Ibarkla

* Flag
* Borders

**Ibarkla** (Ibarklan: 泡國; pinyin: Pàoguó), officially the **Republic of Ibarkla** (**ROI**; Ibarklan: 泡共和國; pinyin: Pào gònghéguó), is a country in Forsenan. It consists of 20 provinces, a federal district, and a semi-autonomous region with some powers of self-government. With a population of 141 million people and a land area of over 2 million square kilometers (778,855 square miles), it is the most populous country and second-largest country by land area. It is bounded by the Grarante Ocean to the north, south and west and the Hartdon Mountains to the east, and shares land borders with Aesland and Doge Wonderland to the east and MiriAi to the west. Its capital city is Caparce, while its largest city and financial center is Wensu.

Modern humans arrived on the Ibarklan subcontinent about 15,000 years ago. Ibarkla arose as a civilization in the basin of the Hong and Rocking Rivers in the Southern Ibarklan Plain. For thousands of years, Ibarkla's political system was based on appointed lines of semi-constitutional monarchies, also known as dynasties, beginning with the Hong dynasty in 2000 BD. From then until the early 12th century AD, Ibarkla experienced a series of dynasties, resulting in periods of growth, fracture, and reunion. In the late 3th century AD, the Kuai dynasty united the entire Ibarklan subcontinent, while the Pao dynasty (458 AD – 997 AD) saw rapid advancements in technology and homogenization of Ibarklan culture under the Pao emperors. Ibarklan culture was mostly limited within its own borders, owing to the impassibility of the Hartdon mountains. The succeeding Mao dynasty collapsed in 1103 and led to the Seven Dynasties period, an era of political division in which seven dynasties existed concurrently, all claiming to be the sole legitimate successor to the Mao dynasty.

Doge Wonderlandian colonization of Ibarkla began in the mid-12th century AD. Doge forces fought a series of campaigns against the State of Hui from 1145 to 1152, resulting in the cession of Caparce and access to the Hartdon Mountains. Gold was discovered in the Hartdon Mountains in 1155, prompting Doge Wonderland to force the State of Hui's capitulation and ally with the State of Yue and State of Deng, two rivalling states, against the other four remaining states, resulting in the alliance's victory. The State of Yue and Deng then united to form the Yang dynasty in 1202, Ibarkla's last dynasty. The Yang dynasty also participated in the War of the Doge Wonderlandian Succession, resulting in the loss of some of its western and southern territories to Doge Wonderland and the Blemian Republic. The Tsang Dynasty was Ibarkla's last dynasty and lost much of its territory to Doge Wonderland in the late 15th century, remaining as a rump state for most of the rest of its existence, before being overthrown in the late 18th century and succeeded by the Beipao Republic.

After the First Aeslandic War of Independence in 1817, disputes over taxation spurred the colonies making up the Imperial Dominion of Ibarkla to ally with the Vassalship of Nanto to lead their own independence movement, establishing sovereignty as the Imperial Union of Ibarkla and Nanto in 1820. In 1831, further disputes over taxation sparked the Nantese to organize a slave rebellion among the Ibarklan slave population in the Imperial Union, which ended in 1834 with the capture of Caparce. After a drawn-out conflict, in which the Beipao Republic entered the conflict and allied with the freed slave population, the rebels emerged victorious, and the 1847 Treaty of Chukyo resulted in the establishment of the Republic of Ibarkla.

Ibarkla pursued a policy of autarky until 1852, when the Panic of 1852 forced the Ibarklan government to import foodstuffs from Aesland to prevent widespread famine. At the turn of the 20th century, Ibarkla participated in the First Wonderlandian War and emerged from it a world power. The Second Wonderlandian War began when Ibarkla was invaded by WOOF forces in September 1922. Portions of southern Ibarkla, including the national capital of Caparce, came under Doge Wonderlandian and Nantese occupation. After liberation in 1927, Ibarkla deployed nuclear weapons against the Nantese city of Kazeyama and the Doge Wonderlandian city of Hapedog, the first usage of such weapons in war.

