Following recent negotiations with Byzantian regarding the construction of a NPP, the issue of nuclear weapons has once more became relevant for the public opinion in Tolomakia.

It is rumored that the Tolomakian Socialist Party is preparing a law stipulating the total destruction of current nuclear arsenal (the nuclear program itself was frozen some time ago). The Environmentalist Party is rejoicing and some of its leaders are talking about a tougher law, which would restrict the use of nuclear power even for civilian purposes. There is still no confirmation but it is unlikely that TSP would support such extreme position.

As expected, the Nationalist Party is totally against it and it seems like the Christian-Democratic Coalition has similar views.

Many analysts are waiting to see if the Liberals will have a standing position on this issue. Many voices from the moderate faction are claiming that nuclear weapons are no longer relevant for Tolomakia, while the conservators are trying to push for a resolution to support the nuclear program.

The TSP’s press conference scheduled for later today may clear up some of these questions.

We would propose not destroying all of the weapons, but selling some off to responsible states in the Balkans. As our security crisis last month so evidently proved, we need a nuclear deterrent, however small it may be. We also have no intention of developing a nuclear arms programme.

“Yes, the project is ready and we will submit it for debate in the Parliament today”, stated Victoria Cincu at TSP’s press conference. “We are in contact we several influent persons within the Liberal Party and we think we can get their support”, also mentioned Mrs. Cincu.

The analysts commented that TSP’s decision to let Victoria Cincu open this discussion only shows that international relations and foreign policy will have a considerable influence on the debate, Cincu is also TSP’s liaison with BISL.

Andreea Peto, the Ministry of Security and Defense, quickly reacted. She said that it is out of question for Tolomakia to renounce at the nuclear arsenal. “This may leave us vulnerable to malicious attacks” stated Peto. “You must remember that the current government has continuously reduced the defense budget. We now have the smallest budget in the region as percent of our GDP. The army is definitely not going to accept this new cut!”

The surprise came from Andrei Mihnea, the Foreign Affaires Ministry. Even if in the past he was seen as a conservator, today he briefly noted that “Tolomakia has encountered difficulties in its foreign relations because of our position regarding nuclear weapons. Bad foreign relations means less trade, which means less income and isn’t it a greater income we all want?”

Everybody is waiting now a statement form Mr. Marian Voicu, Prime-Minister and president of the Liberal Party which may clarify the issue.

The Byzantian government tends to agree with Terrans. Destroying your entire arsenal will be a step in the wrong direction. However we are more reserved about selling them off, as who is to say which nation is responsible now, and which will be responsible in the future, should they acquire weapons with as much destructive force.
The risk is too great to sell them off to other nations in most cases.
However, having said that, if your government decides to sell some off, we would be more then happy to purchase a few, of course once our territorial issues are settled. For detterent purposes only of course. We would never consider using such weapons as an offence in any case.

Out of his busy schedule, Prime-Minister Marian Voicu took a few moments to make a statement: “Neither the Liberal Party or the Government won’t have an official position on this issue. I won’t make a secret from the fact that inside our party there is a even debate on a decision.

There are voices arguing that nuclear weapons remain the best possible defense against any enemy. The nukes are reliable, powerful and have the potential of scaring away any attacker. Also, it may be wise to keep such weapons as long as other nations in the Balkans have them and may use them against us. The last one is a very strong argument and we must take it in consideration.

On the other side, other party members are saying that it is unlikely to ever make use of such weapons and even if we do, the danger of affecting Tolomakia itself is too high. Regarding defensive abilities, we have all sea that our combined army and air force, especially the X22 fighters, have no match. More, our nuclear policy is interfering with our foreign relations, which is bad for trade.

Since the socialists have decided to bring the issue on the floor of the Parliament, we will let the Legislative decide. Most probably you will hear two opinions from the Liberal Party and the final vote will decide. This is how democracy works, including inside our party. As Prime-Minister, I will follow the will of the Parliament, which is the representative of the people.

I only want to make a few comments regarding other related issues:

It is true that Tolomakia has the smallest percent of its GDP spend on military compared to other Balkan nations but first you must also consider that we have the greatest GDP in the region, thus a small percent may be greater that the entire budget of a struggling nation. Second, our policy is to use advanced weapons and technology. When building a X22 one may only count the direct construction costs but one should also consider the continuous investments in Information Technology for example, and remember Tolomakia is in top 100 nations in the world in this field! With better weapons we need fewer soldiers and smaller formations, which mean fewer expenses.

One clear statement I want to make is that it is out of question to stop using nuclear power in civilian activities. We had this discussion before and I am not going to explain again why this kind of radical approach is simply insane.

And one more thing: we – and I mean both the Liberal Party and the Government – won’t allow our nuclear arsenal to be sold to another nation. It is not important how good our relations are with one particular nation; there is no way we would ever agree to selling our nukes.

Antonis Ladas, the foreign affairs minister of Thracia, today stated that Tolomakia's decision to discuss whether or not to get rid of its nuclear arsenal is a welcome development.

"We do not want to meddle with Tolomakia's internal decision-making process", said Ladas, "but it is well-known that we have always been against the presence of nuclear weapons in The Balkans".

Why sell them off as a whole, why risk supplying future agitators and upsetting the balance of power? Simply strip them for parts and sell the parts individually, there are many parts i'm sure would be good in other field, also selling the plutonium or uranium to states that use nuclear power for energy, convert them to rods, and viola, ready made nuclear fuel. As a whole the weapon can be dangerous, in parts scattered across the region, it becomes very inert. And just for the record, it has been proven that my security incident long ago was not nuclear, and Ramostan has proven it over and over. I wouldnt mind buying some nuclear power rods, or trading them. Or simply convert the plutonium into rods for your own purposes. I think its a better solution that can make you some money and ensure higher security across the region, and prevent future possible fiascos.

PS: On another note i applied to join the confederacy and BICJ and still no response to either application, please check those out.

Official PRMU Mostarvian Government Statement

The question of Mostarvia dismantling it's nuclear weapons is out of the question.

ooc: I wasnt aware you could claim you had WMD like that?

ooc: :) I paraded them at a Mostarvian military parade rped not long ago.

Today the Tolomakian Socialist Party has finally submitted to the Parliament the proposed Law on Destroying Nuclear Weapons. According to Mrs. Victoria Cincu, the negotiations with the Ecologist Movement and other member of the Parliament were the main raison for the delay.

Mrs. Anemona Frunzaverde, Ecologist Movement Leader, has immediately denounced the law as being futile. In her opinion, the project is a “compromise with the capitalist pigs” and the socialists should be ashamed for that.

Her anger was triggered by the fact that the law is only proposing the destruction of all nuclear charges currently available, with the radioactive materials being used in power plants. The main production facility will only be sealed, not destroyed, and the program may be restarted in case of emergency. Also the use of nuclear power for civilian purposes will not be banned.

A second law, proposed by the Ministry of Defense, is asking for increase funding in advanced flight and weaponry. This is seen as a compromise with the Army, which is getting money and support for the development of the new X23 airplane.

In these circumstances, it is expected that both laws will easily be adopted, with the support of both Liberal and Socialist Party. In an interview, Anton Stanescu, TSP leader, has stated that this is the first time that the two parties are collaborating on legislative matters so well and the result is encouraging. He went so far to mention that if the Liberals are going to adopt parts of the TSP’s social program the Socialists may consider a coalition government.

Ion Ionescu, spokesman of Christian-Democratic Coalition, has expressed his concern for the Tolomakian democracy, showing that there will be no real political opposition if the two main parties are working together.

this may seem off beat but the only time i like to blow something up is a barbie doll strapped to a bottle rocket :)