United Nations Security Counci HANDBOOK - muntr.orgmuntr.org/guides/UNSC Handbook EuroAsia MUN 2014.pdf · United Nations Security Counci HANDBOOK ... more substantive and binding

United Nations Security Counci

HANDBOOK

EuroAsia MUN 2014 Training and Development Conference Page 1

EuroAsia MUN Training and Development Conference

6-8 December, 2013

ANKARA

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION

OF THE UNITED NATIONS

STUDY GUIDE


HANDBOOK


THE UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL

HANDBOOK

Introduction to the Security Council

One of the six main organs defined by

the United Nations Charter, United

Nations Security Council is given the

duty to provide and maintain

international peace and security; hence

is obliged to meet whenever peace is

threatened. The Charter does not

provide a definition to the term "threats

to the peace", so the Council can and has

discussed a wide range of issues such as

terrorist acts, trafficking of small arms

and HIV/AIDS and Ebola pandemics.i

When the Council determines the

existence of a threat to the international

peace, it calls upon the parties for it to

be settled by peaceful means and makes

recommendations towards it.

Nevertheless, in some cases, the Security

Council can resort to imposing sanctions

or authorizing the use of force against

the aggressor to protect international

peace and security.

The Security Council is the only organ of

the United Nations which has the power

to make decisions that Member States

are obligated to implement under the

Charter. The Security Council also

recommends to the General Assembly

for the designation of the Secretary-

General, the admission of new Members

to the United Nations and election of the

judges for the International Court of

Justice.ii

Composition of the Security Council

The Security Council consists of 15

Member States, 5 of which are

permanent members, and 10 are elected

for 2 year terms by the General

Assembly. Each member has only one

vote; however, the permanent members

have the power of veto, so any document

that is produced by the Council should

have none of the permanent members

voting against it.

Currently, the UNSC consists of the

following members:

People's Republic of China

(Permanent)

France (Permanent)

Russian Federation (Permanent)


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United Kingdom of Great Britain

and Northern Ireland

(Permanent)

United States of America

(Permanent)

Argentina

Australia

Chad

Chile

Jordan

Lithuania

Luxembourg

Nigeria

Republic of Korea

Rwanda

If a Member State is not at the time a

member of the UNSC, but the Council

decides that their country's interests are

affected; then the state can participate in

the discussions without the right to

vote.iii

Procedure of the Council

The main source of the procedure

of the Council is the EuroAsia

MUN 2014 Rules of Procedure.

The UNSC shall only be

enlightened about the world's

situation via the information

presented by the Secretariat.

Information from any other

source will be considered false,

and cannot be presented to the

Council at any time.

The UNSC has an open agenda;

which means that the UNSC

Member States can discuss and

set any agenda they see as the

most disruptive to peace and

security.

The UNSC sessions need all the

P5 countries present to start;

however if such absence disrupts

the Council's proceedings, "non-

disturbing abstention" will be

applied. In such case, the P5

country will be assumed present

and voting abstention for all the

votes. Such abstentions do not

disturb votes that need

unanimity.

The UNSC can draft press

releases on the set agenda or any

other crises that the Council

faces. Press releases need

unanimity; so any abstentions or

against votes result in a failed

press release.

The Council can draft and vote on

resolutions in order to produce

more substantive and binding

solution to the crisis at hand.

Since such voting will be

substantive, it needs to have:


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o 9 votes in favor

o No vetoes from P5

countries in order to pass.

The "veto power" is not

applicable in procedural voting.

If a crisis that differs from the set

agenda occurs, the Council is

expected to table the debate on

the agenda, and produce a

document on the acute crisis;

then return to the initial topic.

Delegates, at certain times, may

receive confidential information

from their states' intelligence

agencies, armed forces, state

officials etc. If the information is

marked as confidential, at no

point should the delegate make

speeches that publicize the

information.

Security Based Committee A security based committee is

more likely to refer a committee that

deals issue with top urgency and

requires the attention of the top

authorized organs of the international

organization such as the United Nations

Security Council. Agenda items of the

security based committees are various

however more likely to be focusing on

territorial disputes, conflicts that

requires international attention and aid.

