UN Security Council
Topic: A
The Situation in Syria
UNSC Topic A
Argentina
In March 2011, there were many protests in Syria against President Bashar alAssad's government. These were known as the Arab Spring protests. The protests soon
turned violent as al-Assad's forces responded with violent force. This caused many
popular protests to turn into an armed rebellion after months of military sieges. With the
violent protests and the excessive force used by Syrian police, this quickly escalated
into what is known as the Syrian Civil War.
Argentina is against the use of force against the Syrian Regime. Many people think
that Argentina is against using force is because the country is home to many SyrianLebanese immigrants. In an August 2013 statement to the council, Argentine president
Christina Fernandez de Kirchner stated "Let's not add more horror to the horrors we
have already suffered". Her plan is to focus on the rights of the people and not use
violence to end the war.
Argentina does not plan to do much to end the Civil War. This is because Argentina
is strongly opposed to military action. They are opposed to military action because the
modern Argentine forces are fully committed to international peace keeping.
UNSC Topic A
Submitted by: Australia
Currently in Syria, thousands of people are fleeing their homes because of the violence going on.
The president of Syria, Bashar al-Asad, is “cleansing” the country of different ethnic groups. He is
actually killing his own people! People unable to flee the violence have to hide in bomb shelters so they
aren’t injured. Australia agrees with the United States in believing that this violence, such as shooting
and using poisonous gas is very wrong. In 2011, Australian Acting Foreign Minister, Craig Emerson,
called for Syrian president Bashar al-Asad to step down. Emerson later stated that, “The people of Syria
must be allowed to engage in peaceful political activity and be given the chance to determine their own
future.” It is important to note that, in 2011, Australia was one of the first countries to call President alAsad to criminal court for his horrible actions.
The current Australian Foreign Minister, Bob Carr, announced this spring (in 2014) that Australia
will provide $5 million to meet humanitarian needs in Syria. Carr recently met with the new president of
the Syrian National Council, a group who opposes the current leadership (Asad). After this meeting, Carr
said, “We support efforts to coordinate and organize [sic] opposition parties and to provide a voice for
the Syrian people in the international domain.” Australia demands that al-Asad stops torturing children,
and to end the sexual violence going on in Syria. Australia also wants Syria to start cooperating more
with the Syrian Arab Republic in order to make the country a much better place. In order for a
resolution like this to pass in Australia, both the Senate and the House of Representatives have to
approve it. This violent situation in Syria is a condition that we (Australia) would like to be fixed, and we
will work the United Nations to promote a better outcome for the people of Syria.
Bibliography
1.http://www.aijac.org.au/news/article/hrc-resolution-on-syria-diagnoses-problem-but-of
2.http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/
BN/2012-2013/SyrianUprising
3. http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/sys_gov.html
UNSC Topic A
Submitted by: Chad
School: University School
The problem in Syria is serious and has been going on for far too long. The problem began in March of
2011 with the Arab Spring and the protests against the regime of Bashar al-Assad. The capital of Syria
has been turned into a warzone, with thick guerilla fighting going on, with engagements at times being
less than 100 meters apart. and there are countless others out there that have been destroyed by the
fighting that has been running rampant. The Army of Syria has been accused of the use of chemical
weapons and other weapons against the civilians of Syria. The Islamic State and the Caliphate has joined
recently, using their rapidly growing power and soldiers to assist the rebels in their fight against the
rebels. As of a 2014 UN estimate, there have been 191,000 people killed and around 130,000 people
captured or missing. One of the larger problems that has been relevant during this period is the refugee
crisis. The UN estimates that there have been 4.5 million people displaced (Sep. 2013). The government
of Syria is largely considered the enemy by western countries and other Middle Eastern countries. They
are armed by the Russian Federation (Rus.) and The People’s Republic of Korea, (DPRK) or more
commonly known as North Korea. The Free Syrian Army (FSA) is armed by the USA, Saudi Arabia (KSA),
Turkey, Qatar, and Libya. The conflict needs a resolution soon or else we will face many more years of
this fighting and thousands more civilian deaths.
