Department of Diplomacy and Foreign Affairs

The Department of Diplomacy and Foreign Affairs (also styled as Department of Diplomatic and Foreign Affairs or DDFA) is a ministry within the Caspian Democratic Union Crest charged with maintaining all matters of diplomacy, inter-gubernatorial interaction, and foreign affairs and policies.

Interaction with Foreign Governments
The attitude of the DDFA towards extra-gubernatorial interaction has fluctuated over the years, depending on who occupied the office of the Presav and who was acting Minister of the department.

Facilities
Offices are maintained throughout Union territory, with the greatest concentration found in Plaxton, Caspar; Hammerton and Hebron, Mergansar; Blechley, Krittain Major; Vanover, Kasputin Yar; and Breslau, Rauther. Again, depending on the administration at the time, the staffing and importance placed on the Caspian inner worlds will vary in favor of the offices on Kichnar Orbital Station. In the current Mahon presavship, the facilities on Mergansar have become little more than recruitment, training, and development centers while the majority of DDFA official staff have been relocated to KOS. In Plaxton, the Minister of DDFA's office is located in the Whitehurst Building, just down the street from People's Hall and at the head of the street known as Embassy Row.

Between 4 and 7 ABY, the fledgling Department constructed a small suite of offices within GDIStar and became an active participant in the galactic diplomacy venture. Even while hostilities flared throughout the galaxy, and the main sponsors of initiative &mdash; the Empire and the New Republic &mdash; sent fewer and fewer resources there, the Union would keep what they felt was a vital outreach operating. The spread of the Yavin Plague in 7 ABY crippled the Caspian participation, though, and all resources were recalled, never to be redeployed.

Travel and Posts
DDFA ambassadors and agents frequently work alongside Praetors of the Crest, and are typically accompanied by at least one, if not two, Praetors while touring outside of the Union.