Note Verbale: Alcris-VoD Treaty advice

3 April 2024 — A note verbale jointly addressed to the Governments of Alcris and the Voice of Democracy to give advice on treaty negotiations.

1. Introduction

Alcris and the Voice of Democracy (“VoD”) are moderately-sized microgovernments on NationStates (“NS”) and Discord, respectively.

The two have a lot in common, including—

1. Population. Both Alcris and VoD are moderately sized and have an active population.

2. Diplomatic goals. Both have a desire to expand diplomatic relations. A cross-platform diplomatic agreement would be a watershed achievement similar to the one signed in July 2019 between the NS-based Communist Cartel and Reddit-based SimDemocracy.

3. Effective player safety regimes. Both have effective enforcement of Terms of Service (“ToS”) and Out of Character (“OOC”) rules, which are non-derogable obligations for either party.

I conclude that a diplomatic agreement between both is possible and would mutually assist each other’s diplomatic goals.

2. Comparative advantages

Alcris and the VoD have comparative advantages, meaning they have different strengths, giving both sides something to gain from a treaty.

2.1. Voice of Democracy

1. Strong legal system and tradition of the rule of law. VoD can provide Alcris access to lawyers and jurists with years of interregional experience (some with real-life experience) to boost its judiciary.

   1. This follows VoD and Alcris’ mutual interest in boosting their judiciary. Alcris is currently voting on two proposed judicial reforms for its April 2024 referendums (one to establish an appellate division and the other to shorten judicial terms). VoD judges have expressed an interest in reviving talks on the Common Court of Justice proposals from June 2023.

2. Economic foundations. VoD can provide Alcris assistance in setting up their own currency, possibly entering into a currency union with VoD (or, in any case, making foreign exchange of currencies possible). A common policy on currency will open up the possibility of cross-border trade.

   1. An agreement on the economy will require extensive negotiation (e.g., establishing an international Central Bank to regulate money printing and interest rates, Alcris’ initial starting money balance, and jurisdiction to adjudicate cross-border trade disputes). It is recommended that this possibility be looked into after basic diplomatic relations have been established with the VoD first.

   2. There is, nevertheless, serious potential for a common policy on the economy. Alcris already has a bustling private sector without an economy; VoD has an economy without similar levels of private sector activity.

3. Interest in exploring NationStates as a platform. VoD politicians have previously expressed interest in establishing a region on NationStates. Alcris, as a long-running region in NationStates, is uniquely positioned to provide technical assistance, such as providing security through a Successor account.

   1. VoD, as a separate region, would also be able to conduct its own API recruitment. An agreement of free movement, fully or partially, would thus benefit Alcris as an additional indirect recruitment source.

2.2. Alcris

1. A neutral, safe, and influential gateway to NationStates. Alcris is a politically neutral, safe (in OOC terms), and diplomatically influential region in NationStates. Having Alcris as an ally would thus be immensely helpful to VoD’s future goals of expanding to NationStates, granting it a vital boost to its recruitment strategy, access to a wider world of regions, and military security.

2. Vibrant private sector that can be potentially capitalised. Alcris already has a vibrant private sector without an economy, including a thriving press industry, games industry, roleplay sector, Minecraft server, guilds, regional University, etc. That said, activity within the various sectors is not equally as strong, opening up potential opportunities for both the public and private sectors within VoD. Some of these include—

   1. Minecraft server. The economy could potentially be tied to Alcris’ Minecraft server, helping to ground the currency with material value and giving a true meaning to “cross-border trade.”

   2. Guilds. In Alcris, guilds are formal groupings of citizens so they can play as “teams” in domestic events and tournaments to break pre-existing divisions (e.g. which former microgovernment people belonged to). Breaking down pre-existing divisions can be brought further by making them international (something Alcris is currently negotiating with other servers). Importantly, guilds have the potential to be a lot more influential than they currently are if they were made into statute-created charitable foundations (e.g. a 1% guild levy can be imposed to give it funds to spend on non-political purposes, such as hosting intra-guild competitions or donations to the media).

   3. Translators and other public sector workers. Alcris has four official languages and needs Swedish, French, and German translators. Alcris also occasionally has vacancies in its civil service, which need plugging. Integrated economies can help Alcris attract labour from VoD.

3. Strong non-capitalisable private sector. Alcris’ private sector also contains roleplay and the University, neither of which would seem appropriate to subject to the economy, but which can give VoD citizens more things to do (such as through cross-border events).

3. Mitigating risks

I have outlined some potential risks that can arise, along with potential recommendations on how they can be overcome—

1. Different government types. VoD will see, on average, a new government every 2 weeks. In contrast, Alcris will see a new government every 3 months. VoD will likely cycle through Foreign Ministers mid-negotiation.

   1. This is because of VoD and Alcris’ significantly different timescales regarding elections and referendums. VoD has weekly elections (alternating fortnightly between each chamber of Parliament). Alcris has monthly votes (for referendum proposals) and elections to its executive-legislative Council every 3 months.

   2. From Alcris’ perspective, VoD has a credible risk of being an unreliable partner because of its frequent governmental changes, which can bring significant policy changes. VoD can see 6 or more different governments in a single Council term. Time-sensitive requests made by the VoD government, owing to their short terms, can make them seem impatient.

   3. From VoD’s perspective, the Alcris government can seem slow to respond, especially if its Council is not unanimously in agreement. When Alcris has finished carefully considering a proposal, VoD may have a new Foreign Minister.

   4. Short-term solutions:

      1. Appointment of a permanent, politically impartial diplomat to Alcris, which does not change after elections,

      2. The entrenchment of any treaty or agreement into the VoD Constitution to elevate it above daily politics. This is already the case under Alcris law,

      3. Building cross-party consensus within VoD to support a deal with Alcris.

   5. Long-term solutions:

      1. Considering longer parliamentary terms (e.g. 4-6 weeks) in VoD would move it more in line with international norms. However, this is ultimately a domestic consideration, and there are arguable strengths for shorter terms.

2. Potential difficulty in economic negotiations. As mentioned, many details must be thrashed out to have a common currency policy and a single market.

   1. Short-term solutions:

      1. Deferring economic integration until after a basic treaty has been signed so that more time can be spent discussing this after the fact.

      2. Taking small, gradual steps as a way for the Alcris government to “try” out the economy. For instance, in its first treaty, VoD could give the Alcris government a bank account of 200,000 printed Voods to begin investing in the VoD public and private sectors (and giving its citizens who wish to go to VoD some funds). This could help get the ball rolling and defer the question of valuing Alcris precisely for a future subsequent agreement.

3. Difference in citizenship laws. Alcris has stricter citizenship laws than VoD (which virtually has none), which can pose difficulties negotiating a dual citizenship arrangement.

   1. Short-term solutions:

      1. Alcris can offer a special visa allowing citizens of VoD to participate in citizen-only activities (e.g. roleplay, the press, etc.) but not the right to vote or run for public office.

      2. VoD can amend or clarify its brigading law in reciprocity to ensure that Alcrisians who enter VoD are not considered “brigading” merely because they travelled to VoD based on the Treaty.

   2. Long-term solutions:

      1. VoD should consider implementing a citizenship law as a proactive measure to prevent alternative accounts from gaining citizenship instead of merely relying on reactive measures (e.g., laws on brigading and intelligence agencies).