Akiteiwa

Akiteiwa, officially known as the Imperial and Royal Federation for the Akitei People or the Akitei Federation is a Federal Constitutional Monarchy located in the Akitei Peninsula in Eastern Kesh. It controls an area of 799,675 square km, divided over 10 constituent Kingdoms, with a collective population of over 76 million people.

The Constitution of the modern state of Akiteiwa was created in 1960 amid the political and economic aftermath of the Great Kesh War as new states were liberated from the rule of Selengeria and free association with the Empire of Akiteiwa, the newly ascendant power in the peninsula.

In the decades following, Akiteiwa has endeavoured to integrate itself more into the international community, becoming an important source of agricultural goods and aluminium for export.

Tribal Kingdoms Period
From the early iron age, the Akitei peninsula was dominated by dozens of small tribal kingdoms who constantly feuded over territory and resources. Notable among these tribal kingdoms were those of the Ame and Testu Kingdoms, which formed the historical basis for the more modern Kingdoms of Amekawa and Testudaira.

First Akitei Empire
In the year 314, the Empire of Akiteiwa was founded when King Kiryuu I of the Ame Kingdom conquered the entire peninsula, proclaiming himself an equal of the Kodeshi Tianren and as descended from the deity from which he took his name.

Over the next 200 years, Akitei Emperors would formalise their rule throughout the realm, appointing prefects to rule over newly created administrative divisions. However the Empire's territorial integrity would not last, as Akitei customary law stipulated that lands be divided among the Emperor's sons, quickly leading to infighting within the realm. In the turmoil of imperial princes warring over territory and title, the hitherto appointed prefects began asserting their autonomy from both imperial and royal control, using their position as leverage by threatening to defect to their rivals.

Maritime Akiteiwa and the Great Sea Empire
Akitei traders first made contact with the East Tethys in the 700s CE, reaching traders in the Midway Islands which hitherto had remained uncrossed by anybody. The following centuries saw increased trade between the East and West, leading to what historians would dub the Tethys Island Express, owing to the comparatively rapid pace of transit between the two sides of the ocean. The 12th-14th centuries saw the rise of Komishima League, a mercantile alliance of Princes and merchants who would become rich off of control over the lucrative spice islands from which the archipelago derives its name. This period saw considerable migration of Akitei people across the Western Tethys as merchants and raiders from the archipelago began to colonise and settle many of the islands in the region. These include the Hinojima and Oyashima archipelagos. These periods of settling and mixing would see the Akitei language spread widely across the Western Tethys though much of the native culture would merge and blend with the Akitei settlers, leading to a distinct islander variety of Akitei people and language. Following the Leviathan War and the conquest of Komishima in the 14th century, the Empire of Akiteiwa would inherit much of Komishima's naval prowess and bureaucratic style. This would lead to the formal founding of the Imperial Akitei Navy, and would see the Empire of Akiteiwa expand to much of the territories settled in the previous centuries by Komishima Akitei people. This period in Akitei history is referred to by historians as the Daiumi Teikoku, or "Great Sea Empire"

Following the increase in control and stability in travelling across the Tethys, trade would increase massively with the states in what would be modern Tilenno and Osorra. Vast quantities of spices, silk, tropical woods and ivory would be traded to Avalonia while precious metals, jewels and sugar would flow toward Kesh. Looking to control this trade, the Empire would find itself in conflict with the powers in Western Avalonia, including supporting rebellion in the Ossoi Empire and combatting the Ovancian invasion of the Tilennan Dynastic Kingdoms, fearing that the Artemians would constrict trade with Akiteiwa in favour of funelling it back to Artemia.

The Great Upheaval
In the early 19th Century, continued contact with Artemian powers spurred a period of modernisation and expansion of the technology, military, culture and administration of the Empire. This expressed itself primarily through the abolition of the previous feudal system of governance, and the introduction of new technologies such as industrial steelmaking and fertiliser mass production. Initially, this led to a brief period of Absolute imperial rule. However, following the a revolt of the old nobility, the feudal peerage established a constitution, mandating a legislative body made up of members of this nobility. This continued for nearly two decades, before a series of urban revolts called for elected representatives in a legislative body, much like the Artemian model. This led to the establishment of the proto-type of the modern State Diet.

