Security Council (UNSC) Details

What Is Security Council?

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is the most important committee of the United Nations, primarily responsible for maintaining international peace and security. It has the authority to determine the existence of a threat to peace, introduce methods for peaceful resolution of disputes, and take enforcement measures such as sanctions or military action. The Council is composed of 15 members, including five permanent members with veto power: China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, alongside ten non-permanent members elected for two-year terms. The UNSC plays an existential role in addressing global conflicts, preventing wars, and promoting diplomatic solutions under the framework of international law.

Topics

Addressing the potential ceasefire of the Russo-Ukrainian war

Since February 2022, the Russian Federation has launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, widely condemned as a violation of international law, with the official objective of “de-nazifying” and de-militarising Ukraine. The war has led to the death of hundreds of thousands of civilians and military personnel, with extreme devastation to Ukraine’s critical and basic infrastructures. 20 per cent of Ukrainian territories are currently occupied as the two sides engage in active combat. Ukraine is currently waging a hybrid warfare mainly through drones, against Russia's bases, oil refineries, critical energy, transportation and electricity infrastructure. Depleting Russia’s dwindling resources and economic output.

The Western alliance, including the US, NATO, EU and allies around the world, united under former president Joe Biden to provide tens of billions worth of military, financial and intelligence aid. Russia’s war objective remains the capitulation of Ukraine and its full occupation, justifying its war through the threat of NATO expansion. However, President Putin’s ultra-nationalist ambitions in former soviet republics remain the root cause of the war. Bringing an end to said conflict needs to address the interests of the 4 main camps in addition to that of Russia and Ukraine.

Firstly, European allies, with their hope in one day incorporating Ukraine as a member of the EU, view the war as Russian imperialist aggression existential to the security of Europe and its democratic institutions, and stress the need for security guarantees. Europe is ramping up armament as we speak. Secondly, the United States under President Trump, in a flip-flop style of peace negotiation with Putin, is offering conditional Ukraine support and eyeing the Nobel Peace Prize. Fourthly, global south players such as China and India that purchase enormous sums of Russian fossil fuel while offering logistical support. The delegates need to navigate the intricacies of international relations and power dynamics to negotiate a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.

Addressing the further stages of the Gaza peace plan, governance, and Israeli withdrawal

The devastating war in Gaza has led to the death of tens of thousands of civilians, waged by the IDF and the Netanyahu administration of Israel after the October 7th attack by Hamas militants on Israeli civilians. Around 80-90 per cent of the Gaza Strip has been levelled, and various cases of human rights violations and crimes against humanity have been reported in Gaza. The Gaza Strip has been described as a graveyard of children, while the IDF-led blockade of aid has caused mass malnutrition and famine in Gaza. Multiple UN experts, human rights organizations, and international jurists have described the situation as a genocide. Israel has received support from its western allies, mainly the United States, through intelligence sharing, billions of dollars of financial, political, and military support. This is the latest continuation of a prolonged conflict since 1948.

The war in Gaza has led to international backlash against Israel and a mass recognition of Palestinian statehood by Western European states and other Western allies. We, Qatar, Egypt, Turkey, other regional and international state parties, with varying degrees of success have launched various peace initiatives. Both sides have repeatedly violated the recent ceasefire brokered by the aforementioned states, as the destruction of Gaza continues for the time being. The Islamic Republic of Iran and its proxy network in Southern Lebanon, Palestine, and Yemen were attacked by Israel for various causes and opportunism, adding to the geopolitical entanglement present in this one conflict.