Alternative History
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Free State of Alaska
Timeline: 1983: Doomsday

OTL equivalent: Alaska
Flag Seal
Flag Seal
Location of Alaska
Free State of Alaska in blue
Capital
(and largest city)
Juneau
Other cities Wasilla, Sitka, Ketchikan, Homer, Valdez, Seward, Dutch Harbor
Language
  official
 
English (official)
  others several indigenous languages
Governor Fran Ulmer
Lt. Governor Bruce M. Botelho
Area (claimed territory) 663,268 mi²
Population 175,000 
Independence 1995
Currency Commonwealth dollar
Organizations DD1983 OO Flag Oceanic Organisation

Alaska is an independent republic and an Associated State of the Commonwealth of Australia and New Zealand. It is situated in the northwest extremity of North America, with Yukon to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, Socialist Siberia and Alaskan Autonomous Territory across the Bering Sea to the west, and the Pacific Ocean to the south.

The name "Alaska" (Аляска) was introduced in the Russian colonial era. It was first used only for the peninsula and is derived from the Aleut alaxsxaq, meaning "the mainland" or more literally, "the object toward which the action of the sea is directed". It is also known as Alyeska, the "great land", an Aleut word derived from the same root.

History[]

Pre-Doomsday[]

Alaska was purchased by the United States from the Russian Empire on March 30, 1867, for US $7.2 million at about two cents per acre (US$4.74/km²). The land went through several administrative changes before becoming an organized territory on May 11, 1912, and the 49th state of the United States on January 3, 1959.

Doomsday and after[]

Alaska was the first American territory to be hit by a Soviet nuclear weapon when one fell on Elmendorf Air Force Base. Fairbanks and Anchorage were also hit by nuclear missiles, while Soviet forces occupied the Aleutian Islands and slowly advanced eastward until winter conditions forced a halt. At the end of 1983, Soviet troops possessed parts of the Alaska Peninsula, Kodiak island, the south of the Seward Peninsula (including the town of Seward), and some points around Prince William Sound. The invasion had very little support in logistics or command and control, but the Soviet troops still managed to wreak serious damage wherever they went. The news that their own country had been destroyed made them fight more desperately.

As order broke down, most of the state devolved into truly primitive conditions. The state government in the southeast was largely cut off from the interior but managed to restore some control by 1985. Instituting emergency powers, the government attempted to coordinate the police, military, and aid for survivors. It was unable, however, to mount a serious counteroffensive to liberate its territory. Australia and New Zealand sent a few naval patrols that engaged the Soviets, but this was not enough to drive them back.

In 1984, the American Provisional Administration (APA) was established in Hawaii by the new president, George Bush. The new administration established regular contact with the Alaskan government and made it the top priority to repel the invasion and put an end to World War III. To do this, the administration issued the Gathering Order, calling together any surviving American armed forces in the Pacific.

In late 1984, the APA sent a large force to Juneau. It consisted of American, Australian, and British vessels; New Zealand provided logistical support. The operation made quick progress during the first half of 1983, driving the Soviets from their weakly-held bases on the mainland. But occupiers in the western Aleutians resisted stubbornly. From 1984 to 1987 the APA and Australia attempted unsuccessfully to fully drive the Soviets from the Aleutians. Finally the Sitka Accords, signed in 1987 by U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz and his Siberian counterpart, left the USSR in occupation of about half the island chain. The agreement is considered to mark the formal end of World War III.

From 1987 to 1995 Alaska was a loyal federal state of the APA. There was some friction between APA administrators and former emergency government members; when several of the latter were dismissed from their posts, it created resentment among the Alaskan people. Some accused the APA representatives to be outsiders and out of touch with the people. But this dynamic was not nearly as pronounced as in Hawaii, and by and large the Alaskan people were grateful to the APA for its leading role in the liberation of the state.

Independence[]

In the mid-90s, a series of failures hurt the APA's credibility, above all repeated failures to regain control of the west coast of the American mainland. Australia and New Zealand were tired of propping it up, and in 1994 Hawaiians voted for independence. In 1995 a beleaguered President Bush announced that he would resign and the administration would disband. The U.S. constitution was suspended in the Pacific, and American territories and military units began to be transferred to joint A-NZ control. The APA relocated its offices to Juneau as its chief executive, Vice President Robert Nesen, began the process of closing up shop.

The Alaskans considered re-establishing their own federal government, a new incarnation of the United States based in their own territory. Anti-US sentiment was not nearly as strong in Alaska and there was little to no support for independence - but it did not seem feasible for the state to take on the burden by itself. Instead it negotiated a Treaty of Free Association with Australia and New Zealand, which made Alaska an independent republic that would nonetheless stay connected to other former U.S. territories in the Pacific. Furthermore, the terms left a clear path for the state to rejoin a restored United States in the future, if it chose. Alaskan voters approved this change in November 1995.