The Grand Campaigns
The historical rivalry with Selengeria dominated Akitei foreign policy in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. With Tiperyn being allied to Selengeria, Akiteiwa had sought other Artemian powers for military and financial support. These powers included the Merand-Curgovinan Union, Goetic Empire and the Federal Republic of Modrovia. Additionally, strong anti-imperialist sentiment led to increased trade and ties with Kodeshia, who formally entered into a military alliance with Akiteiwa in 1910 with the signing of the Orchid Compact. When Kodeshia declared war on Tiperyn in 1919, Akiteiwa followed, contributing to the Jade Sea offensive by committing its navy to a delaying action in the west of the Tethys. In the war with Selengeria, an initial fast paced offensive on two fronts had caught the Selengerian military off-guard, leading to a large swathe of territory being taken in the opening year. However, the Akitei military quickly found itself overextended and on the defensive, settling to dig in and consolidate its occupied territory, while also agitating for the other Akitei parts of the northern peninsula to revolt against the oppressive Selengerian rule. In 192X, a peace deal with Selengeria was signed, with the Akitei government paying an indemnity and annexing the lands its occupied during the war.

Interwar Period
The interwar period for the Akitei government was one of integrating the newly annexed territory and disarming after the war. During this period, the Undserkheg government of Selengeria began persecuting ethnic Akiteis in Selengerian territory. This prompted the government to begin arming rebel groups in the north of the peninsula, culminating in Akiteiwa's declaration of war during the Kesh wars, nominally in protection of oppressed Akitei people. Also during this time, Akiteiwa partook in two notable military conflicts. The first was the participation in the Kodeshi Civil War, supporting Royalist forces against the revolutionaries. In 1946 Akiteiwa invaded the Volkovist state in

Geography
Akiteiwa is in Eastern Kesh, occupying the majority of the Akitei peninsula. It shares a land border with only a single country, Selengeria. To its East, Akiteiwa borders the Akitei sea and to the South-West, it borders the Pearl Sea, both of which are part of the greater Tethys Ocean.

Elevation ranges from 5,763m metres at the summit of the mountain Akeno-nee in the Ane mountains to sea level at on the east coast. Elevation is also increased by the presence of the XX rift valley to the west, on the border with Selengeria. These points of higher elevation mark the sources for several major rivers in Akiteiwa, including the Amekawa and the Aikawa, two of Akiteiwa's most major rivers.

Notable natural resources include bauxite, timber, copper, silver and lignite.

Flora
The Akitei peninsula is high in floral biodiversity, owing to its unique subcontinental origins as well its diverse terrain and climate. There are over XXXX native floral species, many of them endemic to the country. While much of the the land has been cleared for agriculture and human development, there remains much untouched forest and habitat, much of it now protected in National Parks and Nature Reserves.

The southern lowland regions of the country in Aikawa and Kurogishi have traditionally been dominated by primary forests of evergreen broadleaf species such as those from the genera Hopea, Shorea, Dipterocarpus and Vatica. Increasing with latitude, the tropical Dipterocarp forest gives way to Laurel forests dominated by species of the Schima, Camellia, Magnolia, Rhododendron and Quercus (Oak) genera.

Akiteiwa's highlands create regions of increased diversity. This diversity is exemplified in the Southern Highland Cloud Forest regions in the Ane mountains and the Northern Highland Pine forests, which are home to the largest stands of pine trees in the country. Historically these highland climates have allowed Akiteiwa to cultivate a diverse array of plant species for economic reasons such as Coffea for coffee and Morus, which has been integral to sericulture.

Other historically economic significant species include Cinnamomum camphora (Camphor) Cinnamomum verum (Cinnamon tree) Citrus sp. and Dalbergia oliveri (Rosewood)

Monarchy
Akiteiwa is a federal, hereditary, constitutional monarchy. Legally all authority derives from the Emperor of Akiteiwa by way of the Great Endowment, an event officially establishing constitutional rule and symbolically donating power to both the people of Akiteiwa and its nobility. The power vested in the nobility would later be formally shared by the constituent Kingdoms of Akiteiwa, established in the 1960 Endowment.

The current Emperor of Akiteiwa is 82 year old Hikaru II of the Kiryuu (輝龍) dynasty. He ascended to the Imperial Throne in 1961 after the death of his father.

The Kiryuu Dynasty has claimed to rule Akiteiwa since the Empire's Foundation in 854. The continuity of this rule is contested due to several different dynasties claiming the Imperial title following periods of decline of centralised rule in the Empire. However, the Imperial Family has claimed that all the claimants of the title in this period are of the same dynasty, claiming direct male-line descent from the eponymous deity, Kiryuu.