We in Chad believe that the problem must be stopped and that terrorism is a threat and that terrorism
should not be associated with any one religion and instead realize that it is a global problem and one
that is an imminent threat to peace. We believe that recent progress in Iraq with their political growth is
an important example and that it should be taken into thought by other countries that are struggling
with this problem. The people of Syria should, instead of fighting, attempt to revisit the possibility to
end this peacefully and with as few casualties as possible. This also means that the Syrian government
must be willing to listen as well to these propositions and not jump again to violence. The FSA must be
willing to help stop IS and the government must be willing to assist in the rebuilding of cities and the
stabilization of the economy.
We believe that both sides of the war should be willing to come together and discuss this. We believe
that in this deal, larger countries should be moderators for this and, should it fail, though we would be
short on troops and equipment to supply as we currently have our hands full in Northern Mali, however
we are sure other countries would be able to supply troops and believe the UN should supply
Peacekeepers to be deployed there as they assisted us well in our civil war that lasted around 4 years,
almost the same length as the Syrian Civil War is approaching. We believe that the stopping of IS and
other global terror groups could do well to stop the problems as well. If both peace talks and UN
Peacekeepers fail, we believe that refugee structures and systems should be improved to be able to
support the refugees that are continually coming out of Syria and that the countries surrounding Syria
should be prepared for overflow fighting to become popping up along the borders.
UNSC Topic A
Submitted by: Chile
The main problem in Syria is that there has been an on-going war since 2011. Over 3
million people
have left Syria to live in neighboring countries. Half of this number of people who left were
children. In July of 2012, the government officially acknowledged it was in a civil war.
How did this all start? In 2011, locals in Deraa, which is a Syrian city on the border of
Iraq and Syria. It started with graffiti writing protesting mistreatment by the Syrian government.
People caught doing this were arrested and also treated harshly. In the beginning, protests were
peaceful until the government started to respond in an angry way. Syria had the army harass the
protesters firing into crowds.
In 2014, Chile became a non-permanent member on the United Nations Security Council.
Another of our ambassadors, Octavio Errazuriz, announced that Chile had voted for the
resolution to protect civilians during this civil war in Syria. He also stated that Chile thought it
was important to find political means in ending the conflict, “ The resolution condemns and
demands from all parties the immediate cessation of violence, grave human rights violations and
abuses, violence against women and children, and aerial bombardment, including the use of
‘barrel bombs’ against the civilian population. It is our hope the United Nations will help enforce
this resolution with peace-keeping troops and that those troops will be volunteered be countries
in this room.
RESOURCES:
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ci.html, World Fact bookChile, CIA, 2014
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-29052144 , What is Islamic State?, September 26,
2014
www.bbc.co.uk.com , various articles, 2014
UNSC Topic A
Submitted by: France
For the past few years, there has been a terrible civil war in the area of Syria. There
has also been an uprise against the Syrian leader, Bashar al-Assad, because of events that
have been happening. It started in March of 2011 when a peaceful protest march was
stopped short by a number of shootings in the southern city of Deraa lead by Assad’s
brother, Maher. Maher al-Assad has a reputation for being excessively violent and
emotionally unstable at times. There have been quite a few rebel groups attacking the
failing government. Syria’s commercial allies, Russia and China, have been creating lots of
troops to join Assad’s armies and block UN draft resolutions. Assad’s allies have been
dropping weapons of mass destruction on innocent people. Neighboring countries and
Syria have both caught each other flying into their territory with weapons of mass
destruction, and have now banned flying in those areas.