Recent history[]

In recent years Alaska has reached out to survivor communities in the former Canadian province of British Columbia and the Yukon. With help from the ANZC, Alaska has helped to provide these communities with much needed food and medical supplies. There have been some discussion among the communities about annexation to Alaska.  The Commonwealth of Victoria, which claims all of former British Columbia, strongly opposes these negotiations.

Government and Politics[]

The Alaskan government is basically the same as it was pre-Doomsday, with a few adjustments to reflect its status as a republic and associated state of the ANZC. The biggest of these adjustments is that Alaska now must engage in foreign diplomacy, though the ANZC handles many aspects of its defense and foreign affairs. In particular, ANZ ambassadors are accredited to represent Alaska in countries where the Free State cannot maintain its own embassy.

Alaska is governed as a republic with three branches of government:

  • Executive branch, consisting of a governor and other independently elected constitutional officers.
  • Legislative branch, consisting of a 40-member House of Representatives and a 20-member Senate.
  • Judicial branch, consisting of the Supreme Court and lower courts.

Alaska is a member of the League of Nations and the Oceanic Organization.

Economy[]

Oil[]

Alaska's economy relies on exports from its oilfields on the north slope. The Bush administration had significantly reduced the restrictions on the operations there, assuring practically all of the petroleum needs of the ANZC. Due to the concern over the possibility of accidents, legislation was passed in 1990 by the APA requiring all oil tankers to be double-hulled.

Fishing[]

With a shoreline longer than the rest of the western coast of North America, the Pacific Ocean provides an almost endless supply of food fish for national use and for export to the rest of the civilized world. In concurrence with the governments of Oceania, international treaties control the quantity and quality of the industry, but with a reduced market, there is no danger of overfishing of the local, much less the international, waters.

Tourism[]

Before Doomsday, tourism played a growing role in the economy of Alaska. However, the vast outdoors of the nation, and the uneasy truce with the Alaskan Autonomous Territory, keep most visitors away from the incredible splendor of the interior. However, tourism plays a small part in the economy as international travel has picked up in recent years. In the late 1990's the government of Victoria reopened the "Inside Passage" to cruise ships, making Juneau and the glaciers of southern Alaska once more a popular destination for its wealthier citizens.

Law Enforcement[]

Law Enforcement in Alaska is based on two levels. One level consists of local police departments, usually headed by a sheriff (Juneau's police department is headed by a police chief). The government's Free State Investigative Agency (FSIA) is responsible for crimes that affect the entire country. The FSIA is rumored to conduct reconnaissance missions in the Alaskan DMZ, but no one has been able to prove it and the government has a policy of not responding to such claims.

Military[]

Every Alaskan citizen, both male and female, is required to serve in the military for two years after their eighteenth birthday and then remain in the reserves until they turn forty-five. Most of the Alaskan military is stationed along the border with Socialist Siberia, though some have been deployed on humanitarian missions in former Canadian territory and remote places of Alaska. The official title of the military is the Alaskan Defense Force (ADF). The ADF uses equipment purchased from the ANZC.

Sport[]

Hunting and fishing are popular throughout Alaska for both recreation and sustenance.

There are no major professional or collegiate athletic competitions in Alaska. Amateur ice hockey, baseball and American football leagues, each based out of Juneau, represent the highest level of organized competitive sports. High school competition in basketball, American football, ice hockey, baseball and volleyball are more popular amongst the general public. More informal baseball, American football, ice hockey and basketball leagues can be found across the Free State.

The Idiarod dog race begins on the first Saturday of March in Barrow and ends in Juneau.

Alaska is a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation and a provisional member of FIFA. It led the development of the Oceanic Winter Games and hosted them in 2020 and 2022.

Media[]

Almost all television programming and most radio programming operates out of Juneau.

Television[]

TV Alaska, affiliated with the ANZBC, carries a mix of local programming and taped programming from the ANZBC and SBS networks. It is carried on Channel 4 in Juneau.

Channel Two, affiliated with the ANZBC, carries local and syndicated programming 24 hours a day from the Seven and Nine networks from Australia/New Zealand, and broadcasts on Channel 2 in Juneau.

Both television stations also have translators in Wasilla, Sitka, Ketchikan, Homer, Valdez and Seward.

Radio[]

Radio-wise, Juneau has 11 stations, all of which have translators throughout the Free State of Alaska:

AM
630 - News, talk, politics
1330 - Entertainment (comedies, dramas, soap operas, children's programming)

FM
88.9 - ANZBC Alaska
89.7 - ANZBC NewsRadio
90.5 - Free State of Alaska Radio - includes news, features, documentaries, information, talk, sport, religion and music with an Alaskan emphasis
94.1 - Pre-Doomsday pop music
98.5 - Adult contemporary
101.7 - Classical, opera
104.3 - Modern pop and rock from Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, South America, Mexico and Europe
105.1 - Country music
106.3 - Rock, pre- and post-Doomsday

There are numerous Free State-affiliated stations through Alaska, each with an emphasis on local news and events.

Print media[]

The Juneau Empire is the newspaper of record, publishing six days a week in and around Juneau and producing a weekly edition for the rest of the state.

See Also[]

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