WesWorld

A joint Italian and Iberian Squadron has been invited to attend the naval parade in Kopenhagen. Iberia will be sending the Battleships Portugal and Carlos V as well as the two scout cruisers Hasta la Vista and Hasta Luego. Italy will send the Battleship Christoforto Colombo and two destroyer flotillas of 6 destroyers each. The joint squadron has as a courtesy requested permission fom Germany to pass through the Kiel Canal and is expected to reach Copenhagen on the 5th of October.

From the Evening Edition:

A request by Iberia and Italy to transit a battleship squadron through the Kiel Canal had the Reichstag in an uproar today.

Many politicians were of the opinion that the request was either time-wasting or insulting, depending upon the ideological bent of the individual in question.

"The foreign governments would have us waste our energy working on matters of diplomacy when we should be working on feeding the workers", shouted one member of the KPD, as he loudly banged his musty shoe against his bench.

"Clearly a move calculated to drive home the fact that Germany has no control over its own waterways", groused a member of the DNVP.

After several hours of rancorous debate, Chancellor Joseph Wirth stated the government's official response to the request:

"The Government of Germany is compelled to grant permission to the Governments of Iberia and Italy as a result of articles 321 and 327 of the Treaty of Versailles. That having been said, it is clear from today's debate that many Germans view the request as offensive, and were it able to do so, I expect that the Reichstag would deny the request. I therefore urge Iberia and Italy to make their passage with care and haste, should they choose to do so."

After ambassadorial consultation the governments of Italy and Iberia have agreed to respects the German Parliament's wishes and not use the Kiel Canal, but have the Squadron travelling to Denmark steam around Jutland and the Skaggerak.

From the Evening Edition:

For a second straight day, the air in the Reichstag was turned blue with invective, though the Iberian-Italian passage request was hardly the only topic drawing fire this day.

Following word that Italy and Iberia had acknowledged opposition to their transit request, some politicians amongst the KPD and other fringe parties vented more of their seemingly unending anger: "There, you see? The request was merely a clever ploy aimed at disrupting our crucial debates on matters of dire consequence to the laborers of Germany!", exclaimed one representative.

The Minister of Defense, Otto Gessler, earned a relatively high degree of agreement from the house when he stated, "It is an important sign that these countries are refraining from an act that is legally open to them. It is a sign of respect, from two states to a third, and I applaud them for this."

Matters soon turned to the latest round of reparations discussions...

1st October Cristoforto Columbo, displaying her graceful lines steamed out of harbour today accompanied by the Destroyer Leaders Panthera and Leone, and the 4th and 5th Destroyer flotillas. Upon leaving Taranto the task force steamed west. Their destination is unknown and the government refused to comment.

6th October The Italian task force that set sail earlier this week has turned up in Copenhagen in company with an Iberian naval squadron consisting of Portugal and Carlos V. The respective crews are enjoying a spot of well earned shore leave. Coincidentally a crime wave has been unleashed over Copenhagen with vast quantities of lager having gone missing.

Yesterday the joint Iberian and Italian Naval Aquadron arrived in Copenhagen and liberty was grante to the crews. Both the Italian and Iberian crews as well as the Royal Danish Sailors who welcomed them partook in a huge beachside barbecue that was hosted by the Portugal and the Iberian embassy and where unaccountably huge amounts of free lager were dispensed and consumed. Also the superior Iberian wines and their Italian near equals were consumed in great quantities. Nothing much is expected to happen today.

Clutching a copy of the October 6 Rome Revue in his callused hand, a member of the KPD was heard to state: "You see the perils of allowing capitalist ruffians into the nation? Had the KPD not taken the lead in resolving that delicate diplomatic situation, that could well be the working man's beer in the hands of the Italian scoundrels!"

The speaker ruled him out of order, amidst a flurry of insults from other parties...