Letter from Secretary General
Hello again, I am Sreekar Reddy, a fourth year mechanical engineering student of CBIT, I was introduced to MUNs at CBIT beginning as a director in the 2011 edition and currently serving my second term as Secretary General of this great conference , needless to say it is indeed an honour and a privilege. For two years we have stood up and redefined MUN conferences in India, For two years we have led the way with innovation. We wanted to deliver a phenomenon We wanted to be the difference. For two editions now we have been and done all that but we come back for the third time promising the same and even more. When a team creates something spectacular it leaves a greater responsibility in the hands of the next team, it leaves a legacy, a legacy that must continue. Moving forward with this responsibility on our shoulders we would assure the participants who have supported us since 2011 that the best is yet to come and to those who have missed the last two editions we would like to tell you that it’s never too late to be a part of something that shall become a collection of memories to cherish. To put it simply, hello delegate, welcome to CBITMUN. Sreekar Reddy Secretary General CBITMUN
ABOUT THE SECURITY COUNCIL
Security Council was set up on 17th January 1946. The only council whose resolutions are legally binding( if made under chapter VII of the UN charter) it has 4 chapters dedicated to it in the UN charter. The Security Council has 15 members. There are 5 permanent members and 10 non-‐ permanent members. The five permanent members are People's Republic of China (PRC), French Republic, Russian Federation, United Kingdom and United States of America. Each of the permanent members have a veto power also known as the great power of unanimity. Under this power a veto prevents adoption of the proposal even if it acquires the required number of votes which is 9 votes. Under the chapter VI of the UN charter the Security Council can investigate any situation which can cause international threat. The council may thus recommend resolutions so as to solve the disputes. Though these resolutions are not binding on UN members. But under chapter VII of the charter if there are any situations which involve breach of security or peace then the resolutions so passed under such circumstances are binding on the members of UN. Decisions taken under Chapter VII may include sanctions like economic and military sanctions. Also the council has some other powers like referring cases to THE ROME STATUE of The International Criminal Court, where the court does not have jurisdiction. The council can also
recommend the new secretary general to the general assembly. Article 29 of the UN charter sets out that the Security Council has the power to establish subsidiary organs, as needed for the performance of its functions. The presidency of the Council is held by each of the members in turn for one month, following the English alphabetical order of the Member States names. The presidency of the Council is held by each of the members in turn for one month, following the English alphabetical order of the Member States names. Article 30 of the UN charter also allows Security Council to have its own set of rules of procedure, and in 1946 the council adopted its own set of rules of procedure. The Repertoire of the Practice of the Security Council is an official publication of the United Nations whose primary purpose is to provide Member States, including those elected to serve on the Security Council, the United Nations system, academics and others with a source of information regarding the evolving practice of the Security Council on constitutional, procedural and substantive matters. The Repertoire provides comprehensive coverage of the Security Council’s interpretation and application of the United Nations Charter and its own Provisional Rules of Procedure. The publication also provides a summary, by agenda item, of the Security Council’s activities in the field of international peace and security. You are also advised to look into the Practice of the UN Security Council and how the Charter affects the same. This will be highly informative as to the inner workings of the SC and hence, debate on it.