Parliament
Akiteiwa's legislative body is the Imperial Diet, a bicameral parliament. The Diet is split into a pair of chambers, the Canopy of Swords with 250 seats, and the Common Bough with 728 Seats.

The Canopy is the upper house of the legislature and is vested with representing Akiteiwa's constituent Kingdoms as well as experts and special interest groups, reminiscent of its origins as the body to represent the realm's nobility. Of its 250 Seats, 125 are to represent the Kingdoms, with that number apportioned to each of the Kingdoms using historical precedent. Each Kingdom appoints these representatives in their own right and requires no further assent from the Diet. The other 125 seats are allocated to some combination of Hereditary Peers and Honorary Peers as the Emperor and the Prime Minister see fit.

The Bough is the lower house and is vested with representing the Akitei people as a whole. All of its 728 members are elected from 125 multi-member districts throughout the country. Each district sends a minimum of two representatives, with additional representatives apportioned to each district according to a population threshold. Every Akitei citizen is eligible to vote at the age of 20. General Elections are stipulated by law to be held at least once every 6 years.

For any law to pass, it must be confirmed by a simple majority in both chambers. A bill may be introduced by either chamber with the exception of appropriation bills, which must be introduced in the Bough.

While formal executive power is held by the Emperor, in practical terms the chief executive is the Prime Minister of Akiteiwa. The Prime Minister is elected by the Bough and then affirmed in his role by the Emperor. After the Prime Minister has been affirmed, he must then form a cabinet from the members of the Diet. Traditionally these tend to be members of the Prime Minister's own party or coalition but may be anyone in the Diet. However, there are rules that stipulate that certain Cabinet members must come from a specific chamber. For instance the Minister of War must be chosen from among the Canopy while the Minister for Agriculture must be from the Bough. After a cabinet has been selected, a confirmation vote in the Canopy must affirm its creation, after which the Cabinet receives an Imperial Assent to rule in the Emperor's name.

Prominent political parties in Akiteiwa include the Business and Prosperity party, a right wing, conservative and economically liberal party as well as the Democratic Labour and Progressive Party, a left wing, social democratic party. As of the 2021 General Election, the ruling party is the Democratic Labour and Progressive Party, led by Prime Minister Kawakami Hideaki

Foreign Affairs
The foremost of Akiteiwa's foreign policy goals is to promote the welfare and safety of the Akitei people. It pursues these goals through a policy of pragmatism and international cooperation. Controversially, Akiteiwa defines this jurisdiction as extending to anywhere that people of Akitei descent live, not just formal citizens of Akiteiwa which has led to some international outcry as it is claimed to violate the sovereignty of countries with an Akitei diaspora. However, Akiteiwa has been willing to pursue these goals through diplomatic means such as the International Akitei Community, an intergovernmental organisation to promote the prosperity, protection and movement of Akitei people of all citizenships.

Akiteiwa seeks to maintain strong economic ties with its trade partners, ensuring that trade continues to flow and increase Akiteiwa's relative prosperity. To this end it is a founding member of KTEC, seeking to promote the enrichment of Akiteiwa through economic cooperation and integration.

The country sees itself as a natural leader for the Kesh region, seeking to be an example that other Kesh nations to strive to be like. It aims to curtail the political influence of the North-South Concordat in the region, especially that of Selengeria, which harbour mutual border claims as well as historical animosity. Akiteiwa views Pan-Artemian influence in Kesh and especially in Kodeshia as thinly veiled attempts at neo-colonialism and seeks to combat this with its own economic and political influence. Since 1964 Akiteiwa has been a member of the League of Free Nations and has endeavoured to uphold and promote its ideals of human rights, freedom and democracy.

Military
Akiteiwa's military is the Imperial and Royal Armed Forces, which is subdivided into the Imperial and Royal Army, the Imperial and Royal Navy and the Imperial and Royal Air Force. It is collectively administered by the Minister of War as part of the Ministry of War on behalf of the Emperor, who is legally the Commander-in-chief of Akiteiwa's armed forces.

Legally the armed forces jointly belong to the Federal and State governments, though in practice the state control is a formality, save for minor administrative and training functions.

The Army comprises 614,342 personnel and forms approximately 12 division-sized units. The army is primarily tasked with defending the territorial integrity of Akiteiwa, with particular emphasis placed on combatting Selengeria as well as any other Kesh-based security threats.

