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PUNC X: THE PENNSYLVANIA UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE Table of Contents Letter from the Crisis Director Page 2 Letter from the Chair Page 3 Background Page 4 Russia Since 2016 – Notable Events Page 5 Delegate Positions Page 7 Committee Structure Page 10 Committee Goals Page 11 Sources Page 11 1 PUNC X: THE PENNSYLVANIA UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE Delegates, My name is Milan Liu and I’ll be serving as your crisis director for the Russian Unity Conference 2020 at PUNC X. I’m a freshman at Penn State, pursuing a double major in International Politics and Geography, as well as minors in Chinese and Global Security. In addition to my love for international affairs and maps, I enjoy horseback riding, traveling, and binge-watching political dramas on Netflix. I have been involved in Model UN since my sophomore year of high school, and attended conferences at Penn State twice. I joined PSIADA last semester, and had the pleasure of crisis directing the Antarctic Treaty 2038 committee at PHUNC, Penn State’s high school Model UN conference, in the fall. I have always looked forward to Model UN conferences, and PUNC X is no exception. I’m excited to see the creativity of this group of delegates, and how you respond to the challenges Russia will face throughout the weekend. Feel free to reach out with any questions or concerns, and I’ll be happy to help in any way I can. Best, Milan [email protected] 2 PUNC X: THE PENNSYLVANIA UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE Delegates, Hello everyone! My name is Robert Liu and I am excited to be your Chair for Russian Unity Conference 2020. I am a Junior majoring in Biology and Asian studies with minors in Japanese and Astrobiology. I enjoy PC gaming, watching anime and spending way too much time on reddit. Penn State International Affairs and Debate Association (PSIADA) has been a big part of my college career ever since I arrived at Penn state three years ago. This will be my third time chairing a committee and my fifth time overall on a Model UN committee. Best, Robert [email protected] 3 PUNC X: THE PENNSYLVANIA UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE Background History of Modern Russia Modern Russia’s history has been shaped by the collapse of the Soviet Union and the subsequent formation of the Russian Federation. Boris Yeltsin led protests under the flag of the Soviet Union, and after the USSR’s breakup, Yeltsin emerged as President of the Russian Federation. Yeltsin’s legacy centered around his advocacy for shock therapy, a series of reforms promoting democracy and the free-market. These radical reforms following the communist Soviet Era devastated the economy, leading to hyperinflation, a severe economic downturn, and declining standards of living in Russia. Following Yeltsin’s presidency, Vladimir Putin asserted control over the Russian government. Putin was elected president in 2000 and 2004, as he headed United Russia, a political party originally formed to support Putin in the 2000 elections. The United Russia Party has been described as “ideologically...hard to define except that it is pro-Putin.” Putin’s reforms followed an aggressive path towards centralization of power, steering the country away from democracy. Under Putin’s leadership, the economy improved, fueled primarily by oil and gas reserves, and took the shape of a state corporatist model. Putin served as president for two terms, before his hand-picked successor, Dmitry Medvedev, was elected in 2008. Putin remained in politics as Medvedev’s Prime Minister, shifting power to his new position and retaining control of the government. Putin won the election in 2012 and returned to his original position as president. Modern Russia’s political system has been characterized as an unpredictable illiberal democracy. The state has a history of maintaining a blended authoritarian and democratic system, with citizens maintaining few political rights. Political decisions have typically lacked transparency, made in secret by the group of those close to the Kremlin, and much of Russian politics is shadowed by corruption. Russia has suffered from numerous problems, including economic difficulties, unstable foreign relations, lack of development of civil society, and a declining population. Questions Russia continues to struggle with include centralization or decentralization of the government, openness of the country to the west, and capitalism or socialism as the basis for the economy. Chechnya Chechnya has been a historically troublesome region for Russia. Located in the Northern Caucasus, the region is home to a primarily Muslim population, as well a separatist movement which comes into the public view every decade or so. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Russian Federation refused to recognize Chechen independence and utilized military force to assert dominance in the region. The First Chechen War began in 1994 and ended in 1996 with the tabling of Chechen independence negotiations alongside the withdrawal of Russian troops. The interwar period left Chechnya’s economy and infrastructure destroyed, and kidnappings and killings by rebels continued. The Second Chechen War erupted in 1999 and while battles only continued into early 2000, the widespread separatist movement was not sufficiently weakened to completely cease fighting until 2009. 4 PUNC X: THE PENNSYLVANIA UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE Chechen separatists are characterized by their often extreme tactics. They have been known to kidnap, kill, or take hostage civilians and important political figures to further their goals, and have a history of partaking in terrorism, including suicide bombings and other attacks in Moscow, Chechnya, and neighboring Dagestan. Crimea Crimea’s complicated history is backed by an ongoing battle between Russia and Ukraine for the region. A geopolitically important peninsula on the Black Sea, Crimea has experienced periods of occupation by a number of actors, as well as brief periods as its own sovereign state. Under the flag of the Soviet Union, Crimea was gifted to Ukraine in 1954. Despite this, the majority of the Crimean population is still ethnically Russian. Unrest in Crimea erupted after violent protests in Kiev drove pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych from power in early 2014. Russian backed forces seized control of the peninsula, and a referendum following the occupation resulted in a vote for the region to join Russia. While the Kremlin declared control of Crimea, Ukraine and the West refused to recognize the results of the referendum as legal and legitimate. Note: the history of Russia included in this background information is brief and simplifies the nuanced history and culture of the country. Much more information regarding Russia can be found online, in addition to information about the history of the Soviet Union. For the purposes of the committee, history will be assumed to be frozen at the end of 2016; any events occurring in 2017 will be assumed to not have happened. Russia Since 2016 - Notable Events January 1, 2017 – deviate from history. January 20, 2017 – Donald Trump is inaugurated, and assumes office as president of the United States. Trump’s public statements remain pro-Russia during his early presidency, and he even recognizes Crimea as Russian territory (drawing criticism from the rest of the Western world.) While Putin hopes to work to with the new administration, during the first hundred days President Trump struggles to be on the same page as his Congress–particularly Speaker of the House Paul Ryan–on US-Russian relations. Putin and the state Duma become increasingly frustrated with the lack of improvement in relations with the United States. April 24, 2017 – Russia expels 35 American diplomats in retaliation for the Obama administration’s sanctions in December of 2016 and in response to stagnant relations between the countries. Angered by the Kremlin’s actions, Trump’s dialogue with the media quickly turns anti-Russian. June 17, 2017 – the United States places additional economic sanctions on Russia, limiting financing for Russian banks, energy companies, and infrastructure projects, as well as restricting trade with Russia. The Russian economy is weakened by these sanctions. August 28, 2017 – WikiLeaks releases information insinuating the Kremlin was involved in the deaths of a number of pro-Ukrainian activists in Crimea in 2015. Putin denies the allegations. 5 PUNC X: THE PENNSYLVANIA UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE September 4, 2017 – the European Union places additional economic sanctions on Russia as a result of the leaks, following precedent set by sanctions in 2014. This is a severe blow to the already struggling Russian economy. January 12, 2018 – protests in Moscow arise over high electricity prices during a cold winter, in addition to the rising unemployment rate, which has risen to 9.2%. Numerous protestors are arrested and fined. Some of the protests turn violent, with Russian police beating protesters in the streets. February 4, 2018 – despite increased military presence in the streets, protests continue and spread to St. Petersburg. Protests are violent, and international human rights groups and pro- democracy groups within Russia criticize the government, calling for freedom of speech and preservation of citizens’ ability to partake in peaceful protest. June 29, 2018 – Interfax reports growing support for socialist reforms and parties reforming such reforms, including A Just Russia and the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF). The report cites the support as a result of the perceived failure of capitalistic reforms in
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