Proof/Evidence in Council
Evidence or proof is acceptable from sources: 1. News Sources: a. REUTERS – Any Reuters article which clearly makes mention of the fact or is in contradiction of the fact being stated by a delegate in council. (http://www.reuters.com/ ) b. State operated News Agencies – These reports can be used in the support of or against the State that owns the News Agency. These reports, if credible or substantial enough, can be used in support of or against any Country as such but in that situation, they can be denied by any other country in the council. Some examples are, i. RIA Novosti (Russia) http://en.rian.ru/ ii. IRNA (Iran) http://www.irna.ir/ENIndex.htm iii. BBC (United Kingdom) http://www.bbc.co.uk/ iv. Xinhua News Agency and CCTV (P.R. China) http://cctvnews.cntv.cn/ 2. Government Reports: These reports can be used in a similar way as the State Operated News Agencies reports and can, in all circumstances, be denied by another country. However, a nuance is that a report that is being denied by a certain country can still be accepted by the Executive Board as credible information. Examples are,
i. Government Websites like the State Department of the United States of America http://www.state.gov/index.htm or the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation http://www.eng.mil.ru/en/index.htm ii. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of various nations like India (http://www.mea.gov.in/ ), People’s Republic of China (http://www.fmprc.gov.cn/eng/ ), France(http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/en/ ), Russian Federation(http://www.mid.ru/brp_4.nsf/main_eng ) iii. Permanent Representatives to the United Nations Reports http://www.un.org/en/members/ (Click on any country to get the website of the Office of its Permanent Representative. iv. Multilateral Organizations like the NATO (http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natolive/index.htm ), ASEAN (http://www.aseansec.org/ ), OPEC (http://www.opec.org/opec_web/en/ ), etc. 3. UN Reports: All UN Reports are considered are credible information or evidence for the Executive Board of the Security Council. i. UN Bodies: Like the SC(http://www.un.org/Docs/sc/ ), GA(http://www.un.org/en/ga/), HRC(http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/Pages/HRCIndex.aspx ) etc. ii. UN Affiliated bodies like the International Atomic Energy Agency (http://www.iaea.org/ ), World Bank (http://www.worldbank.org/ ), International Monetary Fund
(http://www.imf.org/external/index.htm ), International Committee of the Red Cross (http://www.icrc.org/eng/index.jsp ), etc. iii. Treaty Based Bodies like the Antarctic Treaty System (http://www.ats.aq/e/ats.htm ), the International Criminal Court (http://www.icc-‐cpi.int/Menus/ICC ) Under no circumstances will sources like Wikipedia (http://www.wikipedia.org/ ), Amnesty International (http://www.amnesty.org/ ), Human Rights Watch (http://www.hrw.org/ ) or newspapers like the Guardian (http://www.guardian.co.uk/ ), Times of India (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/ ), etc. be accepted.
SUEZ CANAL
Suez Canal is a sea-‐level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. It was opened in 1869 after 10 years of construction. When first built, the canal was 164 km (102 mi) long and 8 m (26 ft) deep. After multiple enlargements, the canal is 193.30 km (120.11 mi) long, 24 m (79 ft) deep and 205 meters (673 ft) wide as of 2010. It consists of the northern access channel of 22 km (14 mi), the canal itself of 162.25 km (100.82 mi) and the southern access channel of 9 km (5.6 mi).
The first modern attempts to build a canal came in the late 1700s when Napoleon Bonaparte conducted an expedition to Egypt. He believed that building a French controlled canal on the Isthmus of Suez would cause trade problems for the British as they would either have to pay dues to France or continue sending goods over land or around the southern part of Africa. Studies for Napoleon's canal plan began in 1799 but a miscalculation in measurement showed the sea levels between the Mediterranean and the Red Seas as being too different for a canal to be feasible and construction immediately stopped. In 1854 Ferdinand de Lesseps, a French former diplomat, persuaded the Viceroy of Egypt, Mohamed Said, to permit the construction of a shipping canal through the 100 miles of desert between Africa and Asia. A prospectus was circulated and on 20 December 1858 the Universal Company of the Suez Maritime Canal was constituted. Britain, which had regarded France's increased influence in this region with suspicion, declined the offer of shares and even organised a boycott resulting in a shortage of investors. Egypt therefore acquired 44% of the shares. Construction began on 25 April 1859 and the canal was opened in November 1869 complete with a statue of de Lesseps dominating the harbour. Said, who died in 1867, was succeeded by his nephew Ismail. In the first year of the canal's existence, some three-‐quarters of the vessels using it were British. By the mid 1870s, Ismail, who had set out to modernise Egypt, but had incurred massive debts, offered his country's shares in the canal for sale. British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli bought Egypt's shareholding for £4 million establishing Britain's influence in the running of this new and extremely important waterway.