The Navy employs 125,304 personnel and maintains a fleet of 81 vessels, including 3 aircraft carriers. Being a blue-water navy, the Navy is tasked with projecting Akitei power and interests abroad, with particular emphasis on joint actions with the League of Free Nations as well as combatting Tiperyn and other powers in the Tethys Ocean. In addition to the fleet based portion, the Navy operates 162 aircraft as part of the Navy Air Arm as well as a single Marine Division, which acts as the military's primary amphibious and expeditionary force.

The Air Force consists of 64,526 personnel and maintains a fleet of 325 aircraft. The air force's primary mission is to grain and maintain air superiority in any combat zone and to support the other arms in the completion of their mission, including logistical and transport support as well as close air support with air to ground munitions. As of 2021, there are 804,172 personnel in the entire armed forces. Akiteiwa spends $91 Billion on the military, approximately 3.5% of its GDP

All male Akitei citizens are subject to 2 years of compulsory military service at the age of 18. After their service these men enter the reserves until the age of 45 and are required to partake in either refresher training or be called up to fulfil certain non-combat roles with some compensation.

Economy
Akiteiwa's economy is highly developed, industrialised and market oriented. It is characterised by its large, vertically integrated business conglomerates and its mix of lassiez-faire and state-directed policy. As of 2021, the country has embarked on a period of nationalisation of key social industries such as healthcare and electricity production. Experts categorise the Akitei economy as state-capitalist or directed-capitalist.

Resources
Akiteiwa has a moderate amount of natural resources, including its rich forests, fertile farmland and access to ores such as bauxite. Akiteiwa's long rivers historically have facilitated transport and irrigation for much of its history.

Much of Akiteiwa's mining and minerals have been concentrated in the south of the country, in the region of the Sokuoka Hills where bauxite, copper, zinc and silver ores are all extracted in economic quantities. Akitei geologists have theorised that much of the reason much of Akiteiwa's viable minerals are so regionally concentrated is because of a series of interconnected processes which characterise the geology of the region.

Sulfide Ores
Much of the ores mined are in the form of where the rich sulfide minerals such as  and  have been deposited on an ancient seafloor. Following periods of mountain building have pushed these deep minerals closer to the surface where they can be economically extracted. It is this mountain building which responsible for the increased elevation of the region and the nature of the highly granites in the area.

Bauxite
Akiteiwa's bauxite reserves have been theorised to be the result of millions of years of weathering of these old felsic mountains, creating the soils which characterise much of the southern peninsula. The weathering is also responsible for many of the clays and minerals used in Akiteiwa's historical porcelain industry.

Coal
With the relative age of Akiteiwa's southern mountains, much of the ancient life in the peninsula had been restricted to wet, coastal tropical lowlands. Over time this deposited organic matter had been geologically compressed and formed into coal. This coal is theorised to be no older than 70 million years and this relative youth contributes to the low average quality of the coal, being classified as. Erosion of coastal rock has exposed much of the coal that is mined and explains why coal mining is much less inland than the other mining in the region.

Agriculture, Fishing and Forestry
Akiteiwa is a significant producer and exporter of raw agricultural goods and processed food products. in 2020, crop and animal production contributed nearly $60 billion to the Akitei economy. The predominant crop grown is white rice, which forms a major part of Akitei diets. Other crops include major cash crops such as citrus, coffee, cocoa, cotton and opium. Many of these are exported directly, but they also serve as important inputs for the vertical food processing and pharmaceutical conglomerates within Akiteiwa. In addition to crops, the farming of animals including cattle and poultry contribute to Akiteiwa's agricultural sector. In addition to its robust crops and animal based agricultural sector, Fishing and Aquaculture contribute over 11% of the total agricultural output of Akiteiwa with nearly $8 billion being added to the economy in 2020. Major fishing species include Yellowfin Tuna, Blue Marlin and Mako Sharks. Production of shellfish and crustaceans is also significant and is represented in coastal Akitei cuisine. Aquaculture is a growing contributor to production of fish and other species, with innovations such as co-cropping systems of aquaculture species with rice contributing to significant increases in production of giant freshwater prawns, various carp species and in some places, softshell turtles.

Forestry is the smallest, though still significant contributor to the Akitei economy. Home to desirable tropical hardwoods, much of the forestry sector is focused on the production of robust species such as teak and rosewood for construction in tropical climates and their desirable characteristics when used in the production of wooden furniture. The forestry sector contributed approximately $3.5 billion to the Akitei economy in 2020

Akiteiwa is a leading producer of genetically modified organisms owing to comparatively loose legislation and large firms which are able to concentrate significant effort into research and development.