France believes that other countries should accept refugees. France itself currently
has about 250,000 refugees, stateless people, and asylum seekers from other countries in
situations like this. More than 5,000 Syrian refugees have been taken in by France since
2012. France has put $36,900,000 US dollars towards helping the Syrian people by
contributing to the Emergency Humanitarian Fund and the European Fund for Syria. Two
million people and counting are now Syrian refugees in Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, and
Iraq. About 6.5 million and counting are internally displaced. Most of the refugees have
fled to Lebanon with about 1.1 million people of concern. The Turkish government
assumed, along with other people, that Syria’s war wouldn’t last long, so they kept an open
door policy for the refugees. Turkish practice only allows for refugees who are believed to
be of “Turkish descent or culture” to reside in the borders of Turkey. Aid agencies, such as
Amnesty International suggested that by the end of 2015, all of the more wealthy countries
could host about 5% of Syria’s refugees. Some examples of those countries could be
China, United States, India, Japan, Germany, Russia, Brazil, France, United Kingdom, and
Indonesia by GDP. Those countries could also donate money to the refugee situation.
The civil war in Syria has also opened up the opportunity for ISIS, the Islamic State
of Iraq and Syria, to thrive in Syria. ISIS has been getting billions of dollars to pay for
weapons, salaries, and other expenses. One way they’re getting that money is by oilsmuggling. They have been smuggling this oil from wells and refineries that they have
taken over inside northern Iraq and Syria, but recently they have added another
location. The border of southern Turkey and northern Syria is full of cheap oil in rolling hills
that can be sold for up to $7.50 (US) per gallon in gasoline form, that it doesn’t matter if it’s
being sold by your enemy or not, because it’s so cheap. Just from the oil-smuggling, ISIS
makes about one million US dollars per day. Another way they get all of that money is by
demanding money for everything in the places that they control. Villagers in ISIS territory
UNSC Topic A
are charged and pay for just about everything from driving a truck to doing any kind of
business at all. They also use the cotton and wheat in their territory to make money.
To help the refugees that have fled from this civil war, countries could donate money
or resources to their cause. They could also host about five percent of Syrian
refugees. France encourages these solutions, or others, to be put into action. France is
willing to aid the refugees by hosting them into our country. Together these solutions could
ease the tension between the government and the people.
Works Cited:
“Bashar al-Assad's inner circle.” BBC News. BBC, 30 July 2012. Web. 03 Dec. 2014
<http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-13216195>
Bronstein, Scott and Griffin, Drew. “Self-funded and deep-rooted: How ISIS makes its
millions.” CNN World. Cable News Network, 2014. Web. 22 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/06/world/meast/isis-funding/>
“France, host country for Syrian refugees.” France Diplomatie. French Ministry of Foreign
Affairs and International Development, June 2014. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.
<http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/en/country-files/syria-295/france-and-syria/politicalrelations-6414/article/graphic-france-host-country-for>
“Helping the Syrian People.” France Diplomatie. French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
International Development, Oct. 2012. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.
<http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/en/country-files/syria-295/france-and-syria/politicalrelations-6414/article/graphic-helping-the-syrian-people>
Holmes, Oliver. “Syrian refugees in Lebanon stranded by U.N. food aid cut.” Reuters.
Thomson Reuters, Dec. 08 2014. Web. 10 Dec. 2014.
<http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/12/08/us-mideast-crisis-refugeesidUSKBN0JM1QL20141208>
Kirişci, Kemal and Nath, Ranu. “Post-presidential Election and the Status of Syrian
Refugees.” Brookings. The Brookings Institution, 07 Aug. 2014. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.
<http://www.brookings.edu/research/opinions/2014/08/07-presidential-electionsyrian-refugees-turkey-kirisci-nath>
Melina, Remy. “How to Become a Country in 3 Easy Steps.” Live Science. Purch, 2014.
Web. 02 Dec. 2014. <http://www.livescience.com/33003-how-are-new-countriesestablished.html>
“Syria Regional Refugee Response.” UNHCR The UN Refugee Agency. Web. 05 Dec.
2014. <http://data.unhcr.org/syrianrefugees/country.php?id=122>
“World's Richest Countries by 2014 GDP.” World’s Richest Countries. Homestead, Oct.
