18 JUN 3302
Following reports of unprovoked assaults on Canonn vessels from Farragut Battle Cruisers in the Merope system, Dr Arcanonn of the Canonn Interstellar Research Group has released the following statement:
"This is a regrettable misstep, and I invite the Federation to explain how these battle cruisers can represent anything other than militarised resource denial. The presence of gun emplacements by as-yet unknown parties was already a cause for concern, and this worrying development smacks of gunboat diplomacy."
At least eight Farragut Battle Cruisers are understood to have been sighted in Merope, all identified as Federal.
Dr Arcanonn continued: "I am morally compelled to insist on a public inquiry examining the deployment of warships to a system that plays home to an insufficiently understood phenomenon."
Commander Nicholas Powell