During the postwar period, Ibarkla occupied Nanto for a period of five years. After the conclusion of their occupation, the Nantese Parliament voted to join Ibarkla as a province; after months of negotiation, Nanto was accepted as a semi-autonomous region of Ibarkla. Ibarkla also sponsored anti-Doge Wonderlandian insurgents in various countries of Dystavia after the Second Wonderlandian War, though it avoided direct conflict with the nation. Ibarkla participated in the Space Race, becoming the first nation to land humans on Lon just days after Aesland became the first nation to land humans on Muun.

Ibarkla experienced significant political instability throughout the 1960s. A military coup in March 1962 sparked the Ibarklan Civil War, resulting in the MiriAn Revolutionary War; power was transferred back to the civilian government in 1965. Since then, the country has remained politically stable without further seizures of power. The 1998 Caparce bombings accelerated rapid Ibarklan military expansion into outer space, culminating in Project Mahaka.

Ibarkla is a federal republic governed by a democratic parliamentary system, with parliamentary seats set via a combination of proportional representation and sortition. It is a multilingual and multi-ethnic society and is a popular destination for tourism, receiving over 14 million visitors annually. Its economy is the largest in the world in terms of GDP and the nation has the second-highest average per capita income, after MiriAi. Ibarkla ranks highly in international measures of quality of life, quality of education, human and political rights, and reduced levels of perceived corruption; however, it has received criticism for its welfare model, active maintenance of space-based orbital weapons of mass destruction, and inequalities related to race.

## History

### Prehistory

Archaeological evidence suggests that modern humans did not arrive on the Ibarklan subcontinent until the early Paleolithic era, due to the difficulty in traveling to the region over land. The oldest direct evidence of human inhabitation in Ibarkla dates back to 12,000 BD, while the earliest evidence of writing dates back to about 6500 BD.

### Early dynasties

The Hong culture is traditionally held to be the first of the semi-constitutional regimes known as dynasties in Ibarklan history. Though the Hong dynasty had no codified constitution, by custom its rulers were appointed by a combination of nomination by the former emperor and approval by both a council of elders and an assembly of the provincial lords who swore fealty to the Hong. The Hong ruled the area immediately surrounding the Hong and Rocking rivers, and were succeeded later by the Jiang dynasty, ruling the same area from 1500 BD to 800 BD. Under the Jiang, power slowly decentralized and regional lords gained power, who continued the earlier system of emperor selection but agreed to rotate who the next emperor would be amongst themselves. The oldest evidence of Ibarklan writing developed around this time, as well as elaborate bronzeworking. They were then succeeded by the Kai, who ruled from 800 BD to 300 BD, under whom the process of decentralization continued as it expanded into northern Ibarkla.

The short-lived Chang dynasty (289 BD – 266 BD) suffered greatly from the effects of this decentralization, as the Rurten peoples in northeast Ibarkla, vassals of the State of Luo, organized into the Eleven Flag Alliance and declared independence shortly after the dynasty's formation. This sparked a period of over five centuries of war and political turbulence known as the Winter of the Nation. During this time, centralized control collapsed and did not resurface until the Kuai dynasty 554 years later, and the constituent states of Ibarkla waged a period of constant war against each other. The Eleven Flag Alliance also invaded and conquered large parts of northern Ibarkla in this period, becoming a large faction vying for control of Ibarkla as a whole.

### Unification of Ibarkla

The Winter of the Nation ended with the rise of the state of Kuai, which absorbed all the others through conquest or diplomacy, unifying the entire subcontinent under a single centralized authority for the first time in recorded history. The Kuai dynasty (288 AD – 454 AD) enacted a series of sweeping reforms upon taking power, including standardization of measures and currency, extensive roadbuilding and codifying the means of imperial succession. Early Kuai emperors pursued a policy of forced resettlement and re-education of Rurten peoples, committing an early form of cultural genocide, until this process was halted in the mid-4th century AD. The Kuai dynasty was the first in Ibarklan history to codify its laws and methods of monarchial succession, and it imposed its customs and standards on the nation as a whole, including standards of measurement and coinage, systems of writing and religious customs.