2014. Web. 05 Dec. 2014. <http://www.worldsrichestcountries.com/>
“2015 UNHCR subregional operations profile - Northern, Western, Central and Southern
Europe.” UNHCR The UN Refugee Agency. United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees, 2014. Web. 24 Nov. 2014. <http://www.unhcr.org/pages/49e48e571e.html
UNSC Topic A
China
In Syria starting at 2011, there have been peaceful protests going on. The peaceful
protests were inspired by the protests in Tunisia and Egypt, where the people were
overthrowing their government. Because of these events, the people of Syria have been
protesting peacefully to try to start a revolution and overthrow their current government. The
Syrian government reacted to the protests in a violent way. The Syrian government began to
secretly kill the protesters. Then, they started to kidnap people, in addition to raping, torturing,
and killing the protester's family: especially children. Afterwards, they just started opening fire on
the protesters on the streets, killing anyone in their sight. Then slowly, the people started
fighting back against the government. The government only began fighting back more, bombing
neighborhoods and towns, using chemical weapons, trying to use almost every possible way of
terrorizing the people into submission. Now the sides are mainly Assad, the Syrian President,
along with his regime, the government, fighting against the rebels who are made up of the
former protesters and people who hate Syrian's government. What at first was a peaceful
protest, soon became what we now know as the Syrian Civil War.
China is a friend and ally of Syria and does great trading with them. However, we have
chosen to remain impartial to the Syrian Civil War. We vetoed the UN's proposal to refer the
situation in Syria to the international criminal support because we are allies of Syria and will
stand by their side. We stand by them because we want our financial ties with Syria to be
maintained. Syria is an important trading market for us. We think that foreign countries shouldn't
meddle with Syria's internal affairs. That is between the Syrians, just like our controversies with
Tibet. We also don't want to repeat what had happened with Libya. In Libya, we didn't want to
UNSC Topic A
support the rebels who overthrew Muammad Gaddafi, but if we didn't, then we would lose some
of our financial ties with them. We made up 11% of Libya's oil exports. If we supported the
rebels, we would be in trouble, but if we didn't our economy would go down. We don't want to
repeat the same thing with Syria, which is why we are staying on the sidelines. We want a
political solution for Syria, not a violent solution where we attack them, our allies. "A political
solution is always the only realistic means to resolve the Syria issue," Foreign Minister Wang Yi
said. As Yun Sun of the Brookings Institution said, "[China has] formulated a far more
sophisticated hedging strategy [when it comes to Syria]. Rather than siding with either Assad or
the opposition and standing aside to 'wait and see', Beijing is actively betting on both." However,
we support one of the U.N.'s decisions to try to eliminate Syria's chemical weapons.
One of our solution was stated by the Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Jiang Yu. He said,
"China believes that when it comes to properly handling the current Syrian situation, it is the
correct direction and major approach to resolve the internal differences through political
dialogue and maintain its normal stability as well as the overall stability and security of the
Middle East. The future of Syria should be independently decided by the Syrian people
themselves free from external interference. We hope the international community continues to
play a constructive role in this regard." It is our solution and belief that we should allow Syria to
handle this problem on their own, the only interference being is that we try to get them to stop
using chemical weapons. We have also had a talk with them, telling them that they should
reform the government in the will of the Syrian people. All we want is for Syria to figure out their
own problems themselves and for the U.N. to help get rid of chemical weapons in Syria. That is
our only request and proposal.
UNSC Topic A
Works Cited
Fisher, Max. "9 Questions about Syria You Were Too Embarrassed to Ask." Washington Post.
The Washington Post, 29 Aug. 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2014.
"Foreign Involvement in the Syrian Civil War." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 7 Dec. 2014.
Web. 10 Dec. 2014.
"International Reactions to the Syrian Civil War." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 14 Nov.
