Mehmet State

Mehmet State is one of the 5 kingdoms that makes up the HCCK. Per capita it is the wealthiest and overall it has the second largest economy in the entire Confederation. The Kingdom is among the fastest growing in Anterra with growth rates of around 15% over the last decade - due mostly to the rise of its energy and real estate industries. Mehmet State has around 12 million people, and borders Atargistan to the West. Geographically it is mostly compromised a large desert with mountains to the North and Northwest. The kingdom was founded around the 16th century when nomadic Uyghur tribes won the Third Kodeshi-Mehmet War and were able to carve a state for themselves. They were later reintegrated into Kodeshia as a tributary state by the 19th century. When Qobad came to power in nearby Hydar, the Mehmet monarchy slowly broke away from Kodeshia and formed its own army. It effectively became an independent state in all but name. In the 1950s it joined with Hydar and several other states to form the HCCK and was finally internationally recognized as separate from Kodeshia. While Mehmet was far more stable than its neighbors such as Hydar and Saria it remained quite poor and dealt with a variety of political tensions. The country was primarily known abroad for its major rare earth mineral deposits. In the 90s massive shale deposits were discovered in the rugged terrain of Mehmet and foreign oil companies began to acquire great interest. Large scale extraction of Mehmet's shale deposits did not occur under Elihan Samedi came to the country in 2005 and began setting up wells all over the country. Vast infusions of capital led to an boom of the industry. Also came a real estate boom from wealth fleeing Hydar and the rest of Kesh. Vast "ghost cities" emerged across the country brought on by speculative bubbles.

Politically speaking, Mehmet is an absolute monarchy with all power vested the Mehmet X. The Royal Family has empowered the Three Departments and Six Ministries (Mehmet) to serve as the bureaucratic apparatus of the state. Despite being a monarchy Mehmet is known as a "libertarian paradise" with its minimal red tape, regulations, and low taxes. The state is minarchist in nature, only managing disputes between various groups and enforcing property rights. Still, large sections of the economy are owned by the state. The state enforces Sharia law to some extent, but has refrained from the more extreme aspects in the last few decades. The economy of Mehmet is mostly based on the energy, mining, and construction industries with a growing industrial, financial, and service sector.

Demographically Mehemt is 70% Uyghur, with significant Hui, Uzbek, and Han minorities. 80% of the population is Haqiqatan and the state favors Haqiqatan over other religions, although the practice of other faiths is allowed in Mehmet as long as one pays the jizya tax. Many religious schools exist throughout Mehmet and the state enforces prohibitions against working on Friday's or during the 5 calls to prayer. Mehmet does not enforce a face covering mandate however it is generally recommended to dress modestly in public.

Geography
The majority of the Mehmet population lives along the XX river. Approximately half lives within Mehmet City with the rest of the population spread around the country. The majority of the country is desert or mountains except for the lush oasis that lies on the XX river. North of the river the nation of is dominated by steep mountain ranges and plateaus. Some of the tallest mountains in Anterra exist on this range that effectively separated Farsi civilization from Kodeshi civilization.

Economy
Mehmet's economy is mostly dominated by the energy industry - with energy exports contributing a whopping 50% of its exports in 2023. With some of the largest natural gas reserves in the world, massive pipelines have been built to feed Eastern Kesh. These three pipelines - known as the SanqingStream pipelines have contributed greatly to the nation's prosperity. The nation is dominated by a massive hydrocarbon basin known as the Hisari Basin that was untapped until the advent of hydraulic fracking. The Mehmet government in 2003 decided to restrict extraction on this basin to domestic companies or joint ventures. Today Mehmet New Energy Resources and Kodeshia-Mehmet Joint Hydrocarbon Concern are the largest extractors of energy. The government requires all energy companies to place their profits in private-public sovereign wealth funds such as Mehmrock in order to diversify the economy.

Another major source of wealth for the country is her rare earth mineral reserves. Due to the massive capital and technical expertise needed - Kodeshi or foreign firms mostly dominate this sector. In the north of the country massive mines and smelting complexes have been constructed to extract and process rare earth minerals. The government owns a minority stake in the industry, but for the most part it is controlled by foreigners.

The massive natural resource wealth has funded a massive construction boom across the country. Mehmet City went from being a poor backwards city to a modern city with tall skyscrapers and a metro system. However much of the country still remains quite backwards relative to the rest of the world - since its massive hydrocarbon wealth is not distributed equally. Mehmet has a massive "ghost city" problem where apartments are built without the infrastructure to manage them - leading to the country being dominated by massive empty husks. Development in the country is quite hectic and uneven due to loose government oversight and an overabundance of speculation.

Mehmet is a tax hub which charges only 5% corporate taxes. Many companies have set up in the country to escape taxes or even to escape political persecution. Many in Kodeshia have especially escaped to the country following government investigations or probes. Mehmet has worked with Sanqing in recent years to prosecute more of these people but many are wondering the effects this could have on her status as a business friendly tax hub. The financial sector is rapidly growing in Mehmet with numerous banks having significant operations in the country - the largest of which is Banque Hydar. Many cryptocurrency firms especially have base their operations in Mehmet state - such as Hinance. It is thought over 15% of global cryptocurrency mining is done in Mehmet due to cheap energy and government support. In 2018 Banque Hydar set up the Huizi Byatkoyn Bridge - the first of its kind - to enable easy exchange among the currencies. Banque Hydar would also hold cryptocurrency for customers in secure vaults and accept it as loan collateral.

Mehmet has developed a large tourism industry. Many across the Farsi speaking world come to Mehmet to see its modern cities and luxurious lifestyle. The country has many massive modern malls with low import duties and sales taxes. The nation also has many beautiful historical attractions built by ancient conquerors and a vibrant street market scene. Tourism is perhaps the largest sector outside of hydrocarbons and to boost tourism revenue the Government has invested billions into ZentralFlung.

Mehmet is developing an industrial sector through state support. For the most part its industry is quite backwards and underdeveloped. Mehmet's largest industrial export remains petrochemicals followed by processed food products and gemstones. The Mehmet government has released the Mehmet 2035 initiative to further wean the country off hydrocarbons and develop a modern economy.