From: New Colchis
To:   Joyeuse, Serendip Belt
Week: 8

We should assassinate the Thatcher, and then seize control of Esperanza under the pretext of ‘restoring order’

TOP SECRET

I believe I have devised a method to both neutralise the Esperanzan threat and acquire a large number of ships for all three of our Navies. I am asking the Joyeuse and Serendip Belt Governments for help in this, as I believe a single government does not have the resources to carry out this plan without exposing itself to threats from other directions.

What I propose is this:

i) The Thatcher is assassinated in such a way that it cannot be traced to a foreign power.

ii) In the confusion following the assassination several groups (as many as possible), all controlled by the off-world powers involved, spring up and contest the leadership, especially within the military, leading to a civil war which is allowed to continue for as long as it takes to reduce the Esperanzan armed forces to a fraction of their former size.

iii) Once this has occurred, combined fleet elements jump in to ‘restore order’, and take control of the planet jointly, dividing it and remaining fleet elements between them.

Your response to this plan, and if you agree to participate in it, any improvements or changes to it would be appreciated at the earliest possible date.

Signed,

Magnus VII, King of New Colchis.