SIGNIFICANCE OF SUEZ CANAL
The Suez Canal is considered to be the shortest link between the east and the west due to its unique geographic location; it is an important international navigation canal linking between the Mediterranean sea at Port said and the red sea at Suez .The unique geographical position of the Suez Canal makes it of special importance to the world and to Egypt as well. Advantages of the Suez Canal • • • • •
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It is the longest canal in the world without locks. The accidents are almost nil compared with other waterways. Navigation goes day and night. The Canal is liable to be widened and deepened when required, to cope with the development in ship sizes and tonnages. With the adoption of the Vessel Traffic Management System (VTMS) (a system depending upon the most up-‐to-‐date radar network), vessels can be monitored and followed on every spot of the Canal and intervention in emergency cases can be taken. The Suez Canal accommodates the partially loaded VLCCs and ULCCs.
Almost immediately after its opening, the Suez Canal had a significant impact on world trade as goods were moved around the world in record time. In 1875, debt forced Egypt to sell its shares in ownership of the Suez Canal to the United Kingdom. However, an international convention in 1888 made the canal available for all ships from any nation to use. Suez Canal helps especially to developed countries to trade with developing ones. Most of developing countries are placed in Middle East and Asia. Therefore, developed European countries open up factories in borders of those who have cheap labor force and land. Europeans also look for the fact that after the process of production how they could transport their products from ports in South Asia to Europe or United States. Suez Canal provides the road that developed countries need for their aim. This Canal strengthens the power of Egypt in world economy. With the taxes from the ships which use the Suez Canal, Egyptian economy keeps growing day by day. Suez Canal requires labor to fix the erosion in coasts and to defend the coast from other countries. The required labor force comes from Egypt society therefore; it reduces the unemployment rate in the country. ASWAN DAM:-‐ Aswan dam was one of the key embankments situated across the Nile River. The dam helped in the government to control the flood situation in Aswan, Egypt and to provide water for irrigation and production of electricity, all of these helpful in the industrialization of Egypt. In 1955 then President of Egypt Abdul Gamal Nasser was trying to portray himself as the leader of Arab world. This was followed by the signing of the Baghdad pact. The US feared that Communism will spread throughout the Middle East. The US and UK offered to finance the construction of the dam with a loan of US$270 million. At that time Israel attacked the Egyptian forces in the Gaza strip. Nasser came to know that to be the leader of the Arab world he had defend his country from Israel militarily. He knew that US would never help him with this objective and therefore he turned to USSR for help. This resulted in the withdrawal of finances by the US in building of the dam.
Suez Crisis, (1956), international crisis in the Middle East, precipitated on July 26, 1956, when the Egyptian president, Gamal Abdel Nasser, nationalized the Suez Canal. The canal had been owned by the Suez Canal Company, which was controlled by French and British interests. The Suez Crisis was provoked by an American and British decision not to finance Egypt’s construction of the Aswan High Dam, as they had promised, in response to Egypt’s growing ties with communist Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union. Nasser reacted to the American and British decision by declaring martial law in the Canal Zone and seizing control of the Suez Canal Company, predicting that the tolls collected from ships passing through the canal would pay for the dam’s construction within five years. Britain and France feared that Nasser might close the canal and cut off shipments of petroleum flowing from the Persian Gulf to Western Europe. When diplomatic efforts to settle the crisis failed, Britain and France secretly prepared military action to regain control of the canal and, if possible, to depose Nasser. They found a ready ally in Israel, whose hostility toward Egypt had been exacerbated by Nasser’s blockage of the Straits of Tīrān (at the mouth of the Gulf of Aqaba) and the numerous raids by Egyptian-‐supported commandos into Israel during 1955–56. The crisis escalated when the Soviet Union offered its support to Egypt. As this was during the Cold War, the United States wanted to stop any expansion of Soviet influence. So it put pressure on Britain and France to pull out, which they did in November. What made this brief conflict so awkward for the government was the fact that the Opposition was against it. At the outset Labor, under Hugh Gaitskell, had opposed Nasser’s nationalization of the Canal, but they became increasingly critical of the Conservatives under Anthony Eden.
TIMELINE OF SUEZ CRISIS (UPTO 26TH JULY 1956):-‐ November 1869:-‐ Suez Canal is opened after 10 years of work. Transportation of Oil and other goods becomes easy as navigation around Africa is avoided. The Northern end is Port Said and the Southern end is Port Ismailia. 1875:-‐ In 1875 as a result of war with Ethiopia and the extravagant way of life of then King Isma’il Pasha, Egypt faced a severe Financial Crisis and Debt to the European Powers. When the King could not raise any loans for the repayment he decided to sell the Egyptian and Sudanese shares of the Suez Canal Company in 1875 to British Government for £ 3,976,582.
