HBHS Novice - hbhsmun

UNGA
United Nations General Assembly – Plenary Session
topics:
 Nuclear DPRK
 Terrorism in the Middle East
Chaired by the Honorable
Grant Feiwell, Katherine Chatman, and Paula Tansescu
S i n c e
HBHS
April 25th, 2015
1 9 7 8
Novice
hbhsmun.webs.com
Huntington Beach High School Model United Nations
General Assembly – Plenary
April 25th, 2015
Welcome to United Nations General Assembly!
Hello delegates! My name is Paula Tanasescu and I will be one of
your chairs for General Assembly at the Novice Conference. I am a
sophomore at Huntington Beach High School and being part of MUN has
been one of my best decisions in high school so far. Outside of MUN, I also
make part of the Science and Math Academic Competition Team, and
volunteer as a candy striper at Hoag. If you have any questions, feel free to
contact our email: [email protected], where you will turn in your
position paper as well. I can’t wait to see the amazing debate, with the very
current topics we have chosen, and all the great solutions you guys will
present. Make sure to stay on policy. See you guys in committee!
Hello delegates! My name is Katherine Chatman and I will be one of
your chairs for General Assembly. I am currently a junior at Huntington
Beach High School and this is my third year in MUN. I am also apart of the
Musical Theater Department in our Academy for the Performing Arts. I feel
that MUN has definitely one of the best decisions I have made during high
school, because it has helped me not only become more aware of what is
going on in the world around us but also helped me become a more
confident speaker and performer. I can’t wait to see all of you in committee!
Hello delegates! My name is Grant Feiwell and I will be one of your
chairs at the Novice Conference in the General Assembly. I am a junior at
Huntington Beach High School and this is my third year in the Model United
Nations Program. MUN has been one of the greatest life experiences,
opening my eyes to the world and helping me become a better speaker.
Outside of MUN I am a member of the Associated Student Body and I play
both school and club lacrosse. As the General Assembly and the main
policymaking and representative organ of the United Nations, it will be your
job to establish fundamental solutions of peace and security for the topics
that will be discussed. See you all in committee!
Position Papers must be submitted to your Dais’s central email no later than 11:59 PM on
April 19th, 2015 to be considered for a Research Award. Research Awards will be presented
during committee; please be sure to follow the HBHSMUN Position Paper format available on
our website.
2 Your Dais’s central email is: [email protected]
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General Assembly – Plenary
April 25th, 2015
I. Nuclear DPRK
Topic Background
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). In
1993, after the International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA) charged North Korea with
violating the NPT due to the fact that they
did not comply with the safeguard
agreements by the IAEA, they demanded
special inspections to be carried out in two
North Korean nuclear waste storage sites;
this demand was denied and furthermore
met with hostility by North Korea who
threatened to abandon the NPTvi. In 1991,
the United States declared its withdrawal of
nuclear weapons from South Korea; this led
to North Korea and South Korea signing the
Joint Declaration on the Denuclearization of
the Korean Peninsula. This declaration
bound both sides to halt testing, production,
manufacturing, or usage of nuclear
weapons and set up bilateral inspections,
but it ceased to be implementedvii. In 1994,
the US and North Korea signed the Agreed
Framework, which led to the United States
of America supplying North Korea with lightwater reactors in exchange for international
cooperation with the IAEA and its
safeguards agreements, while remaining
part of the NPT, and freezing some
facilities viii . Panic struck the international
community, when in 1998 North Korea
launched a rocket that flew over Japan
proving their capabilities. From that year
on, talks have been held between the
United States and the DPRK. In January
2002, George W. Bush labeled Iran, North
Korea, and Iraq an “axis of evil,” and later in
October of the same year US intelligence
confronted North Korea on their violation of
the 1994 nuclear agreement by operating a
nuclear weapons project. Within the same
Nuclear development is a goal that
many countries strive to achieve. While
nuclear weapons are desired by nations,
their capabilities are devastating. A nuclear
weapon is “the most dangerous weapon on
earth,” as the United Nations Office for
Disarmament Affairs explains, with the
capability to destroy whole cities, killing
millions and damaging the surrounding
environment. i Beginning in 1963, North
Korea asked the Soviet Union for help in
developing nuclear weapons, and later in
1964 pursued China for the same request,
due to the nuclear weapon movement by
the United States of America into South
Korea, however their requests were rejected
by both nationsii. Nevertheless, North Korea
and the Soviet Union signed an agreement
on peaceful use of nuclear energy and
development that provided North Korea with
Soviet assistance in the training of nuclear
scientists and the help to develop a nuclear
research complexiii. The Yongbyon Nuclear
Research center rose from this North
Korean and USSR cooperation, which now
stores their first nuclear research reactor,
the IRT-2000 provided by the Soviets, and
