Treaty of Celos

The Treaty of Celos was an important step forward in relations between the UFP and the Cardassian Union. While it created the Gabriel Border Zone, and with it the Gabriel Campaign, it was the first official treaty between the Cardassians and the Federation. The Treaty of Celos prohibited the Federation from engaging with any Cardassian affiliated state, as recognized by the Ashalla Pact.

The Celosian Corporate Republic
Following the arrival of a major Federation aid package in December of 2312, protesting began on the Orion Union world of Celos. For several days, it appeared that the situation was being kept well in hand by local SSD forces. Then, suddenly, all Celos comms hubs went dark, and, shortly afterwards, the new Celosian Corporate Republic was declared, and organization run almost completely by the Orion Syndicate. Local SSD forces were almost completely destroyed. The Celosian Corporate Republic then immediately called for support and recognition from the Cardassian Union, which was strongly considering granting it. Starfleet believed it had only two weeks to retake the planet, or Cardassia would recognize Celos, beginning the long-feared war between the two powers. The Corporate Republic itself was created and led by high-ranking Syndicate agents and their personal forces, though a number of sympathetic politicians were used as the face of the movement. Its president was Valerita Garita, a former member of President Ventil Oyana's cabinet. Garita would later return in the Eternal Empire Crisis.

Orion Political Reaction
Within hours of the Celosian declaration of independence, Orion Union politicians began to call for major changes to the Union system. Maxime Sierre called for the investigation of Union senators for Syndicate and Hypercorp ties. Sierre read out an extensive list of those senators believed to have such connections.

Federation Response
The Federation did not declare a State of Emergency, but had contingency plans to do so in the event of Cardassian recognition of the CCR. Task forces operating in Orion space were ordered to engage Syndicate space forces and support operations on Celos, while Federation forces in the SBZ and CBZ were ordered to defensive positions.

Initial Campaign
The Federation and the Orion Union began immediate planning to retake Celos from the CCR. Three major cities were identified as targets, and each was assigned a unit of Aeroknights, a joint force of Amarki Gendarmes and Orion Aerocommandos. The Orion Reconnoitre Bloc was tasked with retaking the capital building. Unfortunately for the invading forces, the Syndicate had invested heavily in transport inhibitors, forcing the vast majority of forces to come in by drop ship. In addition, orbital support was limited, due to concerns over collateral damage.

Meanwhile, fleets began to mobilize. The Seyek Space Forces moving to Rethelia and Hacitorus, the Cardassians massing on the border, and the Amarki, under Nash ka'Sharren, already in Union space.

The first week of the ground campaign went poorly, joint forces being bogged down in operations or even forced back from the cities they were attempting to take. In Ginadain, for instance, it took till the end of the week for the Aeroknights to achieve their Day One objectives. Syndicate forces made heavy use of extremely drugged Orion males, many of them conscripted civilians.

However, channels were successfully re-opened with they Sydraxians and the Cardassians. Progress was slow, but it was being made.

The End of December
To assist the ground offensive, the USS Sarek, under the command of Captain Straak, was ordered to Celos. Straak was well known for his ability to transport materials and personnel through solid rock. Sarek's intervention allowed for the seizure of Ginadain, transporting Aeroknight joint forces directly under the city.

The efforts of the ground forces were, however, enough to force the Cardassians to the negotiating table. The CDF Ronagot, a Jaldun-class Destroyer, was dispatched by the Cardassian Union to negotiate with the CCR, the Orion Union, and the UFP.

The Armistice
As a precondition to talks, an armistice was agreed to between the CCR and the Orion Union/Federation forces. A number of Federation diplomats were rushed to Celos at extreme warp aboard the USS Selaya, where they were transferred to the USS Sarek, where the first bilateral talks between the UFP and the Cardassian Union were held. The two governments readily agreed on the end of hostilities along the Cardassian/Federation border, and the Cardassians pushed for a tit-for-tat recognition of the Orion Union as the government of Celos and the Cardassian puppet state as the government of Bajor. The Cardassians also revealed the existence of two other puppet states, which the Federation had not previously known of. Starfleet was tasked with discovering the size and power of these new client states. To accomplish this, the USS Enterprise-B was ordered to sneak into Cardassian territory and tap Cardassian communications.

Despite severe difficulties, including damage to the shuttle bay, and several close calls with detection, the Enterprise succeeded in her mission, giving the Federation an edge in negotiations. The data collected provided the Federation with initial information on the Dylaarians, the Konen, and the Goshawnar.

The Treaty
Finally, in the early months of 2313, the Treaty of Celos was signed. The treaty solidified the borders between the Ashalla Pact and the Federation. Both sides also agreed on major diplomatic issues. The Treaty of Celos also proved to be the beginning of the end for the Orion Syndicate and the Orion Civil War.

The Gabriel Border Zone
The Treaty created the Gabriel Border Zone, located in the Gabriel Expanse. The Gabriel was declared to be a free fire zone between the Ashalla Pact and the United Federation of Planets, along with affiliates. The Gabriel Campaign that resulted would last for a number of years, until, following a series of Cardassian defeats, the Treaty of Gabriel was signed. Thousands would die in the campaign, on both sides. It also resulted in the collapse of the Sydraxian government of that time, the Red-Blue hierarchy.

The Rest of the Border
The rest of the Federation-Cardassian border was finally locked down. Both sides agreed to only fire when fired upon, and the Cardassians pledged to rein in the Sydraxians, who had been raiding Federation installations and shipping in the Sydraxian Border Zone.

Diplomatic Results
Several important diplomatic concessions were obtained by both sides. The Federation agreed to not interact with Ashalla Pact members, though covert diplomacy would resume with first the Sydraxians, and later with the Dawiar. The Federation also agreed to recognize the Cardassian-aligned Bajoran government as legitimate.

In exchange, Cardassia recognized the Orion Union as the legitimate government of Celos, promised to not oppose the accession of Indoria and Apinae into the Federation, and agreed to cease supporting the Orion Syndicate. This last proved crucial to the final resolution of the Orion Civil War, as the ability of the Syndicate to bounce back from losses was massively cut when the flow of money and equipment from Cardassia was halted.