UNSC Study Guide
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UNSC S T U D Y G U I D E T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S 1 ) L E T T E R O F T H E S E C R E T A R Y G E N E R A L 2 ) L E T T E R F R O M T H E C O M M I T T E E C H A I R 3 ) I N T R O D U C T I O N T O T H E S E C U R I T Y C O U N C I L 4 ) H I S T O R Y A N D O R I G I N O F T H E T O P I C 5 ) C U R R E N T S I T U A T I O N 6 ) B L O C P O S I T I O N S 7 ) Q A R M A S 8 ) B I B L I O G R A P H Y 0 1 Letter from the SecGen Dear Delegates and Faculty Advisors,It has not been too long since Casuarinas Model United Nations Team was created, and along with the effort made by teachers and students, our delegates have been able to gain experience in National and International debate competitions. Although we are still new at the Model UN circuit here in Peru, I am glad to announce the first Casuarinas Model United Nations Conference. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing quarantine that have paused economic and social activities in our country have represented a challenge for the organization and execution of Casuarinas Model UN. However, because of the effort of teachers and students from our school, we were able to adapt our project and systems in order to make an online conference possible. This is why I would like to thank all the directors, assistant directors, and volunteers that offered to willingly share their time with us to host the different committees, developing comprehensive study guides for all the committees, and assisting with the inner organization of the whole conference. Finally, I would like to point out that as an MUN conference we deeply encourage all delegates to participate actively in the debate, and learn as much as possible in these two days. If any delegate has doubts regarding schedules or online meetings, feel free to ask CASMUN staff.We will look forward to having your presence at the Conference! Mickaella Ramos [email protected] 0 2 Letter from the Chair Dear Delegates,It is my distinct pleasure to welcome you to the first edition of the Casuarinas International College Model United Nations! My name is Jorge Lazo and I will serve as your committee director for the United Nations Security Council alongside Carlos Elias and the Crisis Room for the committee, Hugo Contreras and Rodrigo Salazar. Having debated for almost 5 years now, I can say without a doubt that MUN has taught plenty of valuable lessons. However, the fact that each time I suit up for a conference is a completely different experience to the previous one is what keeps me away from hanging my classic bow ties and retiring. On a more personal note, I am currently a sophomore law student at Universidad de Lima and part of Peruvian Debate Society (PDS) since 2019. I am also the biggest basketball nerd you will ever encounter, spending several hours of my spare time watching games, analysing and discussing all things NBA- related on platforms such as reddit and instagram. Finally, if you have any doubts regarding the procedure of the committee, or the flow of the debate we will be following, do not hesitate to send an email to my personal address: [email protected]. We are really looking forward to meeting you in committee, stay safe out there! Yours sincerely, Jorge Lazo L. 0 3 Letter from the Chair Dear delegates,My name is Carlos Elías, and I am so excited to be one of your directors by the side of Jorge Lazo, Hugo Contreras and Rodrigo Salazar on the Security Council committee from the first edition of the Casuarinas International College MUN. I have been participating in different conferences of Model United Nations since 2017, being the last one Harvard National Model United Nations 2020 at Boston alongside Peruvian Universities (PU). Outside of MUN, I am a second-year law student at University of Lima who is a big fan of watching series and playing video games. Moreover, I enjoy practicing mostly any kind of sport. Nevertheless, the competition I am most into it is basketball.We are sure that you are going to do your best during the committee, just remember to always keep your feet on the ground at the time of proposing creative solutions for the issue in discussion. Despite the difficulties due to the pandemic, I cannot wait to feel all of the energy that this conference will bring since every Model United Nations is entirely different from another. Finally, if there are further questions, don't hesitate to contact me in the following e-mail: [email protected]. See you soon, Carlos Elías. 0 4 Introduction to the Security Council The Charter of the United Nations was signed on 26 June 1945, and came into force on October 24th, 1945. It established six main organs of the United Nations, including the Security Council. It gives primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security to the Security Council, which may meet whenever peace is threatened. The Security Council takes the lead in determining the existence of a threat to the peace or act of aggression. It calls upon the parties to a dispute to settle it by peaceful means and recommends methods of adjustment or terms of settlement. In some cases, the Security Council can resort to imposing sanctions or even authorize the use of force to maintain or restore international peace and security. An amendment to the UN Charter in 1965 increased council membership to 15, including the original five permanent members and 10 non- permanent members. The composition of the Security Council has been a contentious matter, particularly since the end of the Cold War. 0 5 Between the late 1980s and the early 21st century, the council’s power and prestige grew. Beginning in the late 1980s, there was a surge in the number of peacekeeping operations authorized by the Security Council: between 1948 and 1978 only 13 missions had been authorized, but between 1987 and 2000 some three dozen operations were approved, including those in the Balkans, Angola, Haiti, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Somalia. In the conflicts of the 21st century, the Security Council was a much less effective body. Beginning in 2003, Arab militias backed by the Sudanese government carried out a terror campaign in the region of Darfur. In spite of the presence of an African Union peacekeeping force, hundreds of thousands were killed and millions were displaced in what was called the first genocide of the 21st century. During committee work, we expect delegates to be able to analyse the main flaws in the Council’s functioning as well as to fully understand what its powers and faculties are. Though we will be making use of directives, secret actions and press releases, we encourage you to participate in the activity, because a secret dynamic will be revealed later on. 0 6 History and Origin of the Topic Cold War Era During the Cold War the conflict and tense relationships between the United States and the Soviet Union ended to be a worldwide concern. One of the important historical events during this period to bear in mind is the incident between both world powers regarding the measure taken by the USA against the postwar Soviet expansionism in Eastern Europe due to America's fear of a Russia controlling the world, known as the “containment”. The “containment” was a US defense strategy against the URSS threat, since that moment the US adopted the policy to “support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures", which would shape American foreign policy. This new country´s policy provided the sudden arms buildup in the USA arguing that it was in order to contain communist expansionism that could occur anywhere, increasing investment in weapons from its budget, including the development of atomic weapons and the beginning of an arms race. 0 7 Moreover, with the implementation of the Reagan Doctrine from the part, providing financial and military support to every anti communist government, the USA made and showed to the world the “benefits involved if you were on their side”, and “what happens” with the ones that are not. Even prior to the creation of the Reagan Doctrine, several ‘proxy wars’ took place all around the world because of each side’s intention to defend its ideology. The middle east was no exception to this rule, as with the aftermath of World War II, it became a main strategic point for geopolitic moves. This was highlighted during the Cuban Missile Crisis, when in retaliation to the USSR’s threats, the Kennedy administration decided to place nuclear warheads in Turkey. This created a concept known as Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD), and reinforced the International Community’s mission to advocate for the de-escalation of nuclear weapon programs, including the Security Council. Proxy wars in the Middle East included the root causes for the Israeli-palestinian disputes, the Soviet-afghan War and, of course, the Islamic Revolution.