Trans-Caspia
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| Flag of Trans-Caspia | |
| Motto: "Our country pawns all." | |
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| Region | 10000 Islands |
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| Capital | Sebestograd |
| Official Language(s) | Russian |
| Leader | Keresztes Druben |
| Population | Over 200 million. |
| Currency | The Florin |
| NS Sunset XML | |
Contents
History
The modern history of Trans-Caspia began in the late 17th century, after the lands east of the Caspian sea saw a decade long drought and widespread plauge. Most of the population mass-migrated to adjacent countries, and the Chinese took advantage of the situation. On April 6th, 1694, a military expedition led by general Xegen Nuyek, who originated from Xinjiang, crossed over the Tien Shan mountains with the goal of capturing the region. The Russian response was swift and sure.
Determined not to let the chinese into his own back yard, the Russian Czar quickly ordered General Sergei Niestchev to expel Chinese forces from the region. With this achieved by the battle of Sergavo, the Czar gave authorization to Sergei to set up Trans-Caspia as a protectorate of the Russian Empire.
As the first Grand Duke of Trans-Caspia, Sergei's reign saw the organization of the protectorate into five states and the building of irrigation systems. His reign also saw a massive influx of Russian settlers into Trans-Caspia. This set the stage for the cultural scene of the 1720's, during which the settlers were influenced by the Islamic arcitecture of Samarquand and the other cities of the region.
During this period, some Russian settlers converted to Islam and Bhuddism. Most of the classical Trans-Caspian poetry and litterature was written during this time.
As the years progressed, Trans-Caspia's fortunes usually followed those of Russia. During the Soviet period, the region managed to adopt a sort of liberal communism, much like that of Hungary. During the breakup of 1991, Trans-Caspia declared independance, and focused on switching to a more liberal form of Socialism. Unlike most of the former Soviet Union nations, however, Trans-Caspia never quite made the transition to Democracy.
Politics
The head of state is currently Keresztes Druben, who came to power in 1994.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, the military filled the power vaccume left by the communist party. Since then, a policy of "selective franchise" has been instituted as a means of choosing government leadership. In other words, Military service or service in a number of different "service corps" is a prerequisite for voting. As an interesting side-note, this effectively makes Trans-Caspia a no-party political system.
Among the electorate there are two divisions, consisting of the upper house and the lower house. The upper house consists of former military officers, extended-term service corps volunteers, and career military personnel. The lower house consists of short term military personnel and service corps members. Although it's possible for a lower house member to enter the upper house, the person in question must have been awarded the "Hero of Trans-Caspia" medal.
When a leader recieves a vote of no confidence, dies, or resigns, a new leader is drawn from among the upper house. All members of the upper house are allowed to run for leadership, though it is a requirement to hold some sort of university or college degree. All members of both houses have the right to vote for a president.
In addition, a proposal, brought up only by upper house members, must pass in both houses in order to be passed on to verification by the president. On the flip side, the president has wide ranging powers, but must be cautious of a vote of no confidence from the electorate.
The President has the right to appoint members from the upper house to run the different ministries and to fulfill the role of governors in the different states.
Each state is divided into a number of districts. The people in each district, regardless of service, elect a distric board that handles matters of local governance. Regardless of service, citizens are protected under a bill of rights that covers free speech, right to property, and equality before law.
Foreign relations
Currently, Trans-Caspia has been accepted into the UN, joined the Region of 10000 Islands, and is considering joining TITO(Tenthousand Islands Treaty Organization). Since independance Trans-Caspia has not been involved in any conflicts with other nations. Although there were definite tensions(and even border clashes) with Iranian and Afghani government-sponsored political extremists during the 80's, these conflicts have been worked out.
Economy
Trans-Caspia has been focusing on switching from communism to a loose form of socialism with some sucess. Despite this, some problems, especially in the private sector, are still being hammered out. Hopfully the government plan for increasing growth in this area will yield results sometime soon.
Trans-Caspia is fully self sufficient in the agrigultural sector, as well as in ore mining and refinement. The dam building projects of the early 90's allowed Trans-Caspia to sell off excess oil and natural gas reserves, and brought the country up to self-sufficiency in energy. The production of consumer goods is still sorely lacking, and these are imported mostly from China and Europe.
Military
The Trans-Caspian Military is made up of equipment left behind by the Soviet Union during the breakup of the very late 80's and early 90's. Since then, some of the older equipment has been scraped or sold while new equipment has been put into service. While some of Trans-Caspia's military equipment has been built locally, the country is still reliant on arms imports from Russia. Although no nuclear weapons remain in Trans-Caspia, former-Soviet nuclear reasearch centers are still capable of producing weapons. At the government's invite, UN observers make regular safety inspections of the facilites. It has been confirmed that no new weapons have been produced, and that all original equipment is accounted for.
The current table for service numbers is:
Army(including Spetsnaz and Paratroops)- 700,000
Navy(including Marines)- 21,000
Air Force- 80,000
Air Defense Force(AAA, SAM, and radar services)- 55,000
Geography
Trans-Caspia is a huge nation, with some deserts in the south-west, steppes in the north, and mountains located in the south-east. Irrigation efforts, especially in the far north and south-west, have resulted in increased farmland in these areas.
Demographics and society
80% of all Trans-Caspians are descended from Russian settlers, with the remaining 20% descended from the original Central Asian inhabitants. Most of these original people are located in the south-eastern mountains and in some southern areas, especially near Samarquand.
Since the fall of the Soviet Union, religion has made a comeback in Trans-Caspia. About 70% of Trans-Caspians adhere to Russian Orthodox Christianity, with Islam taking in 15% and Bhuddism making up for the other 15%. There is also a Jewish quarter located in Sebestograd. There are also about 70,000 adherents to Zoroastrianism, and it is quickly becoming popular with the young adults who hold that the main religions are corupt.
Although religion was an issue in the past, there is little tension over religion in modern Trans-Caspia. The government's official position is a policy of freedom of religion.