As of 2021, 43.3% of Akiteiwa's land is used for agricultural purposes. Approximately 76% of this land is used for the cultivation of annual crops, while the remaining 11% and 12% of land is used for pasture and the cultivation of permanent crops like coffee and cacao respectively.

Mining and Industry
In 2020, the Mining, Industry and Construction sectors contributed 19.70% to Akiteiwa's GDP, generating over $600 billion and employing approximately 24.6% of the workforce. The prominent manufactured products in Akiteiwa are processed food and drink as well as chemical products, processed aluminium and pharmaceuticals. Mining makes up a comparatively small portion of the sector, with only bauxite mining being the only internationally significant mineral mined within Akiteiwa. However in recent years several business enterprises have begun research into prospecting and mining minerals in the Western Tethys.

As with the other sectors of the economy, Akiteiwa's industrial sector is organised predominantly into large, vertically integrated conglomerates which control much of the supply chains of certain goods, which has simultaneously received praise by experts for being efficient as well as criticism that it stifles progress and is inherently anti-competitive.

Services
In 2020, the Services sector contributed over $2.4 trillion to the Akitei economy, making it the largest contributing sector with approximately 78% of the GDP. The largest services subsectors are the Retail and Real Estate sectors, which together contribute more than 25% of the whole services sector. Other notable subsectors include marketing, food service activities and insurance activities. Government spending in this sector has historically comparatively low, owing to the government's policies towards private solutions to healthcare but as of 2021, government intervention in healthcare, energy and transport has increased state contribution significantly.

Cuisine
Akitei cuisine varies region to region, with cuisine in the North being characterised by an increased presence of beef, pork and chicken and the South favouring fish, duck and shellfish. Rice is common to all regions and as a national staple crop, finds itself as the basis for much of the cuisine. Akiteiwa's national dish is Tadon, literally 'Rice Field Bowl' and is made by serving duck eggs, fried fish and a soy sauce over rice. The dish is notable because all of its ingredients can be grown in a single field. Variants on the dish include the substitution of turtle or snake meat for the fish or the use of chicken eggs. A fried variant called 'Yaki-ta' or "Fried Rice Field" exists and is a common street food.

Akitei cuisine is notable for its consistent use of snake products in several dishes, including the meat, eggs and even the venom in fringe cases. A special fermented wine also includes a whole snake fermented in the bottle. The most famous snake dish in Akiteiwa is the snake roll Tsumehebi which is a dish made by stuffing a snake with sauces, vegetables, spices, or in extreme cases, whole birds before cooking.

Drinks in Akiteiwa are equally as varied as the foods, with tea, coffee and alcohol all being common beverages all over the country, with the Northern regions favouring hard, distilled liquors such as shōchū, a distilled rice wine. The South is more notable for its preference for non-distilled drinks as well as their taste for coffee. The coffee growing regions of Takamori are particularly favoured for the quality of their beans.

Akiteiwa's famous cooking style is referred to as Fushi-Ryori, literally "Satirical Cooking" and aims to accentuate the art of the cuisine by capturing some sort of inherent tragedy or irony of the circumstances of the dish. Famous examples include Bekko-shiru, a tortoise soup served in its own shell or Tsurai-Tsuki (literally 'painful moon') a dish of fish served beneath jellyfish marinated in a particularly spicy sauce, the implication being that the jellyfish had killed the fish with how spicy it is.

In many Akitei cities, a large Fusion cuisine scene exists, with influences from all over the world finding its way into streetfood vendors as well as restaurants and fast food. Particular influence is drawn from Tilenno, Kodeshia and Western Artemia.

Tattoos
Tattoos hold significant cultural meaning in Akiteiwa. Approximately 70% of all adult Akiteis have some form of tattoo on their body, the majority of these being on the backs or arms of men. Tattoos serve a variety of purposes but most significant is the cultural notion of Marudashi (丸出し) meaning "complete exposure" in which the tattoo serves as the symbolic representation of a person's spirit. The usual form this takes is a large tattoo on the back of the individual, usually assuming the form of some sort of animal the bearer has some affinity for. This tattoo is then generally supported by a collection of accessory tattoos denoting significant life events such as marriages, careers and emotionally significant events. Non-symbolic and primarily aesthetic tattoos are also common, especially as sleeves.