Is the South Pacific owned and operated by the Grey Wardens?

If you've read the Gameplay forum recently, you'd be inclined to think so. TSP and TGW deny it, others just categorically state it as a fact. What gets less coverage, however, is that there is another such pair of regions with a similar reputation, just amongst a different crowd - Balder and the Land of Kings and Emperors. The similarities are glaring. In both cases, the two regions are technically of different alignments but the way they practice it is that the things they do on the battle field often match up. In both cases, there is a high-profile individual holding a high executive position in both regions (Onderkelkia in the case of Balder/LKE, myself in the case of TSP/TGW). In both cases, there is some cross-membership (4 TSP/TGW cross-members, probably a similar amount between Balder and LKE). And in both cases, it's almost a running gag amongst the respective enemies that one of the regions (the UCR in both cases) de facto controls the other (the GCR). You've seen it plenty here on GP for TGW/TSP right now, but it happens just as much off-site, and occasionally on GP, by the more defender-y crowd with respect to Balder/LKE.

So, what's the truth here? Does it hold for one or not the other? Are both subverted? Neither? I'd wager that the truth is rather in the middle - there are sociological and cultural aspects at play here, and it's a totally benign thing. I know that there isn't a concerted effort by TGW to control or influence TSP, and I have no reason to believe that there would be such a concerted effort by LKE to control or influence Balder either. Instead, the respective other region is liked and accepted, and people hailing from one region are accepted warmly by the other. It should be intuitively clear that this is conducive to some amount of cross-membership, and even that these regions may end up sharing high-ranking leaders!

The problem with that explanation is that it's perfectly reasonable and therefore woefully boring for NationStates Gameplay. Therefore: Omg, LKE like totally controls Balder and stuff!