Im being really nosey now but is this agreement public? Seeing as how it seems to be a major document in this conflict, just for public record....and nosey beggars like me
A few interesting things to note about the treaty:
- it's only a bilateral one - while witnessed by many other regional powers, they're free to attack EN or Nameless as much as they want
- it doesn't oblige either side to come to the assistance of the other if a third party attacks them in a way that would be against the treaty if it was a first-party attack
- it doesn't oblige either side to help the other restore control of their home system if they lose it to a third party (or
even not to take control from the third-party themselves)
- it doesn't discuss attacks on positions outside the home systems at all
- it doesn't discuss attacks on non-controlling assets in the home systems
I don't have sufficient detailed knowledge of ship dispositions or inter-power discussions (and what I do have for both sides is confidential) for this to be more than a theoretical point, but it would have been technically possible for all the actual BGS events of this conflict to have occurred without a single breach of the letter of the treaty if:
-
either EN are happy not to contest a retreat from Carcosa should the situation ever arise in future (but they don't have to actively work to set up that retreat or actively help it go through)
or EN were happy to allow a token Nameless presence to remain in Union, and didn't take actions there specifically to cause the retreat-lock conflicts (but they didn't have to try to prevent them, or try to help the Nameless expand back now).
- EN forces did not fight in the wars in Carcosa until SECD took the system
- EN did not encourage allies to carry out the initial attacks in Carcosa (but they don't have to try to dissuade others from attacking)
Whether or not that's what actually happened there are some interesting lessons there about treaties and their practical limitations for future diplomats.
(My first dealing with Colonia treaties was the very old Colonia Militia Forces agreement, which was even less well drafted than the above treaty, was changed without notice or notification by its creator to something equally badly drafted at least once so different signatories were unknowingly on different versions of it but incorrectly marked in public as having signed the latest version, and included at least one party whose very existence was so poorly defined that it was really unclear if they were actually a treaty signatory ... but as they were bringing a majority of the actual pilots no-one really asked too much about that. If it had actually obliged its signatories to take or refrain from any actual actions, some of that might have been more of a problem.)