2014. Web. 10 Dec. 2014.
Sotloff, Steven. "China's Libya Problem." The Diplomat. The Diplomat, 14 Mar. 2012. Web. 10
Dec. 2014.
"United Nations Security Council Resolution 2118." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 29 Nov.
2014. Web. 10 Dec. 2014.
Yan, Holly, Mariano Castillo, Catherine E. Shoichet, Ben Brumfield, and Joe Sterling. "Syria
Allies: Why Russia, Iran and China Are Standing by the Regime." CNN. Cable News
Network, 29 Aug. 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2014.
UNSC Topic A
Submitted by:
South Korea
The major concern within the country of Syria is how it is going to handle the
growing concerns surrounding the "terrorist" group the Islamic State Of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)
. ISIS is a terrorist group that threatens a very wide range of countries within the surrounding
region. In Syria, almost three million have fled the border, says BBC news. Many citizens
are fleeing Syria because of the massive danger that they have to live with. There are many
different reasons ISIS may be attacking various groups. ISIS could be threatening and
attacking various religious groups, money laundering, drug trafficking and illegal shipments
of guns and weapons. Catholic league president Bill Donohue, stated to CNS news that " I
would say they're actually worse than the North Koreans at this point." This statement shows
how bad ISIS is compared to North Koreas desire to create and possibly use nuclear
weapons. Some say that if or when ISIS has the chance to purchase and possess the
technology of North Koreas nuclear weapons, the U.S. would be in massive danger. "If we
discover that [ISIS] had gotten possession of nuclear weapon, and we had to run an operation
to get it out of their hands, then yes." President Barack Obama told reports in Brisbane,
Australia. He would order the troops to go war with ISIS. President Obama " does not want
to send his troops to fight ISIS period." But the statement before points out that he would
send them for the protection of his citizens. (ISIS does not have possession of nuclear
weapons, the plan of sending troops is a if they receive the nuclear weapons.)
UNSC Topic A
ISIS doesn't just threaten Iraq and Syria they threaten many other countries such as Russia
and the U.S. The U.S is protecting their citizens by, sending air strikes at ISIS grounds.
President Obama told CNN that "if it was necessary he will send troops overseas to defend
against ISIS."
This statement brings up the fact that ISIS might cause us to begin war against them.
Russia is currently defending itself from ISIS. But Russia is also willing to send weapons to
anyone that asks. That statement shows that Russia is willing to help and defend themselves
against ISIS. ISIS is threatening many other countries as well, such as Britain, France,
Germany, and Italy. That is only a couple others. All of these countries are protecting
themselves against ISIS. In addition ISIS joining other terrorist groups could cause, massive
problems thought the world.
As the result of this information South Korea and the UN are hoping to end the
terrorist group ISIS endeavors and ensure the safety of all people again. It is our
recommendation that the UN helps protects the borders of sovereign countries that have seen
a dramatic increase in arms and troops moving across their borders. We would also
encourage the UN to help fight the financial support that ISIS receives from various
terrorists’ acts. Therefore over the next months and years, the UN is hoping to help protect
against ISIS and hopefully stopping ISIS.
UNSC Topic A
Resources
Marcelino, Ueslei. Fact-Box where G20 members stand on military action against Syria.
Reuters, Saturday September 7, 2013 7:40 am. N.D.
http://in.reuters.com/article/2013/09/07/syria-crisis-g-idINDEE98600P20130907
Smith, Alexander. Russia tells Iraq its 'ready' to support fight against ISIS. NBCNews.com,
September 26 2014, 5:58 am. N.D http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/isis-terror/russia-tellsiraq-its-ready-support-fight-against-isis-n212136
CNN. ISIS fast facts. CNN library, Monday November 17, 2014 12:14 pm. N.D.
http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/08/world/isis-fast-facts/
Dwyer, Devin. If ISIS gets nukes, Obama vows to send troops into Iraq or Syria. ABCNews.
