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Background Guide – General
Assembly 4th
Benjamin Breer
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GSMSTMUNC II
General Assembly Fourth Committee
Background Guide
Esteemed Delegates,
My name is Benjamin Breer, and I am thoroughly pleased to serve as your dais for the General
Assembly Fourth committee in the second annual GSMST Model United Nations Conference. I
currently attend GSMST, and may I say, you are extremely fortunate to attend this conference.
Throughout the past several months, we have prepared for this conference in hopes that you will
leave with even more knowledge of how the United Nations functions, its impact in the
international community today, and its relevance to leadership skills utilized in the workforce.
The conference is unique in the sense that delegates will be able to work effectively to solve the
issues given to each committee while still having the opportunity to ask questions regarding the
United Nations, Model UN, or specific areas of inquiry related to the conference.
It is my hope that you not only learn from the wonderful experience, but you also enjoy the
conference. The majority of learning anything occurs through the experience itself, and I urge
you to keep this in mind as you and your fellow delegates discuss and debate solutions for the
issues at hand.
I look forward to your attendance in the near future, and I give you my best wishes for your
preparation.
Best regards,
Benjamin Breer
Benjamin Breer
GSMST
Benjamin.breer@gsmst.org
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Topic I: Protocols of Disposal for Radiation in International Territories
As we progress through the second decade in the twenty-first century, the international
community has been made witness to several advancements made in the fields of science,
technology, and medicine, to name a mere few. However, with these advancements being made,
there is an increased risk for malevolent actions, accidents, and strain on foreign relations. One
of the many advancements made in the past several decades is energy originating from nuclear
power plants. Nuclear energy is one of the cleanest forms of energy present today. However, it is
one of the most dangerous, in regards to risk factor, forms of energy. In the year 2011, a massive
tsunami damaged three nuclear reactors off the coast of Japan following a monumental 9.0
magnitude earthquake. Radiation leaked out of the one of the three nuclear reactors, resulting in
the evacuation of the entire nearby cities. Although the amount of radiation leaked was
miniscule, the effects were detrimental, both to the surrounding environment as well as
environments located far from the reactor site, mainly due to the Northwest Pacific air stream1.
As a result of the diffusion of radiation from mainland Japan to West Canada and the western
seaboard of the United States, numerous repercussions occurred, many of which involved the
cancelation flights and the alteration of existing flight patterns in the affected airspace. Nearly
five years later, the effects of the airborne radiation are still noticeable. In fact, the Seattle flight
patterns are still set as they were when alterations were initially made to avert the majority of the
airborne radiation.
The Fukushima Disaster is just one example of how radiation can be spread from one
isolated region to another region far from the origin. This issue becomes even greater when the
radiation is found in territories deemed as “internationally open”, or international territories. An
international territory, as defined by the United Nations, is a type of extraterritoriality governed
by international law, or similar treaty between two or more nations2. When issues arise in regions
of the globe deemed as international territories, or zones, the methodology of finding a solution
is often strained. Furthermore, radiation is an issue that can rapidly spread to other regions. Thus,
the focus of solution in many cases is containment and eventual disposal.
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Although there has been a surfeit of resolutions made that deal with the issue of
containing leaked radiation, there is a paucity of resolutions that attempt to reconcile methods of
containing radiation with the territorial characteristics, specifically ones labels international
zones. Normally, international law governs the zone in which activity resides in; however, with
the exception of the United Nations’ Non-Proliferation Treaty, there are no treaties that govern
the methodology of containment of dangerous resources in regions deemed as international
zones. Possible resolutions that could passed by the United Nations would have to retain
alignment with the current international regulations and laws embodied by both the United
Nations itself and the international community. Moreover, any proposed solutions would have to
consider the locality of the situation, including the environmental conditions persistent in each
respective international zone.
Following the initial containment of radiation in international zones, the next step in most
cases is to proceed to the disposal process. With current methods of disposal of radiation in place
as mandated by the United Nations, the decision to proceed with a disposal method is hindered
mainly by the region itself, given it has been deemed an international zone. Thus, the focus of
any resolution would reside around the initial containment, for containment methods issued by
the United Nations are linked to respective disposal techniques. This would ensure all
international regulations and laws are followed as well as preserve the environment, both locally
and internationally.
Current methods of containment and disposal are categorized as protocols in the essence
of maintaining the preservation of national sovereignty. Essentially, protocols retain an open
window through which nations have the opportunity to disregard any proposed methods of
action. However, the label of protocol extends beyond the basic meaning in a sense that it
governs which actions can and cannot be taken by the governments of involved nations. By
proposing methods of containment and disposal, it eliminates any possibility of the infringement
upon national sovereignty of any nation. In recent decades, the issue of the preservation of
national sovereignty became amplified with the power vacuum in the Middle East and nations
identified as superpowers invading the region. Responding to the dilemma, the United Nations
began taking the proposal approach to modern-day conflicts afflicting multiple nations in various
aspects. As a result, delegates will find that many resolutions that attempt to reconcile methods
of containment and disposal with nations’ stances and foreign policies are set as protocols that, at
their core, are essentially proposed methods of action. Once again, the main intent of doing this
is to appease any nations’ concerns regarding the sanctity of national sovereignty.