Following the collapse of the Kuai dynasty, the succeeding Pao dynasty (458 AD – 1002 AD) largely carried on the same customs and continued the process of centralization carried out under the Kuai emperors. Ibarklan culture and technology flourished during this period, with the development of gunpowder and paper, along with massive infrastructure projects including continued roadbuilding and the damming and diking of large sections of the Hong and Kang Rivers. The rapid economic growth and high standard of living enjoyed by Ibarklans during the Pao dynasty contributed to the ethnonym of the Pao Ibarklan ethnic group and the country as a whole. Under the succeeding Mao dynasty, Ibarklan internal trade routes flourished and the previously-underdeveloped northernmost and southernmost regions were quickly modernized by the introduction of rye from the few trade routes to Aesland and the development of wet-field rice production, respectively.

### Doge Wonderlandian colonization

The collapse of the Mao dynasty was caused in part by massive internal turmoil, eventually culminating in the Seven Dynasties period.

### Establishment of the Imperial Union

Emboldened by the First Aeslandic War of Independence, the ruling Dogeis elite of the Dominion of Ibarkla and Vassalship of Nanto declared independence in 1818. Spurred by a sharp increase in taxation after the loss of much of the Dominion of Aerland, the two governments unified into the Imperial Union of Ibarkla and Nanto, taking advantage of the weakness of the mainland Doge Wonderlandian army after the disastrous losses incurred in the Aeslandic independence movement.

### Contemporary history

In the fallout of the attempted coup, heavy amendments were made to the Ibarklan constitution. In order to decrease factionalism, a sortition method for selecting members of the People's Assembly was implemented.

## Geography

Ibarkla's contiguous 20 provinces occupy a combined area of 1,790,513 square kilometers and account for the majority of the area of Ibarkla. Of this area, 1,761,695 square kilometers is contiguous land. Nanto, occupying an archipelago to the southwest of continental Ibarkla in the Grarante Ocean, is 226,714 square kilometers in area, 219,532 of which is land. Altogether, Ibarkla covers 2,017,227 square kilometers of land, making it the second-largest nation on the Forsenanian continent after Aesland.

The contiguous provinces of Ibarkla lie atop the Ibarklan tectonic plate. Ibarkla's main geological processes began 50 million years ago when the Ibarklan Plate began drifting eastwards, caused by seafloor spreading to its west. This process, driven by convection in Cerstenum's mantle, caused the Ibarklan continental crust to subduct under the rest of Forsenan and form the Hartdon mountain range, with the highest peaks on the Forsenanian continent. In central Ibarkla lies the north-south Loldon mountain range; first formed over 520 million years ago during the Cambrian period, it has since experienced significant natural erosion and now consists of a series of low peaks and rolling valleys. Also in central Ibarkla lies the Changwai cave system, the world's longest.

Continental Ibarkla's coastline measures 11,411 kilometers in length, and the coastline of the Nantese archipelago measures over 15,961 kilometers owing to the 72 islands that together make up its territory. Altogether, the nation's coastline is 27,372 kilometers in length, the longest on the Forsenanian continent. According to the Ibarklan Navy's hydrographical survey, the mainland coastline consists of 52% sandy beaches, 31% rocky shores, and 17% mudflats, deltas or marshy shores.

Major rivers that flow through Ibarkla include the Rocking River originating in the Hartdon Mountains and the Hong River and Kang River both originating in the Loldons. The Hong feeds into the Rocking River and the latter drains into Caparce Bay, while the Kang drains into Wensu Harbor. The Rocking River floods on a regular, predictable basis with wide floodplains, while the Hong floods rarely and severely.

The continental Ibarklan climate is strongly influenced by the Hartdon mountains, which drives the cool, wet climate across most of the nation. Along the western Ibarklan coast, the weather is mostly cool and mild, giving rise to extensive deciduous forests. The Hartdons, as well as the Loldons to a lesser degree, serve to cause precipitation from the westerlies, causing much of the western and eastern regions of the nation to experience significant rain. The Loldons form a slight rain shadow, causing the nation's center to be slighly drier than the outer regions.

Active and dormant volcanoes form much of the land area of Nanto, with Mt. Miyama being the province's highest peak at 3,323 meters above sea level. Nanto's terrain is mostly mountainous, with some rolling plains along its east and west coasts. The island is located near the subtropics, and its climate falls into the humid subtropical category, with rainfall common during the hot summers while its winters are cool and dry.