is one of the four major nuclear-related
organizations
under
the
General
iv
Department of Atomic Energy . Beginning in
the 1980s, North Korea took a leap on their
nuclear development program by initiating
their
uranium
fabrications
while
simultaneously testing high explosives that
are necessary for building the triggering
mechanism for a nuclear bomb v . North
Korea’s international nuclear recognition
journey began in 1985 when they joined the
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General Assembly – Plenary
April 25th, 2015
year US claimed that North Korea admitted
to having highly enriched uranium
programs, which led to North Korean
retaliation in which they lifted their freeze on
their nuclear facilities, expelled IAEA
inspectors, and withdrew from the NPTix. In
2004 the Six-Party talks among China,
South Korea, Japan, North Korea, and the
United States began, with no major
outcomes. In 2006 North Korea conducted
their first nuclear test. Immediately the
international community took steps in the
Security Council by passing Resolution
1718, condemning North Korea’s actions
and imposing sanctions on the country. In
2007 during another round of Six- Party
talks North Korea agreed to shut down its
nuclear reactor in exchange for aid which
led the US to unfreeze $25 million of North
Korea’s funds it was named the Second
Action Plan. After countless failures to
comply and submit data to the international
community, tension continues with no
further progress. Presently North Korea has
continued its nuclear development and
testing, threatening the safety of nearby
countries such as Japan and South Korea
with the launch of missiles off their coast.
Other sanctions that were enforced by this
resolution intended to prevent the DPRK
from expanding their nuclear program.
These sanctions include: trade bans on
nuclear technology, large-scale weaponry,
as well as luxury goods. The only issue with
this resolution was that some countries did
not support this resolution and therefore did
not follow its guidelines. China was a
country that did not support this resolution
and as a result, the DPRK continued to
trade with China. In order to attempt at
monitoring, the Security Council put in place
a group of 15 members of the Security
Council that were to review the sanctions
and violations of the sanctions and provide
a report every 90 days.
The next resolution, Security Council
Resolution 1874, was implemented after
North Korea performed another nuclear test
in 2009. This new resolution was put into
place in the attempt to strengthen the
previous resolution. The Security Council
urged the DPRK to return to Six Party Talks
and negotiations. They also strongly urged
North Korea to rejoin the Non-Proliferation
Treaty. This resolution expanded the
embargoes placed on the DPRK, while also
allowing states to search exports and
imports from North Korea that were within
their country on land, sea, or air if they were
suspected to be associated with their
nuclear program development. In order to
regulate this resolution, the Security Council
established a panel of seven experts that
would assist the sanctions committee.
After North Korea launched a
satellite in December of 2012, the Security
Council unanimously agreed to implement
Resolution 2087 in 2013. This resolution
reminded the DPRK of their obligation to
completely abandon their nuclear program
United Nations Involvement
As of 2013, the United Nations
Security Council has three major resolutions
in place that deal with the nuclear issue
North Korea. These were put into place
after the DPRK continued to develop its
nuclear program. The first resolution,
Security Council Resolution 1718, was
passed in 2006 after the DPRK nuclear
tests. This resolution was put in place to
prohibit North Korea from performing any
further testing of nuclear or ballistic missiles.
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General Assembly – Plenary
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Taepodong missiles xii . Most recently, a
satellite analysis suggested in the summer
of 2014, the DPRK is creating submerged
missile launch platform. North Korea
possessed more than 1,000 missiles with
varying capabilities. Short-range missiles
pose a threat to neighboring nations
including South Korea. The short-range
missiles include the KN-02, which can reach
up to 120 km, as well as the Hwasong-5
and Hwasong-6, which have longer ranges
of up to 500 km. The Nodong missile is the
next step in North Korea’s missile program.
This missile has the range of 1,000 km, with
the potential to target Japan according to
the International Institute for Strategic
Studies. Lastly, the strongest missile that
the DPRK possesses to international
knowledge is the Taepodong-2 or
Paektusan-2, with a range varying from
5000-15,000 km xiii . Unlike Iran, which has
demonstrated that it hopes to establish
better international relations, North Korea is
intentionally isolated, explicating their lack
of fear of losing allies by progressing their
nuclear and missile reserves. As North
Korea’s arsenal continues to expand, the
nation stands as a great threat to the
international community as a whole, and it
will not stop until it is seen as the world’s
dominant power.
and be cooperative with the IAEA. It also
promised that if North Korea did not halt
future programs and stop what they were
working on currently, they would take
stronger actions. Moreover, this resolution
gave permission to countries to destroy any
products or materials that were suspected
of going to the DPRK to help further their
nuclear programx.
