The Mirka colonies were a set of colonies along the border between the Federation and Klingon Empire. When Tezwan Prime Minister Kinchawn threatened the Klingon colony QiV'ol, in order to hide secretly build nadion-pulse cannons, President Min Zife petitioned the Federation Council to cede the colonies to the Klingons, a move the Council ratified. Chief of Staff Koll Azernal noted that the Federation only maintained their claim on the colonies because the Klingons desired them. (TNG novel: A Time to Kill)