Delegates should keep in mind the aforementioned characteristics of each international
zone as well as the foreign policies of all nations in the international community. With a growing
polarization between many of the Eastern nations’ governmental policies and the political
philosophies of Western Nations, and in addition to the major focus on the development and
interactions within the Middle East region, delegates should consider the issue of radiation in
international zones as multilateral. In general, the status of the international community should
be heavily considered in order to accurately form protocols of containment and disposal that
effectively solve the issue as well as strengthening the confidence in the United Nations amongst
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nations. The abiding of international laws and regulations must coexist with any proposed
solutions involving the containment and disposal of radiation; moreover, viable methods of
disposal would not hinder any potential access by the United Nations for investigation if needed.
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Topic II: Partitioning of the Antarctic Frontier
In this day and age, humans only occupy six of the seven continents found on the planet,
with the exception of scientific observatories being sparsely located throughout the region. Being
the fifth largest continent and covering over 5,500,000 square miles, the Antarctic frontier has
much to offer, including an entire set of unique ecosystems, as well as polar ice caps which are
responsible for the maintaining of the Earth’s climate and ocean currents. With many nations
eager to expand their territories, Antarctica offers an abundance of opportunity, in regards to
both economic development and the expansion of territorial zones.
Currently, the region of Antarctica is dotted with sparsely located scientific observatories.
However, these have slowly evolved to present a more political face than scientific. With nations
such as Russia utilizing the presence of scientific observatories to present a political stance, the
time has come for the international community as a whole to designate the Antarctic frontier to a
specific nation, set of nations, or as an international territory. As a result of the current political
motivations, the issue of partitioning the Antarctic frontier has become one of heated debate.
Many nations, such as the Russian Federation, are currently pushing for annexation of the region
for each respective nation. However, the United Nations has for years prohibited any action from
being taken regarding the designation of land belonging to the Antarctic continent.
The first claim on Antarctica was made by the United Kingdom in the year 1908. In the
next four decades following the United Kingdom’s initial claim on the region, six other nations,
New Zealand, Australia, Norway, France, Argentina, and Chile, also made official claims on the
continent. Among these seven nations, or the otherwise called seven claimant nations, the United
Kingdom, Chile, and Argentina had conflicting territorial claims. In addition, the majority of the
international community does not recognize the sovereignty over the region of Antarctica
asserted by the seven claimant nations. Between these seven nations, nearly all of Antarctica had
been claimed in the beginning to mid twentieth century. Furthermore, due to the signing of the
Antarctic Treaty in the year 1959, any additional territorial claims on the continent are banned3.
The Antarctic Treaty neither recognizes nor denies any claims made by nations on Antarctica.
Since 1959, the number of signatory countries on the treaty has increased from 12, including the
initial seven claimant nations, to 50 nations. Additional stipulations were added in the year 1991
for the purpose of banning mineral and oil exploration on the continent for 50 years as well as
introducing international abiding regulations to help preserve the Antarctic environment.
Examine the illustration in the following page to gain a better understanding of the initial seven
claimant nations.
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One of the most significant issues currently debated and discussed that involves
Antarctica is the environmental threats exploration and extrapolation of mineral resources pose
to the region and future ecosystem dynamics. The prohibition of mineral and petroleum
exploration in Antarctica was originally put in place for the purpose of protecting and preserving
the continent's sensitive environment. Present are diverse groups of plants and animals that use
the continent and its surrounding waters as breeding grounds and habitat locations. Because of
the animals’ significant reliance on the surrounding environment, fears of manmade natural
disasters, such as oil spills, have drastically increased. In addition, recent information regarding
the prevalence and possibility of such disasters from occurring has affected the resulting
partitions of land. In regions where active trade routes are found, an effort has been made to
avert any designation of land in that particular area.
Therefore, when considering the threats to the environment, it is crucial to be cognizant
of economic and political motivations and actions prevalent or near the Antarctic frontier, as
these can greatly impact the sanctity of both the environment. In addition, the implemented
Antarctica Treaty, which bans any future claims to the frontier, must have its precedence and
authority maintained in order to preserve the balance instituted within the international
community as well as uphold the international effort to preserve the environment. Delegates
should keep in mind the political dynamics of the international community in addition to the
economic status of the global markets in order to fully address the issue of partitioning the new
frontier: Antarctica.
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References
1. “Fukushima: A Nuclear War without a War: The Unspoken Crisis of Worldwide Nuclear
Radiation." Global Research. Global Research, n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2015.
2. UN. "United Nations Convention." UN News Center. UN, n.d. Web. 26 Nov. 2015.
3. WUMUN; 2014