Case Study: Missile Crisis
Since 1965, when Kim Il Sung desired to
seek an indigenous ballistic missile
production capability, 30% of the North
Korean state budget went towards fueling
its missile program and military. North
Korea has tested nuclear explosive devices
in 2006, 2009, and 2013, making them a
great threat to the international communityxi.
Although nuclear, biological, and chemical
weapons are prevalent within the DPRK,
North Korea has served as a major exporter
of complete ballistic missile systems since
the collapse of the Soviet Union. The
missile crisis seems to pose the biggest risk
to the people of North Korea and the world
as a whole. It began in April 1984, when
North Korea tested a Scud-B ballistic
Missile. Since then, North Korea has
deployed over 600 Scud missile variants,
200 Rodong missiles, and 50 Musdan and
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General Assembly – Plenary
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II. Terrorism in the Middle East
Topic Background
This group was a radical Shia group that
was formed in Lebanon and was severely
anti-Western and Anti-Israeli. Hezbollah
was responsible for many terrorist attacks
against the United States such as the
suicide truck bombing of the Embassy in
1983. In the 1990s, Osama Bin Laden
created a transnational
mujahedeen
network called Al Qaeda. This group’s goal
was to “reestablish the Muslim State”,
overthrow corrupt governments in the
Middle East, and remove the Israelis and
the Americans. In 1998, Bin Laden stated
that it was the duty of the Muslims to kill all
American citizens whether they are civilians
or militaryxvi. One of the most prominent and
oldest Islamist groups in the world was
formed in Egypt in 1987, it was known as
the Muslim Brotherhood. This group’s goal
is to dismantle all governments across the
world that are non-Islamic and implement
Shari’a Law—a goal that is clearly stated in
their credo, “God is our objective, the Koran
is our Constitution, The Prophet is our
leader, struggle (jihad) is our way, and
death for the sake God is the highest of our
aspirations.” The Muslim Brotherhood is a
strong supporter of jihad; their founder
Hasan al-Banna stated himself, “Jihad is an
obligation from Allah on every Muslim and
cannot be ignored nor evaded It is the
nature of Islam to dominate, not to be
dominated, to impose its laws on all nations
and to extend its power to the entire
planetxvii.”
The “Islamic Resistance Movement,”
also known as Hamas, was formed in
Palestine. Hamas is a branch of the Muslim
Brotherhood and their goal is to destroy
Terrorism, according to the Oxford
Dictionary, is the use of violence and
intimidation in the pursuit of political aimsxiv.
It is also associated with power, gaining
power, and using it to achieve political
change xv . Such a definition of terrorism is
the epitome of what is currently occurring in
the Middle East; however, this is not a
recent occurrence, as it has been an
ongoing issue since 1968. The modern idea
of what international terrorism is began in
1968 when there was a movement of
Marxist and Anti-Western ideas throughout
the Middle East. During this time, groups
such as Al Fatah and the Popular Front for
the Liberation of Palestine started to target
innocent civilians outside of their typical
zones of conflict. These radical Palestinian
groups were able to become international
due to modern communication and
transportation technology, upon which they
started launching hijackings, bombings, and
kidnappings—even kidnapping and killing
the Israeli athletes in the 1972 Munich
Olympic
Games.
These
Palestinian
extremists were able to create a
transnational networks comprised of various
sponsors such as the Soviet Union, various
Arab nations, as well as various criminal
organizations. From 1979-1989, there was a
large increase in terrorist groups; this was
partly due to the Soviet invasion of
Afghanistan and the anti-mujahedeen war
that followed. One of these groups that
became prominent during this time was
known as Hezbollah, who were the first to
use suicide bombers in the Middle East.
