On August 22, 2014, Europeian President Kraketopia issued an ultimatum to The South Pacific: either refuse to attend Lazarus’ 2014 Regional Sovereignty Conference, or we will drop you as co-host of our Independence Conference and “[we] won't be held responsible for the actions of some of [our] allies.” This ultimatum was delivered shortly after Lazarus announced our attendance at the Regional Sovereignty Conference. Although we attempted to reason with Europeia about why there were no issues with attending both conferences – the natural thing to do, given both Europeia and Lazarus are our allies – Europeia would not rescind their ultimatum.

President Kraketopia gave various reasons for issuing the ultimatum. Those reasons range from a conspiracy that The South Pacific has been going down “the path to defenderdom,” to believing the Regional Sovereignty Conference was a ploy to overshadow the Independence Conference, to simply arguing that two conferences cannot be held so closely to one another. These reasons did not seem acceptable to the Cabinet. The allegations put forth were also highly disrespectful.

After internal discussion, the Cabinet decided that it was best to bring this issue to the Assembly, so the region as a whole could debate it. Given whatever choice was made would have a significant impact on our foreign affairs, this seemed to the most appropriate way to deal with this issue. The Assembly reached the conclusion that there was no good reason why The South Pacific could not attend both conferences. As one citizen put it, TSP is “in a unique position in the NS world that allows us to be in touch and understand both sides of NS spheres of influence.”

Therefore, The South Pacific will fully attend the Regional Sovereignty Conference. We realize that this violation of Europeia’s ultimatum will disqualify us from co-hosting the Independence Conference. However, we sincerely hope that our attendance at the conference will still be welcome. Our regional interests in protecting the sovereignty of Game-Created Regions would be best served by attending both conferences.

Lastly, we truly hope that diplomacy will be conducted in a less heated manner in the future. These dual conferences have created a tense atmosphere, but that is no reason why allies should not endeavor to understand each other's positions and needs. At times, allies will disagree and hold opposite interests in a certain issue. Good diplomacy will overcome these short-term difficulties and look towards maintaining good long-term relations. Diplomats should refrain from purposefully creating a situation where no good option exists for their allies.

Thank you,

The Cabinet of the South Pacific