on the desk. He reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose, “What?”

“My people and I, based on the limited information that we have, have deduced that a ship of the design of an arsenal ship would be grossly expensive, not only to build but also to arm and maintain. What I would suggest my lord, is that we use the money that would go towards designing, building and testing this boat and put it into the construction of submarines that will destroy the Quinntonian's new weapon. What we suggest is that you announce that you will now be increasing your order to 10 Barracuda class submarines, and another 4 Le Triomphant class missile subs modified to fire conventional missiles. At the same time, we can begin to research a more advanced Exocet as well as a missile shield defense system to protect our Empire. We could even work with the Kievans or Christstan's on the shield defense system, and the Exocet.”

“You want to give the Quinntonians the surface of the waters?”

“My lord, they won't have the surface, if we have the depths! If we make our submarine fleet one to be feared the Quinntonians won't dare come anywhere near us! Engaging them in an arms race will lead nowhere. That is mutually assured intimidation and destruction. Let the Marina counter this threat with submarine warfare, and that will be mutually assured intimidation, but Quinntonia will be the one facing destruction.”

“Why submarines?”

“Because the greatest threat to any surface ship is not missiles or fighters, but the submarine. It is the greatest weapon we have. The Quinntonians might try to shock us with their impressive boats and fleets, but we will crush their spirit with our silent assassins beneath the waves.”

“I like the principle. Give me what information you have and I will give you a decision.”

“You'll have it by morning, Caesar!”

Hail Caesar!