The Federation and a home grown space empire

[speaker-to-trolls]

OK, so as far as I am able to gather, territorial policy in Star Trek works a little like this: 'These five solar systems are mine, I am therefore going to draw a 3d box enclosing all of them, all the space in that box is MY space, and everything inside it is mine,'

Now if MY space happens to include a primitive species without space of its own then my policy towards them depends on who I am, if I am the Klingons, Romulans or Cardassians I am likely to enslave or kill them and make them go and mine dilithium or whatever those pricks do to primitive speicies with the gall to live in THEIR space. But, if I am the enlightened Federation I will not touch them, because I have evolved beyond that sort of thing and, rightly or wrongly, do not get involved in the affairs of lesser species (your experience with Starfleet may differ and the Federation takes no responsibility for any damaging and frankly bizarre damage to your cultural development occuring as a result of any contamination by Starfleet personnel).

So, my question is, what does the enlightened Federation do if one of those primitive species developes its own warp ships and decides it wants ITS own space? If this newly emergent civilisation wants to colonise an uninhabited system which the Federation lays claim to would the Federation contest that? What if this new species wants to open up links with some of the Federation's less enlightened neighbours? Would the Federation try to restrict and control this civilisation's growth if it tried to extend outside Federation borders, which might make it a potential way in for hostile neighbours?

[lord Martiya]

Look no further than Ba'ku and you'll have Starfleet response. The Council, on the other hand, may have different opinions.

[The Romulan Republic]

Look no further than Ba'ku and you'll have Starfleet response. The Council, on the other hand, may have different opinions.

Wasn't the Baku a rather exceptional situation, seeing as that world had the secret to immortality? I wouldn't assume the Federation response will always be the same.

[lord Martiya]

True, but according to Picard Ba'ku was Federation's planet. Don't know if it meant it was inside Federation territory and the Son'a couldn't reach it without Federation permission or what, but we have evidence that there is people in Starfleet command who won't exitate into interfering in pre-warp cultures (at least they appeared that) if they decide they need. A new warp culture wanting its own space may be negotiated with and even get some uninhabitated planet, but if they try and be a danger they'll have to pray it's Starfleet who gets them and not Section 31.

[CaptainChewbacca]

I seem to remember something about autonomous regions inside the federation, where species basically governed themselves and weren't bothered much.

[Prannon]

I think there is a precedent for the Federation to initiate first contact with any species upon completion of their first warp flight. So if said species suddenly developed warp technology and began flying around, you'd likely see the Feds step in and say "Hello! Wanna join the Federation?" And then they've give a hefty nudge.

If said species said no, then the diplomats would step in and the negotiations would begin.

[Lord MJ]

Well the Baku planet and that entire gas cloud was within Federation space, but IIRC the Baku colonized that planet (and they were only 600 of them) recently, possibly after the Federation space enveloped the Briar Patch. They did not originate from there.

I would imagine the Federation did not think about the contingency of worlds in their space developing warp, since any planet that looked to be warp capable in a couple hundred years or less would not be claimed as Federation space, while any other populated worlds that would fall into Federation space would be several hundred years or longer away from warp drive. And no government in history, even enlightened ones, has planned ahead several centuries when making their policies.

[Simon_Jester]

I think there is a precedent for the Federation to initiate first contact with any species upon completion of their first warp flight.

The precedent predates the Federation- that's exactly what the Vulcans did with Earth. Since humans and Vulcans more or less dominate Federation politics, it's a pretty safe bet that they'll repeat the policy with any new arrival.

So yes, it's very likely that the Federation's first step would be to invite the alien species to join the Federation as a new partner. From there, it's hard to say, but the Federation contains a huge amount of relatively empty space- any new starfaring species that emerges will have plenty of room to grow at the typical rates seen among Star Trek intelligent species, and the Federation isn't jealous.

So unless the developing species is utterly obnoxious- cannot refrain from picking fights with the neighbors or something- they will probably simply wind up either as a Federation member state or as an 'autonomous region' that the Federation sort of benignly ignores and waits for them to 'come to their senses' and join the Feds.

[Swindle1984]

What about a species that never discovers warp travel, but nevertheless develops interstellar space travel and begins colonizing other star systems? Didn't the species that Dr. Flox and Archer decided to allow to go extinct rather than give them the cure they had promised develop interstellar travel and encounter other sentient species along the way, despite warp drive being one of the things they wanted to trade for so they could find a cure?

If official policy is to remain hands-off until and unless they develop warp travel, what are they supposed to do, just wait for one of their STL ships to stumble across an inhabited system? Then what?

And God help if they make an enemy of people with relativistic projectiles.

[Srelex]

And God help if they make an enemy of people with relativistic projectiles.

Well...

[Prometheus Unbound]

"And if we ask you to leave and never return?"

"Then we'll leave. And never return."


Leader of a planet and Picard, in "First Contact" (TNG)

[tim31]

The above example is poignant, in that it shows the mindset of the leadership* at that point in time. Seeing as humanoid technological development follows an inevitable pattern in the ST universe, in another thirty, fifty, one hundred years, their society would very likely have changed tack.

At all events, it shouldn't be hard for people living in countries with separate state/provincial and federal governments to see how a multi-tiered arrangement is going to work. It works if the Federation gives the member worlds what they need and largely stay out of domestic affairs.




*Ignoring the ridiculous notion of 'one world government', of course.