Cocos Islands (1983: Doomsday)

The Cocos Islands lie in the Indian Ocean. They are claimed by the as the "Cocos (Keeling) Islands" but have functioned as an independent micro-kingdom since 1983. They are not to be confused with the Isla del Coco, also called Cocos Island, in the Pacific Ocean, a n island annexed to in 2001.

The Clunies-Ross family from Shetland established a coconut plantation on the uninhabited islands in 1827. In 1886 Queen Victoria granted them title to the islands in perpetuity, and the family began styling themselves "kings". In 1955 Australia made the islands a territory and took over their administration, though the family still owned the islands and continued to run them much as they had. It was only in 1978 that Australia forced John Clunies-Ross to sell the islands, keeping only Oceania House, the family seat.

Three Australian cities were hit by Soviet nukes in 1983. For a long, critical period, the Commonwealth neglected its newest territory, and the Clunies-Rosses were able to reassert control. It was only in 1989 that Australia sent an expedition to the Cocos Islands, and it found John and his son firmly in control and uninterested in returning to Australian rule. The family shipping fleet had secured a lucrative contract from the new government of, reconnecting the Cocos to the outside world and providing a source of income.

Late in 1992, Australia hit the Sultanate of with sanctions after its invasion of Indonesian Sumatra. As a minor act of retaliation, Aceh recognized the Cocos' independence and provided a small amount of aid. So far, neither Australia nor its successor the ANZC have gone to the trouble of taking the Cocos militarily, though they have never dropped their claim to them.

Work in progress.