Union of Free Nations Charter

## Background

The Union of Free Nations (UFN) is a cooperative alliance agreement that, fundamentally, is designed to promote security and prosperity.

## Contents of the Treaty

### Mandate

The UFN was established to safeguard the sovereignty of its member nations, through a unified recognition of those individual sovereignties and a common goal to uphold them. The assurance of sovereignty being compounded by a unified defensive attitude and liberal trade and commerce environment that, combined, allows nations to thrive whilst under the united defensive capabilities of all member states.

### Membership

Membership is achieved by either approaching, or being approached by an existing member nation. Any potential new member must be prepared to comply with the following requirements, which are the key membership factors:

* Pledge to aid any and all member nations that are under duress, from both foreign and domestic sources.
	+ This can be in the form of military support, humanitarian aid, or socio-economic relief depending on what is needed.
	+ This requirement is only to be within the available means of any particular nation, if no aid is available then no aid will be expected.
* Immediate effect non-aggression pact.
	+ No member nation can be in conflict with another, disputes between members are dealt with diplomatically within UFN space.
* “Open Border” Policy.
	+ All member nation borders are to be open to all other member nations.
	+ This does not overrule national border security or customs regulations.
	+ This can be temporarily waived during times of security risk, times of war and at pre-arranged times.
* Embassies.
	+ All member nations must provide grounds for diplomatic embassies for each member nation.
	+ This space must be within 12 hours travel time from a local government building.
	+ Each member must establish at least one embassy with each other member.

### Trade

All members are encouraged to trade freely. It is also possible, due to the open borders policy and the UFN Transport Registry, for easier and therefore more profitable trade to be established between member nations compared to non-member nations.

### Registered Travel

A UFN transport registry keeps full records of all international vessels that traverse between UFN members. This registry logs vessel specifications, vessel I.D. tags, crew details, cargo manifests, intended destinations and routes as well as estimated hyperspace entry and exit locations, and entry and exit times.

This registry is openly available to all member nations’ border security, customs and government branches to ensure that any and all arrivals within sovereign territories can be referenced and confirmed without having to stop-check vessels or worry about unauthorised access.

### Military Access

Military access to member nations’ sovereign space is not permitted directly through membership. No member nation can enter sovereign territories of other members with military forces without the expressed permission of that nation; with the exceptions of emergencies.

### Joint Colonization

Joint colonisation of unclaimed space is encouraged between members. These efforts improve social integration between nations whilst simultaneously boosting the economies of those involved.

Joint-colonised sectors of space are defined as UFN Territory under (insert colonising nations) authority. These sectors are jointly governed by the nations undergoing the colonisation efforts and are ruled with universal UFN laws.

### UFN Law

UFN law is established to allow cooperative colonisation. UFN law does not overrule national laws of member nations and exists to allow law and order to be maintained in the areas in-between the colonised worlds within joint-colonisation sectors.

UFN law also presides to ensure that the agreements of the Union are upheld. Should any member nation act against these agreements, UFN law enables sanctions to be made against the offending nation.

Colonising nations’ own laws apply to the worlds they settle - and to predetermined orbital perimeters - and UFN law takes over beyond that boundary.

If a single world is colonised by more than one nation in a joint effort, that world is governed under UFN law not individual nation law, unless agreed otherwise.

All members must agree to abide by these laws when within the jurisdiction of those laws. These laws do not relate to the sovereign territories of any member nation.

All member nations must agree that, when their citizens are within the sovereign territory of another member nation, that those individuals are completely liable under the resident law and will be held accountable for their actions. Expedition of wanted criminals to the territories in which they are wanted regardless of nation and nationality is required.

### War

Whilst the UFN does not encourage war, it does require that, should war be declared AGAINST a member nation, all member nations must declare their support of that nation.

Member nations are NOT required to pledge assistance in wars of aggression, attrition, or any other non-defensive nature that have been instigated by a fellow member nation.

An act of war against one UFN member is an act of war against all UFN members and should be dealt with accordingly.

### UFN Assembly

The UFN Assembly is a periodical meeting between representatives of all member nations to discuss future plans, current events and all other relevant topics. These assemblies occur once every six months but additional assemblies can be scheduled accordingly.

The assembly takes place within the UFN Headquarters which is located within the Ecumene Capital City: Lindum Colonia, on the Capital Planet: Axios.

## Signatories (W.I.P)

The following Nation Leaders, or their legally appointed representatives, have signed this treaty on the behalf of their nations.

* Viktor Korvales, Praetor of the Greater Ecumene Republic
* Ambassador Sei of the Samurai Imperium
* Amon Ny'Shak-Kaelis, 1st Apostle of the Technocratic Council
* Adolin of Zairon