November 17, 2014 4:28pm. N.D. http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/obama-order-us-troopscombat-isis-nuclear-weapon/story?id=26976710
Saunders, Paul. Russia's role in the fight against ISIS. Al-monitor.com. October 6, 2014.
N.D. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/10/russia-isis-syria-s300-missilesassad.html#
UNSC Topic A
Russia
Since March of 2011, simple and peaceful protests against Syrian president Bashar al-Assad have
grown into a full fledged civil war. After the government’s violent crackdown against the protests, rebels
began fighting back. By July, a loosely organized army called the Free Syrian Army was mustered. This
army joined the opposition in the fight against the regime. The rebels demanded that president Bashar
al-Assad step down from power. He refused and sent thousands of troops to stop these outbreaks. Over
the past three years, many other fighting forces from Lebanon, Iraq, and Iran have also entered the
fighting which has complicated and worsened the situation. The U.N. estimates that over 6.5 million
people are now internally displaced and at least 3 million Syrians are refugees in neighboring countries.
Russia has a long and friendly history with Bashar al-Assad, but it is not taking sides in the Syrian
conflict. While Russia and China both voted down two UN resolutions seeking to condemn and sanction
the Assad government between October 2011 and February 2012, Russia is seeking a political solution.
In Vladimir Putin’s own words from his op-ed in the New York Times on September 11, 2013, “From the
outset, Russia has advocated peaceful dialogue enabling Syrians to develop a compromise plan for their
own future. We are not protecting the Syrian government, but international law. We need to use the
United Nations Security Council and believe that preserving law and order in today’s complex and
turbulent world is one of the few ways to keep international relations from sliding into chaos.” Russia
insists that no countries, particularly the U.S., be allowed to bypass the UN by taking any military action
in Syria without Security Council approval.
As further proof of Russia’s leadership role in working to solve the Syrian crisis, we worked with
the U.S. to avoid ineffective military force against Syria by agreeing to lead the process to destroy Syria’s
chemical weapons arsenal in a U.N. security resolution on September 28, 2013. Destruction of the
weapons began on October 6, 2013. As a result, the U.S. led airstrikes that were threatened as
punishment for a deadly chemical weapons attack in Syria, which we believe the rebels were behind, are
indefinitely on hold.
Going forward, Russia’s position continues to be that the Syrian crisis will be best solved through
diplomatic efforts and we will continue to be world leaders in that process. Russia is paying close
attention to Lebanon since it has absorbed at least one million refugees from Syria and according to
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov,”We will support efforts of the Lebanese army and law
enforcement agencies which have lately been taking important efforts to restore order and counter
Jihadists.”. Lavrov also reports that the removal of chemical weapons from Syria is going well with 86%
being destroyed. We also strongly support the 3rd round of negotiations between Syria’s government
and opposition and believe they should be held as soon as possible.
UNSC Topic A
Bibliography:
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http://nationalinterest.org/feature/the-isis-chronicles-history-10895
http://www.usaid.gov/crisis/syria
http://www.mercycorps.org/articles/turkey-iraq-jordan-lebanon-syria/quick-facts-what-youneed-know-about-syria-crisis
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/09/12/russias-position-on-syria-isall-about-constraining-america/
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/12/opinion/putin-plea-for-caution-from-russia-onsyria.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/un-documents/syria/
http://www.un.org/en/sc/documents/resolutions/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia%27s_role_in_the_Syrian_Civil_War
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-23876085
http://sputniknews.com/voiceofrussia/news/2014_04_24/Humanitarian-aid-to-Syrian-refugeesnot-enough-system-approach-needed-Lavrov-8720/
UNSC Topic A
Submitted by:
Ukraine
Syria has lately been the subject of major conflicts. It all started in March 2011 in Deraa,
where 15 teenagers vandalized a school with anti-government graffiti. They were arrested and
tortured. Because of the torturing, pro-democracy protests began and security forces began
shooting demonstrators. Nationwide protests began because of the security forces. These protests
were against President Bashar al-Assad. Hundreds of thousands of people were protesting. The
country erupted into a civil war between people for and against Assad. In 2012, the civil war had
spread to the major cities of Damascus and Aleppo. Almost 200,000 people have been killed in
the conflicts, according to bbc.com. Because of the war, Islamist and jihadist groups have taken
over cities and killed thousands of people. The most powerful jihadist group, Islamic State (ISIS)
has claimed large areas of territory in Iraq and Syria. Half of Syria's population (9.5 million) has
been displaced by the civil war and ISIS. Over 3 million are refugees and have been forced to
flee to neighboring countries.
