Recognition Pays

From the Tuesday Morning QB (who often goes on tangents on related to football):

Other Make-Believe Nations, Such as "France," Were Jealous They Did Not Think of This First: Last week the nano-nation called Nauru got $50 million from Moscow for extending diplomatic recognition to Abkhazia, an aspiring mini-country the Russian government wants accepted into the family of nations for political reasons.

This got me thinking: Venture capitalists, found a new nation and charge what the market will bear! Suppose the nation of Stanistan was founded on an outcropping of rock on the Isle of Wight. It could charge other governments to:

• Extend diplomatic recognition to disputed political entities in Asia, the Middle East or Belgium. (Free the Walloons!)
• Allow airspace to be violated for illegal covert bombing missions.
• Place flags on unsafe vessels.
• Serve as a way station for "extraordinary rendition." (Of course, this never occurs.)
• Sell its vote in the United Nations.
• Sue Microsoft.

 Reminds me of the reverse--Macedonia recognized Taiwan, which few countries do, and then the People's Republic of China vetoed the next renewal of the mandate of the UN's only successful conflict prevention mission to that point in time.