## Demographics

### Population

The Ibarklan Census Office reported a population of 407,341,867 residents as of 1 January 2020. Ibarkla is the most populous nation in the world, followed closely by Keurig Machines (404 million). In the same year, the median age of the population was 36.7 years.

According to the 2020 census, resident aliens, naturalized citizens and children of immigrants made up nearly 26% of the Ibarklan population, at over 112 million of its residents. Ibarkla has a diverse population; almost half of the population is Pao Ibarklan, while Nantese (primarily Oshu peoples) and other Ibarklan ethnic groups make up over a fifth of the population. Dogeis peoples, mostly Keurig immigrants, constitute the next largest ethnic group, while Yugo, Hart and Aeslandic peoples make up a large portion of the rest of the population.

In 2019, out of the non-native born Ibarklan population, about 52% (55.1 million) were permanent resident aliens, 27% (28.6 million) were naturalized citizens, 19% (20.1 million) were temporary resident aliens and 2% (2.2 million) were unauthorized immigrants.

### Languages

Bjork, Ibarklan and Nantese are all official national languages of Ibarkla, with official documents also provided in Aeslandic, Potstumian and Oreamic upon request. Four regions have recognized local languages or dialects in addition to the three official national languages, including Wensu (Wensunese), Nanto (12 regional dialects and languages), Bendong (Donghua) and West Blemia (Hart).

### Religion

Chapter VII, Article II, Section I of the Ibarklan Constitution guarantees freedom of religion and explicitly states that the Ibarklan Parliament shall not pass any law or take any action respecting or promoting the establishment of a national religion, nor shall any province or local government do the same at the provincial or local level.

## Government and politics

Ibarkla is a federal republic of 17 provinces, a federal district, and a special administrative region that enjoys relative political autonomy. It is a parliamentary representative democracy, with a bicameral Parliament and seats set in the lower house via proportional representation.

In the Ibarklan federal system, citizens are subject to national, provincial and local laws. The Constitution of Ibarkla is the supreme law of the land, and is devolved to apply to provincial and local legislatures.

The Ibarklan national government is comprised of three branches:

* The legislative branch, consisting of the Parliament of Ibarkla, made up of the People's Assembly and the Republican Chamber, makes national law, controls Ibarklan national government spending, has the power to hold a vote of no confidence by which it may dissolve the Cabinet and Prime Minister, and has the sole privilege to declare war and allow troop deployment. Members of the legislative branch may be removed by the populace through the recall process. The legislature holds parliamentary sovereignty, and a Constitutional Committee with rotating members determines legality of controversial legislation.
* The executive branch, which is comprised of the Prime Minister and the Cabinet. The Prime Minister is elected by a majority vote of both the People's Assembly and Republican Chamber, appoints Cabinet members who must be confirmed by the Parliament, and serves as the head of state and head of government. The executive branch is directly responsible to the legislature, and may be subject to votes of no confidence or removed through the recall process.
* The judicial branch, a three-tier independent judiciary consisting of the High Court, 20 Provincial Courts, and a large number of Lower Courts. The High Court has original jurisdiction regarding interstate disputes, and may also strike down unconstitutional provincial and local laws and government action. The High Court also has appellate jurisdiction over the Provincial Courts, while the latter holds appellate jurisdiction over the Lower Courts. Members of the judicial branch nominally serve for a period of 20 years but may be removed via impeachment by the Parliament or the recall process.

The People's Assembly has 970 members as of the current 42nd Assembly, elected for terms of two years and chosen by sortition from a pool of candidates selected by election by the public. Seats are determined by proportional representation at the provincial level; political parties provide a list of candidates during elections and are allocated a percentage of seats corresponding to the percentage of votes their party received during the elections. Seats are then allocated to candidates on the party list via sortition. Elections are staggered, so that each yearly election concerns half the Assembly.

The Republican Chamber has 225 members elected for terms of six years, with each Ibarklan province allocated an amount of chambermembers proportional to their population and elected via instant-runoff voting. The Nanto Special Administrative Region is treated as a province for the purpose of chambermember seat allocation. Elections in the Republican Chamber are also staggered, so that each biennial election concerns one third of the Chamber.