Some things have been done to prevent the actions of ISIS and to assist the displaced
citizens of Syria. Syria's neighbors Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, and Egypt have provided
refuge for over 3 million Syrians. 6.5 million, however, are internally displaced and have not
been able to flee from their war-torn country. The UNHCR stated that 28 countries have agreed
to take in more than 100,000 refugees. According to aljazeera.com, They hope that those
countries can eventually resettle about 130,000 refugees that are currently living in Syria's
neighboring countries. The ISIS situation is being taken care of by the United States and Iran, 2
enemy countries who many people would not expect to be fighting the same enemy. They have
been launching air strikes on areas controlled by ISIS.
UNSC Topic A
Ukraine suggests that more countries agree to house Syrian refugees. We have strong ties
with Syria since we are trading partners. The war is made up of people who support Assad and
people who are against him. The torturing and security forces firing on protestors has caused
many people to believe that Assad is a tyrant. We agree. We want to resolve the conflicts in
Syria by suggesting that they set up a new government with the help of other countries. We do
believe that torturing people and firing at protestors is clearly unjust. Syria should be a safe place
to live instead of a war-torn nation. We know that the UN cannot force anything on countries but
we believe that the 2 sides in the Civil war should work out their differences in a nonviolent
manner. ISIS and other terrorist organizations, on the other hand, should be dealt with by means
of force since they pose as violent threats to the safety of the people. Eventually, they can be
weakened and defeated just like their predecessor, al-Qaeda. If countries join together to help
Syria negotiate peace, we can end the war once and for all.
Bibliography:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/16979186
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-26116868
http://www.hrw.org/print/news/2014/11/10/ukraine-syria-incendiary-weapons-threatencivilians
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2014/12/countries-vow-double-syriarefugees-intake-201412104534681750.html
http://blogs.reuters.com/great-debate/2014/12/10/its-a-weird-war-when-iran-and-the-usare-bombing-the-same-country/
http://www.nationaljournal.com/daily/bashar-al-assad-a-tyrant-in-full-20130909
UNSC Topic A
Submitted by: United Kingdom
The problems involving terrorism in Syria will continue to involve the people of Syria
and surrounding countries due to mass murder and hostage situations caused by the ISIS
terrorists. The country will be allowed to use any force that it deems necessary to try and
rescue the hostages captured by these terrorists. The United Kingdom feels very strongly
about the counter-terrorism act in general. Sir Mark Lyall Grant, a member of the United
Kingdom stated, “United Kingdom remains committed to working with the Security Council
partners on the forthcoming resolutions to address present issues” like ISIS and the past
issues with Al Qaida. The United Kingdom feels that terrorism has reached new levels
with regards to how they carry out these terrorist acts. They have used computers,
missiles, and people to name a few. Mr.Wilson, a UNSC Member has stated “Terrorism
has now grown sophisticated” and that this country has seen it first-hand. The United
Kingdom feels strongly about stopping terrorist situations. According to Mr.Parham, a
member of the United Kingdom’s UNSC, “Terrorism continues to pose a grave threat to
international peace and security.” For example, look at all the recent videos of reporters
and captured military personnel. He also stated, “No member state can adequately respond
to the challenges of terrorism by acting alone. Only through continued cooperation will the
international community be able to tackle a problem that transcends geographical borders.”
