I have today attacked by mistake a neutral fleet... I got out of the battle without firing a single shot, but turned pirate anyway.
From what I have read, I am not the only one this has happened to.
An option to change back to your former nation could be implemented, with a fee of course, the amount being related to the number of ships you sunk as a pirate in order not to make switching to easy , or some other way.
This is in my opinion quite an experience breaking issue, as people who have encountered this problem never intended to turn pirate in the first place, and lose all their outposts in the process, as well as ships and modules stored there, and have a hard time continuing playing with the friends they made among their nation.
I hope this is something you guys can remedy in the future.
Apart from that...You guys have made an amazing game!