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General Assembly – Plenary
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Israel. Suicide bombers throughout the
1990’s bombarded Israel and from 2007 on
they controlled the Gaza Stripxviii. In June of
2014, a splinter group of Al Qaeda became
more prevalent in North Iraq; they are today
known as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria
(ISIS). Their goal is to create a caliphate in
all the Sunni areas throughout Syria and
Iraq. This group has already taken over a
large amount of land, controlling territory
from the Mediterranean side of Syria to the
south of Baghdad. Moreover, ISIS has
become notorious for its killings and
executions. In August of 2014, they posted
a video to YouTube of the beheading of
American journalist James Foley. Later, in
September, ISIS posted another video of
themselves executing American journalists
Steven Sotloff. In March of 2015, Boko
Haram pledged his allegiance to ISIS;
therefore, ISIS has now spread to Northern
Africaxix.
those areas. Although the conflict was
suppressed, it did not prevent the further
expansion of violence throughout the Middle
East. Furthermore, the Syria-Lebanon
conflict also served as a major spark to the
upsurge of terrorism in the region xxii . As a
result, the Security Council passed
Resolution
1701,
which
addressed
Hezbollah terrorist attacks on Israel.
Nuclear terror served its first appearance in
the Iran Iraq War seen through the
implementation of SC/Res/612 in 1988,
which condemned the use of chemical
weapons in both nations xxiii . Furthermore,
SC/Res/1762, called for a mandate for
weapon inspectors in Iraq for the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
and the United Nations Monitoring
Verification and Inspection Commission
(UNMOVIC)xxiv.
Libya has also been targeted as a
major source of the terrorism growth in the
Middle East. This failure of compliance
began when Libya failed to Cooperate in
Pan Am Flight 103 Investigations xxv . Most
recently, Iran has become one of the largest
international threats due to its Nuclear
Proliferation. Although the UNSC has
passed Resolution 1696, 1737, 1747, 1803,
and1929, they have all failed in freezing the
Nuclear Proliferation and International threat
that Iran poses. The General Assembly has
adopted a multitude of Counter-terrorism
conventions including the Convention on the
Prevention and Punishment of Crimes
against Internationally Protected Persons
and the International Convention against the
Taking of Hostages xxvi . Recently, through
the addition of the framework of the Ad Hoc
Committee on Terrorism as well as the Sixth
committee, there has been great progress in
regards to counter-terrorism including the
International
Convention
for
the
Suppression of Terrorist Bombings and the
International
Convention
for
the
Suppression
of
Acts
of
Nuclear
Terrorism xxvii . Although great action has
been taken, terrorism in the Middle East
United Nations Involvement
The United Nations approach to the
Middle East began in 1947 when it decided
the future government of Palestine.
However, the first real act towards counter
terrorism was seen in 1948, through
GA/Res/194, which called for the protection
of holy places including Jerusalem and
Nazarethxx. This action was taken in order
to insure the security of these religious
settlements from acts of terror by Arab and
Jewish extremists following the Arab-Israeli
War. In addition to this conflict, Security
Council Resolution 242 was passed
following Israeli capture of the Golan
Heights, West Banks, Gaza Strip, and the
Sinai Peninsulaxxi. As a result, Israeli armed
forces were called to withdraw territories
and respect the political independence of
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General Assembly – Plenary
April 25th, 2015
remains a high threat to the people of the
Middle
East
and
the
international
community as a whole. It is vital that the UN
take greater action against strengthened
terrorist groups including the Sunni terrorist
organization ISIS, Al-Qaeda, Boko Haram,
Hamas, and a multitude of other radical
groups in order to maintain international
security.xxviii
Steven Sotloff, British aid worker David
Haines, British humanitarian aid worker
Alan Henning, American aid worker Peter
Kassig, as well as the live stream video of
Jordanian pilot, Moaz al-Kasasbeh, being
burned alive, and the execution of 20
Egyptian Copts.xxx Within the year 2014 ISIS
has claimed over 5,000 Iraqi civilians’ lives,
as well as a total of 24,000 lives or injuries
according to a UN released report.xxxi In a
recent report released March 12th, ISIS
announced its acceptance of Boko Haram’s
allegiance pledge. xxxii Along with this, ISIS
has also been able to feed off of the
instability of the Syrian civil war, gaining
utmost support from oppressed Sunni in the
land who were being targeted by president
Al-Assad and his use of chemical
weapons xxxiii . With more power, controlled
land, and majority support, ISIS is strongly
developing and strengthening through Syria
and Iraqxxxiv. ISIS is not only pursuing the
conversion of every person across the
Middle East and the Levant, but it is also
destroying antiques in Iraq, wiping out over
century old statues xxxv . Beheadings,
recruitment of child soldiers, executions of
women and children, and persecution of
non-Sunni followers are all the extreme
measures that ISIS will continue to carry out
until their ultimate goal of a caliphate
including the Middle East, Balkan regions
and Eastern Europe is complete xxxvi.