Further on there are security based

committees are mostly intelligences that

are given by the respective states

governments, crisis situation that

needed to be dealt with urgently,

updates regarding the agenda item or

crisis situations.

Intelligence Through the committee sessions,

participants of the security based

committees may receive intelligence

regarding to discussions, agenda item at

the hand, and crisis situation that is

currently happening. Intelligences that

are delivered to a delegate during the

conference are given by their respective

government and/or intelligence agency

of the government to the representative

of the government in the committee.

Intelligences that are distributed by the

secretariat are given to a delegate is only

to be used for the respective delegate. In

this consideration a representative who

received intelligence should not publicly

share the received information but to

use it for themselves through the

committee sessions.


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Update Regarding a Situation Updates are official documents

that are signed by secretariat and

distributed to all participants of a

committee. Updates are not specifically

given for a representative of a county

but to whole committee. Content of the

updates are diverse it can be related

with the agenda item, crisis situation,

recent activities about the agenda item

or an event that needs the attention of

the committee.

Crisis Document

Through the conference when an

urgent situation that needed to drive the

attention of the committee immediately,

members of the secretariat give the

situation as a crisis situation to the

committee. When a crisis situation

arouses, members of the committee are

required to focus and solve the crisis

situation immediately rather than trying

to conclude adopted agenda item. When

the committee successfully commits

resolution regarding the crisis situation,

than the committee may return to its

original agenda item that was being

under discussion.

There are differences and

similarities between crisis situations

and updates. Both are distributed by the

secretariat and both documents are

needed to be taken into consideration.

Crisis situations and updated are both

distributed to the whole committee

however main difference is that a crisis

situation needed to be dealt immediately

thus requires a voting on a final

document of the respective committee.

While an update does not require to be

dealt with urgently thus not require a

voting of a final document of the

committee.

Press Release Press releases are statements

that are given to respective press

member of the committee by

representatives of the committee. Press

releases are neither binding nor refer to

conclusion of the committee. It only

represents ideas, perspective of an

individual or policy of a state

representative. Press releases can be

related with agenda item, crisis

situations, an event related with the

committee and committee as a whole.


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Working Methods

Establishing Peacekeeping Operation The United Nations Security Council as

being the most authorized international

body in the world; is the only body that

has the competence of establishing

peacekeeping forces in a region where it

is necessary. In this context, when a

crisis situation arises, the Secretariat of

the United Nations establishes a

technical field assessment in the

conflicted area in order to determine

rather the situation requires the

attention of the Security Council or not.

If the report of the Secretariat comes

positive the United Nations Secretary-

General may present a report to the

Security Council regarding a possible

peacekeeping operation. If the Security

Council adopts the current situation at

hand as an agenda item to be discussed

on the council; it may decide on rather

starting a peacekeeping operation or

not. In this consideration for the

initiation for commencing a

peacekeeping operation United Nations

Security Council has to pass a resolution

regarding the agenda item which

indicates an establishment of the

operation. The resolution has to set out

operations mandate, size, and details of

the tasks which would be done through

the operation, however the budget and

the resources of the operation are

subjects of the General Assembly.

Staffing of the civilian components of the

operation is the subject of the offices of

the Department of Peacekeeping

Operations as well as the Department of

Field Support while the military and

police forces of the operation is asked

from the member states of the United

Nations. When a peacekeeping

operation is established, the operation

reports directly to the Secretary-General

of the United Nations and the Secretary-

General reports to the Security Council.iv

Creation of a Safe Zone The United Nations Security Council

may decide upon creation of a safe zone

if it sees it is necessary, in order to

establish a safe zone Security Council

has to pass a resolution regarding the

issue. Implementation of the safe zone is

the subject of the peacekeeping

operation in the areas. Safe zones are

created in order to protect civilian lives

living in the conflicted area, the safe

zones are considerate as international

territories until the end of the end of the

mission. However safe zones are

established for a very limited time,


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mostly for the evacuation of the civilian

population.