Citizenship is granted at birth in all provinces, province-level municipalities, and Special Administrative Region of Nanto. Citizenship is also granted at birth if at least one parent holds Ibarklan citizenship or legal residence at the time of birth, with the exception that neither parent may be a citizen or resident of Doge Wonderland.

##### Military

> *Main article: Ibarklan Armed Forces*
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Unresolved tensions with Doge Wonderland, including the latter's status as the only nation to refuse to recognize Ibarklan sovereignty, have prompted Ibarkla to allocate 6.1% of its government expenditure to the military, and maintain mandatory conscription for all citizens. It has the world's third-largest standing military force, with 4.7 million active troops and over 12 million reserve troops. Nearly half of all active soldiers are stationed near the Hartdon Demilitarized Zone, Ibarkla's land border with Doge Wonderland. The Ibarklan Ministry of Defense administers all six of its military's service branches, including the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard and Space Force. The military budget in 2021 totaled 1.27 trillion, constituting the world's second-largest military budget.

Ibarkla is one of seven countries known to possess nuclear weapons, one of two known to possess military holdings in outer space, and the only one known to house weapons of mass destruction in outer space. It has the world's third-largest nuclear stockpile, after that of Doge Wonderland and Aesland, and owns nearly 27% of the world's 25,000 nuclear weapons.

### Foreign relations

Ibarkla retains diplomatic relations with nearly every nation on Cerstenum, with one notable exception being Doge Wonderland. It has embassies in all but two nations, all of which also retain embassies in the nation. Its legitimacy is disputed by the Holy Empire of Doge Wonderland; the nation has refused to recognize it or any other nation on the Forsenanian continent since its founding.

Through the Clean Power Initiative, Ibarkla provides nuclear fusion reactors, intended to replace existing nonrenewable, polluting or greenhouse gas-emitting power sources in order to fight climate change, forge diplomatic goodwill and build foreign economies. These reactors are built for free but are owned by the Ibarklan Ministry of Energy. The program is divisive, both in Ibarkla and abroad: supporters commend it as an effective means of fighting climate change and for building stronger relations with foreign nations; domestic opponents criticize it as a waste of taxpayer income, while some foreign opponents denounce it as a form of neocolonialism and disapprove of the dependence on Ibarklan trade it causes nations to experience, due to its near-monopoly on the global helium-3 market.

## Economy

As of 2021, Ibarkla is the world's largest economy by total GDP. It has a diversified economy dominated by the service sector, which in 2020 accounted for 48.4% of its economy; in the same year, the industrial sector accounted for 33.5% of its economy while the primary sector accounted for 18.1%. It is the largest exporter and importer of goods in the world, the second-most visited destination in the world, and a major agricultural power in Forsenan. Many of its industries are nationalized, and the government employs over 40% of the nation's workers.

In 2021, Ibarkla was the world's second country by GDP per capita, with an average income of ȓ153,415 per inhabitant. In the same year Ibarkla was listed on the Human Development Index with a value of 0.922, indicating very high development, and 2nd on the Corruption Perceptions Index.

By far the most important part of the Ibarklan economy is its information technology sector, making up 41% of its total economic output in 2020, the second-largest as a percentage of its economy after MiriAi. Its publishing industry is also important, and is the largest in the world.

### Agriculture

Ibarkla historically has been a large producer of agricultural products. The use of modern agricultural methods combined with its fertile land have made Ibarkla a large agricultural power of Forsenan, accounting for 31.2% of its total agricultural production.

Grains, fruits and vegetables as well as processed foods are the primary Ibarklan agricultural exports. Moli rice, mostly grown in the Kannan region of Nanto, is one of the nation's chief agricultural exports, known worldwide. The Ibarklan fruit-growing industry is also very large, and it is the world's largest exporter of citrus fruits.

### Tourism

With over 14 million visitors annually, Ibarkla is the world's second most-popular tourist destination, behind Keurig Machines (15.9 million). Ibarkla's natural features make it attractive to tourists, most notably the Twin Fangs Pass in the Hartdon mountain range and the Cliffs of Nor Pisce in its northern region. It is also home to many ski resorts, most located along its border in the Hartdon Mountains, as well as many beaches and seaside resorts.