Case Study: ISIS
The international community has
been battling terrorism within the Middle
East for more than 50 years. While there
are many small terrorist groups within the
Middle East that conduct suicide bombings
and random attacks on civilians, the
international community has shifted its focus
to the most horrendous group yet. The
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS),
an AL Qaeda based terror organization, has
recently made headlines throughout the
world, with active execution of war crimes
and human rights violations such as:
televised beheadings, executions of women
and children, and forceful Sharia Law
enforcement. ISIS possesses over 2 billion
dollars worth of assets, and controls several
key cities in Syria such as Raqqa where Isis
controls over half of Syria’s oil assets and
Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city. xxix
Currently ISIS is making headlines with the
beheadings of American-Israeli journalist
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General Assembly – Plenary
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Questions to Consider
Nuclear DPRK:
1. How can the international community take proactive steps towards resolving the human
rights situation in North Korea, when the DPRK threatens nuclear warfare towards
humanitarian aid groups who are not recognized by the government?
2. Should China’s role in the DPRK be considered unlawful? What actions, if any should be
taken against them?
3. How can the international community drive North Korea to denuclearize without signing
the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty (NPT)?
4. While many agreements have been drafted, they have failed to be implemented. How
can countries come up with solutions and successfully implement them without
breaching the sovereignty of North Korea?
Terrorism in the Middle East:
1. How are the actions of terrorist groups, specifically ISIS, affecting the Middle East and
the world?
2. How does your country deal with terrorism, and what is their involvement internationally
on battling these groups?
3. Does your country support the Al-Assad regime? Does it support any Middle Eastern
countries that have terrorism prevalent in them? How does this impact your solutions?
4. What solutions can lead to the stabilization of the region and the end of radical groups?
i
http://www.un.org/disarmament/WMD/Nuclear/
ii
http://www.japanfocus.org/-Lee-Jae_Bong/3053
iii
http://www.nti.org/country-profiles/north-korea/nuclear/
http://www.nti.org/facilities/777/
v
http://www.nti.org/country-profiles/north-korea/nuclear/
iv
vi
http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/29/world/asia/north-korea-nuclear-timeline---fast-facts/
vii
http://www.nti.org/treaties-and-regimes/joint-declaration-south-and-north-korea-denuclearizationkorean-peninsula/
viii
http://www.nti.org/media/pdfs/aptagframe.pdf?_=1316553697&_=1316553697
ix
http://www.nti.org/country-profiles/north-korea/nuclear/
x
http://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/UN-Security-Council-Resolutions-on-North-Korea
xi
http://www.nti.org/country-profiles/north-korea/
http://www.nti.org/country-profiles/north-korea/delivery-systems/
xiii
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-17399847
xiv
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/terrorism
xii
xv
http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/h/hoffman-terrorism.html
xvi
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/target/etc/modern.html
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General Assembly – Plenary
April 25th, 2015
xvii
http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/printgroupProfile.asp?grpid=6386
http://www.dw.de/islamist-terror-groups-in-africa-and-middle-east/a-17739751
xix
http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/08/world/isis-fast-facts/
xx
http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/C758572B78D1CD0085256BCF0077E51A
xxi
http://unispal.un.org/unispal.nsf/0/7D35E1F729DF491C85256EE700686136
xxii
http://www.irinnews.org/report/95724/analysis-bound-by-conflict-the-syrian-lebanon-crisis
xxiii
http://www.un.org/press/en/2006/sc8808.doc.htm
xxiv
http://www.cfr.org/iraq/un-security-council-resolution-1762-iraq/p27590
xxv
http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/26/world/pan-am-flight-103-fast-facts/
xxvi
http://www.un.org/en/terrorism/ga.shtml
xxvii
http://www.un.org/en/sc/ctc/docs/conventions/Conv11.pdf
xxviii
http://www.dw.de/islamist-terror-groups-in-africa-and-middle-east/a-17739751
xxix
http://www.cnn.com/interactive/2014/09/world/isis-explained/
xxx http://time.com/3718470/isis-copts-egypt/
xviii
xxxi
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/03/world/middleeast/un-reports-at-least-26000-civilian-
casualties-in-iraq-conflict-this-year.html?_r=0
xxxii
Surf City Position Paper
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2015/03/13/isis-accepts-boko-haram-allegiance-
pledge/
xxxiii
Surf city position paper- Paula Tanasescu
Surf City Position Paper- Paula Tanasescu
xxxv
http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/26/middleeast/isis-antiquities-vandalism/
xxxiv
xxxvi
http://www.bustle.com/articles/38192-what-does-isis-want-exactly-the-terrorists-stated-goal-
has-been-made-clear/ Surf City Position Paper- Paula
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