December 1875:-‐ In December 1875 Stephen Cave and John Stokes are sent by the British Government to Egypt to check the financial irregularities. April 1876:-‐ Their report is published which states that in view of the waste and extravagance it was necessary for foreign Powers to interfere in order to restore credit. This resulted in the formation of the CAISSE DE LA DETTE which was an international commission to supervise the payment of loans by the Egyptian Government. 1879:-‐ Isma’il Pasha is removed as the Khedive of Egypt and Sudan at the behest of United Kingdom. 20th May 1882:-‐ On the 20th of may 1882 Anglo-‐British forces arrive at Alexandria and start bombing which result in violent riots with loss of life on both sides. The Egyptian forces were led by Ahmed Urabi. Following the occupation of Alexandria by British forces, The British established a Khedive at Ras at tin palace. He obligingly declared Urabi a rebel and deprived him of his rights. This led to Urabi obtaining a religious Fatwa signed by three Al Azhar shaykhs. After this Urabi declared war on the British Government. Thus, when the British were about to land their army in Egypt, Egypt had two leaders-‐ one the Khedive who was established with limited powers only in Alexandria and second was Ahmed Urabi who had full control of Cairo and the provinces. In August Sir Garnet Wolsley and an army of 20,000 invaded the Suez Canal Zone. Wolsley was authorized to crush the Urabi forces and clear the country of rebels. The decisive battle was fought at Tall al Kabir on September 13, 1882. The Urabi forces were routed and the capital captured. The nominal authority of the khedive was restored, and the British occupation of Egypt, which was to last for seventy-‐two years, had begun. Thus United Kingdom took full control of Egypt and also subsequently the Suez Canal. Convention of Constantinople October 29th 1888:-‐ In 1888 the convention of Constantinople declared the Suez Canal as a neutral zone under the protection of the United Kingdom. During the ratification the Ottoman Empire agreed to permit international shipping to pass freely through the canal in time of war and peace. This treaty was signed by the United Kingdom, Germany, Austro-‐Hungary, Spain, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Russia and the Ottoman Empire. 1904:-‐ The convention of Constantinople comes into force, the same year as the Entente Cordiale between UK and France.
1904-‐1905 Russo-‐Japanese War:-‐ The importance of Suez Canal was significant during this war as Japan had entered into a pact with Britain. Following the Japanese surprise attack on the Russian Pacific Fleet based at Port Arthur the Russians sent reinforcements from their fleet in the Baltic Sea. The British denied the Russian fleet use of the canal and forced it to steam around the entire continent of Africa, giving the Japanese forces time to solidify their position in the Far East. February 1915:-‐ In 1915 German-‐Ottoman forces tried to storm the Canal which led the United Kingdom to commit 100,00 troops for the defense of Egypt during the whole of Second world war. Anglo Egyptian Treaty 1936:-‐ This treaty was signed between the UK and the Kingdom of Egypt. Under this treaty UK agreed to remove all its forces from Egypt except those required to safeguard the Suez Canal. Also UK would supply and train Egypt’s army. The treaty was to last for 20 years. It was signed on August 26 and ratified on 22 December. 1st September 1951:-‐ The United Nations Security Council Resolution 95 asked Egypt to terminate the restrictions on the passage of international commercial ships and goods through the Suez Canal, wherever bound and to cease all interference with such shipping, which it had been doing so since 1948 because of the establishment of the state of Israel. October 1951:-‐ The Egyptian Government in 1951 decided to unilaterally abrogate the Anglo Egyptian Treaty of 1936. The Egyptian Government wanted full control of the Canal but UK was not willing to withdraw from the Suez Canal. Due to this there was a steady escalation in the tensions between UK and the Egyptian Government. 25th January 1952:-‐ In 1952, UK tried to disarm and remove an auxiliary police force barracks in Ismailia which resulted in the deaths of 41 Egyptian nationals. This in turn led to anti-‐British riots all over Cairo which resulted in the deaths of many foreign nationals including 11 British nationals. This acted as a catalyst for the removal of the Egyptian Monarchy. 23rd July 1952:-‐ A military coup by the Free Officers movement overthrew King Farouk and established an Egyptian Republic. This movement was led by Muhammad Neguib and future Egyptian President Gamal Abdul Nasser. March 1953:-‐ The US on the other hand was fearful of the expansion of USSR in the Middle East. Therefore it wanted to create an institution on the lines of NATO titled Middle East Defense Organization (MEDO). A National Security Council Directive called Egypt the ‘key’ to the near East.
