Strait crossing fees

[Desertfox]

Nations wishing to cross the Torres Strait will be required to pay a fee of $4 per year for transit rights. Certain nations might be eligible for a discount (see below). Austrian ships are absolutely forbidden (unless they are willing to pay very high rates)

OOC The Neatherlands, Rohan, and CSA will go free, Japan, Orange, and Iberia are question marks.

[P3D]

Bela Lugosi leans back, looking quizicaly at his interlocutor ...
- Surely your Hungarian isn't that bad, Your Excelency. When Orange airships fly over Habsburg ships - makes fluttering movements with his hands, looking sinisterily bat-like - Orange ding-ding Austria - makes internatonal payment gesture rubbing thumb against forefinger.

- To put the question in clear sunlight...- stood  up the Minister, then stopped when his Guest turned a bit paler for a second - Are you well excellency?
- Am... I am fine thank you.
The minister, apparently unaware of the grof's discomfort, walked to the curtained window and looked back.
- In this case, our airships will only identify your ships from the distance, -...turning back to the window and starts fidgeting with the heavy curtain - and we will send a frigate to collect the fees - ... raising a hand as if to pull the courtain apart, only to be stopped by a crashing sound.
Turning back the foreign minister sees nothing but the back of the fleeing ambassador on the corridor.

[Korpen]

Owner you own shippping company or merchantman?
Felling tired and disillusioned about all the glorified, state-sponsored pirates that are starting to crop up on the high seas (also called tariff and tax collectors)?
Nervous about crossing narrows, straits and canals due to their presence?
Well then, fear no longer, take the way trough the territory of the Netherlands, it is guaranteed to absolutely free of tax-gatherers in the straits, and is it not much nicer to spent your money among the native(girls) in such wonderful ports like Singapore and Surabaya then to give them to someone to pass trough a shallow and treacherous strait? Sure it might be a bit longer to go around New Guinea and re-coal at Bitung or Tarakan, into the Celebes sea and then south to Surabaya and the Lombak strait, but even then you will still save a substantial amount of money that will got into Your pocket!

Becoming nervous about the situation in the Nauw van Kales ("Strait of Calais")? well then do not bother, unless you are bound for a port in the unk, go north around the islands instead, the government of the Netherlands offer generous subsidies on all merchant ships stopping for re-coaling in the port of scapa flow. While there are far less friendly natives in the territory of Triath nan Eilean or Rí Innse Gall then in the NOI, the Whisky produced are well worth a visit in it self. And there isfreedom from corrupt and unreliable red tape that plagues merchantman trying to suffer the nauw van Kales.
So choose the northern route, choose Scapa Flow!

The Netherlands, defending free trade since 1618!

[Borys]

Hmmm, maybe a Free Trade League is in order? The Habsburgs are all out for Free trade.

[Ithekro]

Rohan might challenge the Normans on this one.  Looking for raiders and pirates in international waters is one thing, making people pay to pass through international waters is something else.  Especially if you are also forcing people to pay to go through other people's waters (French and Dutch specifically)

Walter, do you think this might be a reason to start some actual piracy?

Just how wide is the Straits at Dover and how much of that area does the Norman Navy plan to cover for there ill-gotten tolls?

[Desertfox]

Free Trade? NS is all ears.

I actually have a good reason at the Torres Strait as all of it falls whithin Swiss territorial waters. And besides my rates are cheaper.

[Borys]

Ahoj!
Is the Torres Strait narrower than 7 miles?
The Pas de Calais at Dover is 21 of somethng - miles or kilometres, I never remember which.
According to the Times, this Norman initiative had been consulted with the French.

But still, after clarification  - in diplomatic notes, mind you -

Diplomatic note to the Russian, Baltic and Dutch ambassadors.

The Times was incorrect in its announcement of a serving of levies on all shipping. These levies will only apply to fleet units including torpedo boats and auxillaries, charges will start on the 1st July 1906, and if payment of $4 for half a year is not recieved, any fleet units attempting to use the straits will be turned away.

This looks like a provocation of war to me, especialy as the below explanantion was given to the Habsburgs only:

The Kingdom's major concern is to prevent the use of the straits of Dover by the named nations for movement of fleet units, as this adds to the problems caused by congestion of shipping in the straits.

Borys

[Desertfox]

Map of the Torres Strait:
http://www.ga.gov.au/nmd/products/thematic/torres2.htm
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/ba/TorresStraitIslandsMap.png

The Torres Strait is about 80 miles wide, but is filled with islands which extend the territorial waters (12 miles in NS case). 

[Ithekro]

And how often do you expect anyone to actually transit that location, Foxy?  It's kind of full of coral.

[Desertfox]

Not alot, only Swampy might actually need to use it. Just NS showing of (and I dont have any other strait to charge for). Hmm I could call those the rates for hiring an expert navigator.

[maddox]

The Pas de Calais/Dover strait are UK and French home waters, even by international decree.

France is willing to wave any merchant shipping for a free passage if the UKA is willing.  Military shipping is another matter.
For now, Russian(as by the treaty of Versailles) and Dutch merchant ships can freely use the French home waters.

Military shipping, barring again the Russian, UKA and Dutch military ships will be barred the use of the Dover Strait unless an agreement is reached.

[Earl822]

Further to this, their is a bustling cross-channel service, which is causing congestion, and adding foreign warships into the mix is a pilot's nightmare.

The UNK agrees with France to wave the fee for all merchant shipping.

The UNK also requests that a 'Strait regulation commitee' be established in order to ensure fairplay.

[maddox]

The Dover strait/ Pas de Calais commitee will be called into excistence in 1906.

This commitee has only 1 function.  Keep all the shipping safe.

[khymerion]

In response to the declaration of the netherlands to offer their ports to ships choosing to not risk the confusion of the Straights of Dover, the Baltic Confederation once again will state its intention to support the Netherland's position on free trade and will offer to open its ports for ships making transit through the harsh northern Atlantic seas for both shelter, assistance, and refueling to any merchant ship unable or unwilling to make Scrapa Flow.  Policies set by a commitee tend to change suddenly.

[Korpen]

I am just wondering how much it will cost to transit the Mediterranean when we get Italian in play...