Safe zones indicates territories which

civilian will be protected by the United

Nations Peacekeepers from getting any

harm in a conflicted area. A safe zone

may consist of several components such

as humanitarian corridor, no-drive zone,

and no-flight zones. Humanitarian

corridors are considerate as temporary

demilitarized zones proposed to allow

the safe transportation of humanitarian

aid in, and/or refugees out of the crisis

location. No-drive zones is a form

of prohibition and explicitly a militarily

obligatory declaration of an intent to

deny vehicular maneuvering over a

strategic or tactically valued line of

statement by the threat of vehicle

annihilation. No-flight zones are similar

with the no-drive zones the only

difference between two zones are it

implements the same rule to the aerial

vehicles.v

Humanitarian Aid The United Nations Security Council

may decide on a humanitarian aid

process toward the conflicted area,

working in cooperation with other non-

governmental organizations.

Humanitarian aid is substantial and

logistic support to people who got into

need. It is generally short-term help

until the long-term help by government

and other organizations substitutes it.

The people in need may differ from

refugees, homeless, victims of military

conflicts, as well as victims of natural

disasters such as earthquake, flooding,

cyclonic storms, and famines. The main

objective of humanitarian aid is to save

lives, and reduce anguish of the people

who needs it.

Intervention The Security Council may implement

sanctions toward the conflicted parties if

it seems it is necessary. There are three

main reasons for implementation of

sanction; first in order to force parties to

cooperate with the international law,

second with the tenacity of to comprise

a threat to peace within a geographical

borders, and third condemnation of

activities of a specific act or policy of a

member or non-member state.

The Security Council may implement

four types of sanctions;

Diplomatic Sanctions: Diplomatic

sanctions are political actions

taken to prompt disapproval or

displeasure at a specific action

through diplomatic and political


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means, rather than directly

effecting economic or military

affairs. Procedures comprise

restrictions or terminations of

high-level government visits or

banishing or withdrawing

diplomatic assignments or staff.

Economic Sanctions: Economic

sanctions can differ from

imposing import tariffs on goods

from, or blocking the export of

convinced goods to the target

country, to a full

naval blockade of ports of the

target country in an effort to

validate, and control or block

indicated imported goods.

Military Sanctions: Military

sanctions can vary from

cautiously targeted military

airstrikes to damage nation

conventional or non-

conventional proficiencies, to the

less destructive form of an arms

embargo to cut off provisions of

weaponries.

The United Nations Security Council

may allow an external intervention of

the situation if it see it is necessary. In

this consideration the Security Council

may call upon international military or

political organizations such as but not

limited to NATO, to commence an

intervention toward the conflict area

which was done in Yugoslavian Civil

War. In order to do so Security Council

has to pass a resolution which

specifically indicates that, in this context

the Security Council has the authority to

limit the framework of the intervention

which will be made. External

interventions may be issued when the

situation on the conflicted region getting

worse and if the Human Rights are

violated.


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i YARGICI, N. Y.

United Nations Security Council Study Guide

Bibliography: Yargıcı, Nezahat Yeşim. United Nations

Security Council Study Guide. 1st ed. Ankara:

Model United Nations Association, 2014. Print.

ii UN.ORG

United Nations Security Council

Bibliography: Un.org,. 'United Nations Security

Council'. N.p., 2014. Web. 21 Nov. 2014.

iii IBID

iv Un.org, (2014). Forming a new operation. United

Nations Peacekeeping. [online] Available at:

http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/operations/

newoperation.shtml [Accessed 23 Nov. 2014].

v Militaryaerospace.com, (2014). Laser weapons

are here: ATL test shows ability to attack moving

targets effectively from the air. [online] Available

at:

http://www.militaryaerospace.com/articles/print/

volume-20/issue-11/news/news/laser-weapons-

are-here-atl-test-shows-ability-to-attack-moving-

targets-effectively-from-the-air.html

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United Nations Security Counci HANDBOOK - muntr.orgmuntr.org/guides/UNSC Handbook EuroAsia MUN 2014.pdf · United Nations Security Counci HANDBOOK ... more substantive and binding