May 1953:-‐ The Secretary of State for the US John Foster Dulles visited the Middle East to drum up support for MEDO. But to his astonishment he stated in his report that the Arab States for “more fearful of Zionism than of the Communists”. September 1954:-‐ The South East Asia Collective Defense Treaty or Manila Pact was signed on this day October 1954:-‐ UK and Egypt signed a treaty in October 1954 the terms of which agreed the withdrawal of all the British troops from the Suez Canal in 20 months, maintenance of the Canal to be continued, and UK had the right to return after 7 years. The Suez Canal Company was not due to revert back to the Egyptian Government till 16 November 1968 under the treaty. This period also saw an assassination attempt on Gamal Abdul Nasser. September 1955:-‐ Egypt purchases a huge quantity of Soviet arms via Czechoslovakia. This was met with sock and rage all over the west because this was seen as a significant increase in the Soviet influence in the near east. Also this meant that there would be an end to the British influence in the oil rich Middle East In 1955 MEDO (also known as the Baghdad pact) was created by Iran, Iraq, Pakistan and Turkey, and the United Kingdom. December 1955 and March 1956:-‐ These two periods saw two bloody rounds of rioting against Jordan joining the Baghdad Pact. 16th May 1956:-‐ On this day Gamal Abdul Nasser the President of Egypt officially recognized the People’s Republic Of China, a move that angered the US and US’s Secretary of State John Foster Dulles a key supporter of Taiwan. 19th July 1956:-‐ The above move coupled with the impression that the Aswan Dam project was beyond Egypt’s capabilities led to US withdrawing all American aid for the project. 26th July 1956:-‐ In a speed in Alexandria, Nasser gave a riposte to Dulles. He seized control of the Canal and implemented the Nationalization. He announced that the Nationalization Law has been published and that all the accounts have been frozen and that stockholders would be paid the prize of their shares according to the day’s closing price on the Paris Stock Exchange. On the same day Egypt stops the shipping of Israeli goods from the Canal. Egypt also closed the straits of Tiran and blockaded the Gulf of Aqaba to Israeli shipping. All of these were not in accordance with the Constantinople Convention of 1888.
MAIN PARTIES INVOLVED IN THE CONFLICT. EGYPT:-‐ Egypt was one of the main parties to the Conflict. The Suez Canal exists in the territorial waters of Egypt. It was operated by an Egyptian chartered company that is Universal Company of the Suez Maritime Canal. Egypt was among the Countries (the other being France) which financed the building of the Canal. The Canal is located strategically very close to Egypt. Also the change of power in Egypt affected the functioning of Suez Canal. When the Government of Egypt was in the hands of British the Canal was totally accessible. Under the Egyptian Monarchy separate Treaties had to be formed so that countries could easily transport their goods through the Canal. In 1882 Egypt lost control over the Canal as British had gained full control over it. UNITED KINGDOM:-‐ In 1882 United Kingdom took full control of the Egyptian Government as well as the Canal. In 1888 the UK signed the Convention of Constantinople with the Ottoman Empire. The convention came into force in 1904. The United Kingdom after the Second World War was reassessing its colonies in the east. It saw Suez Canal as a Canal with Geo-‐political significance because it connects the west to the oil reserves in the Middle East. Thus British wanted to consolidate its position in the Suez Canal. The Kingdoms of Iraq and Egypt were seen as vital to maintaining strong British influence in the region. At that time as a consequence of Second World War British Forces were spread out throughout that region. The Suez Canal was a very important location for British, but its presence in the region brought tensions in the Anglo-‐British relations with even France Wanting to expand its hold over the Middle East. UNITED STATES:-‐ The United States of America believes that it is of monumental importance that the seeds of communism do not spread across the Middle East. The United States sensed in 1953 that USSR may try to expand its hold in the Middle East. Therefore it was keen to form an organization called MEDO on the lines of NATO. It tried to instill fear into Gamal Abdul Nasser that Soviet Union may try and attack their country. BUT Nasser responded by saying he feels more threatened by the British Government than the attack from Soviet Union. United States failed in bringing all the Middle East countries together as the Arab Countries were vary of the US’s support to Israel which was seen as an enemy. The United States repeatedly asked Nasser to set aside its differences with the British and asked them to join British in countering the Soviet