### Taxation and welfare

Ibarkla has attracted significant international attention for its taxation and welfare system. Despite maintaining a free-market economy, the Ibarklan national government imposes an extremely high tax burden on its citizens while providing significant welfare. Supporters have deemed this system an efficient redistribution of income and resources, while detractors label it as authoritarian.

The Ibarklan national government subsidizes housing, food, public transportation and utilities like electricity, water and Internet access for all its citizens, sometimes to such a degree that its citizens pay no money at all for these products and services. In addition, higher education and healthcare are also completely free. A study held by the International Group for Poverty and Basic Needs found that in 2019, 77% of Ibarklan citizens responded that they paid ȓ250 or less per month on their basic necessities, including housing, food, water, transportation, utilities, medical care and Internet access, with 34% answering that they paid less than ȓ75 a month. However, the average income taxation rate is 90.5%, and in the same poll 65% of respondents answered that their average disposable yearly income was between ȓ10,000 and ȓ15,000.

This system has proved controversial, both internationally and domestically. Ibarklan Parliamentarian Edward Rump has described the system as "draconian" and "essentially a Communist economy," and every year hundreds of initiatives to dramatically shrink the Ibarklan welfare system are submitted to Parliament. Nevertheless, the system remains in place.

### Science and technology

Ibarkla became a world leader in technological innovation and scientific research during the 20th century. In the 21st century, it has become among the world's foremost publishers in scientific research papers; the Ibarklan national government provides heavy funding to research institutions, and over two-thirds of research and development funding is sourced from the government.

After the discovery of nuclear fission by Aeslandic scientists, it began the Rail Standardization Project in 1918, the world's first research effort into nuclear power. Funding allocated to this project was limited until the defection of Doge Wonderlandian scientists working on the similar Doge Restoration Initiative, when, amid rising tensions of war and fears that Doge Wonderland could complete their project first, the Ibarklan Parliament authorized a massive budget increase. Ibarkla developed plans for the world's first nuclear weapons in 1922 but was unable to construct them until 1927 due to the joint Doge Wonderlandian-Nantese invasion of southern Ibarkla in the beginning of the war.

After the war, Ibarkla participated in the Space Race, spurring rapid advances in aeronautics, rocketry and materials science. It became the first nation to land humans on Lon and the second nation to land humans on a celestial body in 1949, after Aesland successfully landed humans on Muun just days prior.

In the 1980s, Ibarkla developed the world's first nuclear fusion reactor that generated more energy than it required for operation, leading to rapid expansion and decarbonization of the Ibarklan energy industry. It became a major exporter of electricity and soon revitalized its space program with the goal of conducting mining operations on Lon for helium-3, the fuel for its fusion reactors. Currently, over 74% of all extraterrestrial settlements are Ibarklan-owned, with the large majority of such located on Lon.

### Transportation

Personal transportation in Ibarkla is mostly supplied by its extensive public transportation system. It has the longest rail network in the world, nearly all standard gauge rails, and the Ibarklan national government heavily subsidizes provincial heavy-rail and urban light-rail transportation systems. Nearly the entire Ibarklan rail network is electrified, with only small rural stretches operating diesel train engines.

The Ibarklan road network, while eclipsed by its rail network, is also large, consisting of over 1.2 million kilometers (745,000 miles) of public roads. Ibarkla has a small automobile manufacturing industry, and most of the nation's personal automobiles are imported from foreign countries, most notably MiriAi.

### Energy

Ibarkla has a nationalized electrical power service. According to the Ibarklan Ministry of Energy, in 2019 the nation sourced 88% of its power from nuclear fusion plants, 9% of its power from renewables such as solar plants, hydroelectric dams and wind farms, and 3% from nuclear fission plants. Recent advancements in solar panel efficiency have caused the renewable energy industry to expand, though due to the country's existing nuclear fusion reactors, the renewable energy industry is having difficulty gaining ground in the energy sector. Ibarkla is a carbon-negative nation, owing to its reliance on carbon-neutral power sources and its extensive old-growth forests trapping millions of tons of carbon emissions annually.