Did Bajor Have an Ambassador to the Feds?
- Thread starter Photon
- Start date
I see no reason why they wouldn't.
"Ambassador" is also used for representatives from member planets. So it would be a shift in duties but not in title.
Bajor invited the Federation to help it run DS9, so the two governments are obviously aware of each other and are on friendly terms.
Given this, I think it's obvious that they would exchange ambassadors and maintain regular diplomatic contact.
Given this, I think it's obvious that they would exchange ambassadors and maintain regular diplomatic contact.
I think it is almost a foregone conclusion that they would have. More interesting (in my eyes) would be the question: did the Federation have a separate ambassador on Bajor, or was that just an additional duty of 'the Sisko'?
I think they probably should have had a separate ambassador (or at least an 'ambassador-at-large' that represents Federation interests in the region as there seem to be a lot of minor powers that might not warrant or allow a full ambassador.
Sarek was Vulcan's ambassador to Earth before he was promoted as Vulcan ambassador to the Federation. Just as in RL there are representatives to the United Nations plus ambassadors between nation states.
Lwaxana Troi was the ambassador from Betazed so member worlds still have their own ambassadors.
Yes, if there had been an ambassador on DS9, JMS would have been apoplectic (because he invented science fiction or something).
I would say no to this.
I think that federation members send a team of representatives to the federation council, and they also send a ambassador to the federation, and the federation sends a ambassador to each of the members.
TAS episode Yesteryear has federation member planets exchanging ambassadors between themselves.
Laxanna was pretty obviously the (or a) ambassador for the Betazed government, and not a federation ambassador.
Sarek was at times the ambassador for the Vulcan government, and other times a federation ambassador. Probably not both at the same time.
Diplomatic relations seem to happen external to the Federation and among the member states. I presume any kind of Federation ambassador to Bajor would probably a toothless guy without influence and in RL the writers forgot to think there would be one.
It'd be a good character to have actually, the Fed ambassador to Bajor. Get him to be a thorn in the side of Sisko and occasionally screwing up the diplomacy.
It'd be a good character to have actually, the Fed ambassador to Bajor. Get him to be a thorn in the side of Sisko and occasionally screwing up the diplomacy.
What exactly should make us think Troi would not be in the employ of the UFP exclusively?
Sure, she is the Betazed or Betazoid ambassador - just like one could be the black or bald or athletic or Lithuanian ambassador for the US today, depending on which quality held the greatest curiosity value at the country of assignment. It is just that "nationality"/ethnicity/species identity within the UFP is quite prominent compared to today's analogous situations, and likely to be the prime definer.
"The Forsaken" is a prime example. Ambassadors get identified by the obvious, that is, their ethnicity, but nothing suggests the three would NOT be there for the UFP, and no "national" interests are ever mentioned. "Journey to Babel" similarly uses ambassadors as fact-finders, this time so that they can recommend to their respective governments a particular policy or vote.
We really need to go back to the 23rd century to see less ambiguous evidence for independent national diplomats. As per ST:TMP, Vulcan has its separate embassy, supposedly on Earth. (Is it TO Earth, though? Earth is where alien riffraff interacting with the UFP will gather, thus a prime venue for Vulcan to practice its independent foreign policy with said).
As for the role of UFP ambassadors at Bajor, apparently they pay visits to the locale. Makes sense - not every random pebble in the sky warrants an embassy, and Bajor
a) no doubt originally did not warrant one
b) thus apparently could well do without one originally
c) thus might still survive without one once the location turns into a political hot spot where UFP government might wish to tread very, very lightly.
Any excuse not to have an ambassador there might be taken, so as not to jeopardize the special advantage of having a Fed as the local religious and de facto political strongman.
Timo Saloniemi
Sure, she is the Betazed or Betazoid ambassador - just like one could be the black or bald or athletic or Lithuanian ambassador for the US today, depending on which quality held the greatest curiosity value at the country of assignment. It is just that "nationality"/ethnicity/species identity within the UFP is quite prominent compared to today's analogous situations, and likely to be the prime definer.
"The Forsaken" is a prime example. Ambassadors get identified by the obvious, that is, their ethnicity, but nothing suggests the three would NOT be there for the UFP, and no "national" interests are ever mentioned. "Journey to Babel" similarly uses ambassadors as fact-finders, this time so that they can recommend to their respective governments a particular policy or vote.
We really need to go back to the 23rd century to see less ambiguous evidence for independent national diplomats. As per ST:TMP, Vulcan has its separate embassy, supposedly on Earth. (Is it TO Earth, though? Earth is where alien riffraff interacting with the UFP will gather, thus a prime venue for Vulcan to practice its independent foreign policy with said).
As for the role of UFP ambassadors at Bajor, apparently they pay visits to the locale. Makes sense - not every random pebble in the sky warrants an embassy, and Bajor
a) no doubt originally did not warrant one
b) thus apparently could well do without one originally
c) thus might still survive without one once the location turns into a political hot spot where UFP government might wish to tread very, very lightly.
Any excuse not to have an ambassador there might be taken, so as not to jeopardize the special advantage of having a Fed as the local religious and de facto political strongman.
Timo Saloniemi
GAV: How do you vote on the Coridan admission?
SAREK: You seem unwilling to wait for the council meeting, Ambassador.
No matter.
We favor admission.
Unless Sarek is referring to himself as "we," I believe that Sarek was referring to the Vulcan's government, and his instructions from it. In Journey to Babel there was no fact finding aspect to Sarek's mission.
Conversely, the royal we makes it unlikely that Sarek would be the one to cast the vote...
The apparent ad hoc council assembled on Babel is going to discuss a single issue; this is unlikely to be typical or representative action for either the UFP government or the diplomats involved. But voting on action should be part and parcel of how the UFP government normally works - which IMHO makes it unlikely that the vote would take place in the secrecy of this impromptu asteroid, instead of the regular and public chambers. Hence my "The Committee That Really Decides" extraparliamentary interpretation of what is going on here.
Timo Saloniemi
The apparent ad hoc council assembled on Babel is going to discuss a single issue; this is unlikely to be typical or representative action for either the UFP government or the diplomats involved. But voting on action should be part and parcel of how the UFP government normally works - which IMHO makes it unlikely that the vote would take place in the secrecy of this impromptu asteroid, instead of the regular and public chambers. Hence my "The Committee That Really Decides" extraparliamentary interpretation of what is going on here.
Timo Saloniemi
That strengthens the case for it being the case of a diplomatic action if Sarek is acting with the expressed wishes of the executive of the Vulcan rather than as an autonomous representative of the Vulcan people.
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