Union. In this regard the US asked Nasser to work with British so that only the technical control of the Canal would go to the British and thus Egypt’s sovereignty could be maintained. Nasser wanted the Arab leadership and was ready to do anything to woo the Arab people. Thus he decided to go all out against the Israeli’s. FRENCH REPUBLIC:-‐ France was one of the primary countries that financed the building of the Canal. France was one of the biggest colonial powers of that time with colonies in Africa. France was among the three countries that signed the tripartite Declaration which limited the countries in the number of weapons they would sell in the near east. When Egypt faced financial crisis and sold their shares of the company, the French shareholdings increased considerably. The declaration of Nasser to nationalize the dam has major effects on the shareholdings of the French Government as well as the French private investors in the company that operated the Suez Canal. Also in meantime French Government was forming an alliance with the Israeli Government. Following the outbreak of the Algerian War, the French Government began to ship more and more arms to Israel. UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS:-‐ The USSR was the primary reason for USA’s involvement in the Middle East. On one side when the USA was trying to erect a new alliance by forming MEDO the Soviet Union under the new leadership of Nikita Khrushchev. Traditionally the Soviet Union was treating all the non-‐ communist states as enemies. Nikita sought to abandon this thought and tried to win the influence in the so called “third world”. She adopted a new tactic of be-‐friending the so called non-‐aligned nations which often were led by leaders who were non-‐communists. Khrushchev had realized that by adopting the tradition of treating all the non-‐communist states as enemies, Moscow had needlessly alienated many potential friends over the years in the third world. The Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai met Nasser at the 1955 Bandung Summit and was impressed by him. He recommended that Nasser should be treated as a potential ally. Zhou described him to Khrushchev as a young nationalist who though no Communist, could if used correctly do much damage to Western interests in the Middle East. ISRAEL:-‐ Israel was recognized as a state in 1949. It was seen as an enemy by all the Arab nations in the Middle East. As a result the countries fighting for Arab leadership always tried to attack Israel. Nasser even mentioned once that he claims Zionism is more deadly than Communism. Israel was seen as a friendly nation by USA and the colonial powers. Therefore when France and UK wanted to attack Egypt they found a ready ally in Israel. Israel is the only non-‐Arab state that
shares boundary with Egypt. Britain was one of the countries that supported the formation of Israel. Therefore Israel and Britain maintained proper relations. REPUBLIC OF CHINA:-‐ This duration (during the 1950’s) saw significant changes in the foreign policies of many nations. There were two sides-‐ one which maintained good relations with Republic of China and other which had good relations with the People’s Republic of China. The present crisis saw an escalation in tensions due to Egypt’s recognition of the People’s Republic of China, which was in opposition to the USA’s support for the Republic of China. This was primarily the reason as to why USA decided not to fund the building of the ASWAN DAM. WEST GERMANY:-‐ Germany at that time was divided into two parts along the Inner German Border. One part which was a member of NATO was called Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) and the other part was called German Democratic Republic (East Germany). Being a member of NATO West Germany was more aligned towards the west and the European powers like United Kingdom and France. Thus it was against the nationalization of the Suez Canal and was on the side of UK and France. Previous UN resolutions:-‐ United Nations Security Council Resolution 95 passed on September 1st 1951, which called upon Egypt to terminate the restrictions on the passage of international commercial ships and goods through the Suez Canal, wherever bound, and to cease all interference with such shipping.