Ministry of State of the Spanish Republic

[Gesar]

PLUS ULTRA - FURTHER BEYOND



President: Manuel Azaña

Prime Minister: José Giral

Minister of State: Augusto Barcía Trelles

[Luc]

[Serenissima]

President Cárdenas sends the heartfelt support and goodwill of the Republic of Mexico to the legitimate government, the Spanish Republic. The parallels between our own revolutionary struggle and yours are clear as day. If there is anything that the government and people of Mexico can reasonably and feasibly do to assist the cause of democracy and freedom in Spain, you need only let us know. You can count on our support in the League of Nations and what other help we can provide. ¡No pasarán!

[Serenissima]

Portugal demands the release of our citizens, illegally held in dreadful, inhumane conditions within your territory for no reason other than their political affiliation, and the return of those individuals whom the Portuguese government has issued arrest warrants for high treason and other capital crimes, who are presently being sheltered by your armed forces.

[Gesar]

Augusto Barcía Trelles, Minister of State
Spanish Republic

President Cárdenas sends the heartfelt support and goodwill of the Republic of Mexico to the legitimate government, the Spanish Republic. The parallels between our own revolutionary struggle and yours are clear as day. If there is anything that the government and people of Mexico can reasonably and feasibly do to assist the cause of democracy and freedom in Spain, you need only let us know. You can count on our support in the League of Nations and what other help we can provide. ¡No pasarán!

In such difficult times, it can be easy to lose sight of who our true friends are, but we have never doubted the friendship of your nation, tied to us not simply through our shared history, but our mutual struggle against the old regime of tyranny, exploitation, and corruption. Indeed, the victories of the ongoing Mexican Revolution, embodied as they are in the fearlessness of the Mexican people and the wisdom of President Cárdenas, are of great inspiration to the workers, peasants, intellectuals, and soldiers who fight daily for democracy and justice in Spain. We salute the President as we do the people themselves, and thank Mexico for their courageous words and actions. ¡Venceremos!

Portugal demands the release of our citizens, illegally held in dreadful, inhumane conditions within your territory for no reason other than their political affiliation, and the return of those individuals whom the Portuguese government has issued arrest warrants for high treason and other capital crimes, who are presently being sheltered by your armed forces.

While the Republic sympathizes with the Portuguese people, who undoubtedly long for the return of their brothers and sisters, it is important to note the nature of those Portugal claims who are "illegally" held in Spanish custody. The right to political expression is guaranteed under our Constitution, of course, but these citizens -as we suspect the Portuguese government knows already- have been apprehended as unlawful combatants and/or mercenaries in the service of the fascist rebels. Accordingly, it is to our great dismay that we cannot return these men to their homes -no more than we can those who have sought asylum from the policies of the Salazar government- for we are, as ever, bound by international law. For the moment, Spain can only provide our deepest assurances that we are (as evidenced by their apprehension in the first place) willing to try them under the laws provided by the Geneva Convention, and keep the Portuguese government appraised of the situation as best is people.

[Smyg]

Portugal demands the release of our citizens, illegally held in dreadful, inhumane conditions within your territory for no reason other than their political affiliation, and the return of those individuals whom the Portuguese government has issued arrest warrants for high treason and other capital crimes, who are presently being sheltered by your armed forces.

The United Kingdom echoes this, calling for the swift release of all citizens of Portugal currently in Spanish custody, for the sake of peace. We hope that Spain and Portugal will both take measures to ensure that inter-Iberian relations remain warm.

[LordMoose]

The United States of Brazil has an idea [if it will be accepted by both sides]. The Republic will offer the evidence on which the citizens are held by, which would allow everyone to see if they are being fairly held. Both sides would win in this case as Portugal would know its citizens are not being held illegally while RS would win by proving its not holding citizens illegally

[Gesar]

Augusto Barcía Trelles, Minister of State
Spanish Republic

We are greatly saddened that the United Kingdom -long a beacon of progress in the development of European democracy and the principle of reform- has again clung to its neutrality in the most cynical of manners, by supporting the baseless claims of a nation with ties to the criminals apprehended by our government. Those of us at the barricades, of course, will not let this sadness dampen our resolve - our great respect for the British nation is such that we will continue the fight for our shared values. It is therefore that we have to decline both the British demand and the Brazilian solution offered. Spain is not on trial here. As the international community itself maintains, a rebellion against the Republic is a rebellion against the legitimate government of the people.

[Flaming Bolshevik]

We sure assure Portugal that its citizens will be liberated by these Marxist thugs and they will no longer have to suffer a Godless and Hostile regime on their borders. We encourage the Portugese to cut ties to the Republic entirely should they insist on keeping innocent people detained.

[Smyg]

We sure assure Portugal that its citizens will be liberated by these Marxist thugs and they will no longer have to suffer a Godless and Hostile regime on their borders. We encourage the Portugese to cut ties to the Republic entirely should they insist on keeping innocent people detained.

Why is this soldier in the embassy?

[Flamelord]

Like others have already, Czechoslovakia will continue to show her support for the legitimate government of Spain, and we wish you good fortune in your struggle against this attempt to subvert the Democratic process by force of arms

[Westar]

We reiterate the need for all Portuguese citizens wrongfully imprisoned in Spain to be released, with any Portuguese citizens who are caught in a foreign civil conflict with few means to defend themselves to be granted safe passage home, and for the bodies of Portuguese citizens who have been gunned down like dogs like those during the Asturias massacre. If Spain is unwilling to comply with the international law that they claim to be upholding, then Portugal will be forced to intervene for the protection of our own.

[Gesar]

Augusto Barcía Trelles, Minister of State
Spanish Republic

Committed as we are to the dignity of every human being, regardless of nationality, Spain will naturally assent to the returning of all Portuguese dead, as per normal international relations. Furthermore, we are equally committed to the release of all unlawfully imprisoned Portuguese citizens - of which there are very few, as all recent arrests of Portugal's people have been due to their service in the rebel faction under the fascist Mola-Franco clique.

Nonetheless, we are yet unmoved by the blatant threat of an invasion by the Salazar government - not only would this move be foolish in the eyes of the international community, but the Republic and our people have already stated once our refusal to be cowed by the un-democratic, terroristic ideology propagated by fascists and their sympathizers. Any foreign nationals in our custody, having been charged with the severe crime of aiding an unlawful band of mutineers, will be returned in due time following their trials, and not a moment before.

We apologize, naturally, for the pain and suffering this might cause Portugal's families, but in such times as these, we ask that the international community stand by those who have elected not to violate the sovereignty of a recognized state, rather than those who have made no move against such thugs besides threatening war upon those who resist them.