A member of the United Kingdom, Mr. Tatham also stated “The United Kingdom supports
the Counter-Terrorism Committee's continuing cooperation with Member States.” If each
country could work with each other they would be able to be able to stop terrorism as a
whole.
I feel that the United Kingdom is a country with lots of power in the Security Council
and wants to have the counter-terrorism act at the top of their list. Also they are a country
with allies to help in this fight against terrorism in many countries including Syria. The
United Kingdom is one of many countries against terrorists and terrorist groups in foreign
countries and in their own countries.
The United Kingdom has many reasons for having the counter-terrorism act at the
top of their needs. Sir Emyr Jones Parry has also stated “The European Union places great
emphasis on the importance of the coordination and facilitation of technical assistance, and
we keenly anticipate the expansion of the CTED’s role in those areas. That the United
Kingdom feels strongly about the counter-terrorism act.
Works Cited
Dag Hammarskjöld Library Research Guides." Introduction. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2014.
"Security Council, SC, UNSC, Security, Peace, Sanctions, Veto, Resolution, President,
United Nations, UN, Peacekeeping, Peacebuilding, Conflict Resolution,
Prevention." UN News Center. UN, n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2014.
"UN|DPI — OD|Dag Hammarskjöld Library: Member States|On the Record." UN News
Center. UN, n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2014.
"United Nations - Counter-Terrorism - Legislationline." United Nations - Counter-Terrorism Legislationline. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2014.
UNSC Topic A
Submitted by: United States
The continuous incidents in Syria within the last 60 plus years have led the United State
to realize these issues and become involved in these situations. Some of these are:
ISIS and war between Syria and Israel. The United States has had to bring soldiers to
Syria to help with the warfare. If these issues go on any further these terrorist groups
and wars could spread and possibly lead to another World War. Due to these situations
the United States had voted on a cease-fire between Syria and Israel, twice in 1967. In
1962 the United States had voted yes on a resolution for armed incidents between Syria
and Israel. UNSC should work towards finding a resolution to ending ISIS and other
issues in Syria.
As of resolution 2178 of 2014 the UNSC is “emphasizing that terrorism cannot
and should not be associated with any religion, nationality or civilization.” Syria should
evacuate all people and send them to refugee camps. Other countries should help Syria
by sending soldiers, food, clothes, emergency supplies, and etc. ISIS has beheaded
multiple Americans and that is only a little piece of all the murders they have committed.
UNSC needs to have all countries collaborating to end ISIS and to send over arms to
defend themselves and possibly end ISIS altogether. Another idea of how to end some
of these issues are to arm Syrians so they can help defend themselves and have
countries teach Syrians how to work them. Countries could even help fund arms or
supply kits.
As said before the United States has voted for stopping ISIS. There is so much
more UNSC and other countries can do to help the innocent Syrians. The United States
has helped Syria already and other countries need to offer aid and assistance in helping
the innocent Syrians. Again, countries can send help and basic needs, such as: food,
water, blankets, tents, cooking supplies, etc. Much more can be done and the United
Nation Security Council can not stress this enough. The United States pleas to other
countries for help to end these problems. The United States is the biggest single state
donor to humanitarian aid to the Syrian crisis and is willing to do all necessary actions to
help Syrians and put a stop to ISIS and other situations.
Works Cited
CNN. Cable News Network, n.d. Web. 5 Dec. 2014. http://www.cnn.com/
"Welcome to the United Nations: It's Your World." UN News Center. UN, n.d. Web. 25
Nov. 2014. http://www.un.org/
Goldman, Greg Miller Adam, and Julie Tate. Washington Post. The Washington Post,
08 Dec. 2014. Web. 05 Dec. 2014.http://www.washingtonpost.com/
"Office of the Historian." Office of the Historian. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2014.
https://history.state.gov/
"Taking Note - The Editorial Page Blog - NYTimes.com." Taking Note - The Editorial
Page Blog - NYTimes.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Dec. 2014.
http://takingnote.blogs.nytimes.com/
UNSC Topic A