Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Country: Argentina Country: Argentina Delegate: Joycelyn Woo (
[email protected]); DGS
Nuclear terrorism is a reckless act of using nuclear weapons and/or radioactive material for violent means mea ns with the intention i ntention of causing c ausing death, de ath, serious seriou s bodily injury, as well as widespread damage to t o property and/or to the t he environment. environme nt. Due to its it s destructive destruc tive nature, nature , it is to be prevented at all costs and the cooperation of all nations is necessary in order for this to be possible in the near future.
Argentina itself it self has had a brief history hist ory with the th e development of weapons of mass destruction. Under the National Reorganization Process, a military dictatorship that ruled in the 1970s, Argentina began a nuclear weapons program in the early 1980s. It was quickly abolished when democracy was restored in 1983.
Argentina believes be lieves that the t he root of the th e problem of nuclear terrorism terro rism lies in i n the lack of effort e ffort to authorize nuclear power and weapons for peaceful and authorized state use. Since the start of democratic rule in 1983, Argentina has been active in non-proliferation non-proliferation efforts. On February 10, 1995, Argentina acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty as a nonnuclear weapon state. To this day, Argentina restrictedly uses nuclear power in non-military roles only.
Argentina is also one of o f the 85 partners part ners of the Global Glo bal Initiative Initiat ive to Combat Comb at Nuclear Nuclea r Terrorism (GICNT), co-chaired co-chaired by the United States and the Russian Federation; the aim of which is to strengthen global capacity to prevent, detect, and respond to nuclear terrorism by conducting multilateral activities that strengthen the plans, policies, procedures, and interoperability interoperability of partner nations.
Argentina believes be lieves that only o nly by fully rem oving such nuclear threats threa ts can nuclear nuc lear terrorism be eradicated. To achieve full disarmament of nuclear weaponry weaponry is the ultimate goal, but it is only an ideal in a sense that it is hard to accomplish. In the meantime, nuclear weapon states should seek ways to secure their fissionable materials and cease the proliferation proliferation of nuclear weapons. Though T hough they cannot directly di rectly eliminate elimina te the threat threa t of nuclear terrorism, these measures are stepping stones leading towards a world void of nuclear threats.
Public sharing and secrecy of nuclear possession is also a roadblock to our goal of achieving nuclear nonproliferation. nonproliferation. Argentina urges all nations be willing to admit the possession of nuclear weapons or development of related plans and adhere to treaties that limit the
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism propagation of nuclear weapons. Only with a transparent approach about each country’s possession of any radioactive or fissile material, will it be possible for such weapons to be disposed of and safety to be restored. Argentina Argentina also suggests the nuclear weapon states to construct a secure international network for the sharing of information regarding nuclear terrorists as well as forming a neutral international international task force aimed at combating nuclear terrorism.
To conclude, Argentina strongly believes that nuclear disarmament is the best solution for nuclear terrorism. However, it also acknowledges the implications of the imm ediate eradication of all nuclear weapons. Hence, Argentina urges all nations, especially the nuclear weapon states, st ates, to uphold u phold their responsibilit r esponsibility y in preventing preventin g nuclear terrorism terro rism and work towards a nuclear weapon-free weapon-free world.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Country: People Republic of China Delegate: Samantha Ip (
[email protected]), Benjamin Li (
[email protected]); HKIS
The People’s Republic of China, as a nuclear weapons-armed state, fully understands the need to secure our stores of weapons and enriched uranium in order to prevent terrorist terrorist groups from acquiring these resources. China believes that increased cooperation between scientists in different nations, along with global safety guidelines, is the key to preventing nuclear terrorism. China currently possesses approximately 16 metric tons of highly enriched uranium, and 1.8 tons of weapons-grade plutonium. Production is no longer occurring, as all facilities producing weapons-grade uranium and plutonium have been decommissioned. Currently, low-level low-level uranium enrichment is for civilian purposes (such as electricity production) only. Highly enriched uranium has been used for research purposes, and has also been incorporated into approximately 170 nuclear warheads, making China the original nucleararmed state with the smallest existing arsenal. There are two components to the security of nuclear facilities: securing weapons-usable fissile materials, and securing finished weapons. China’s Atomic Energy Authority is currently engaging in active dialogue with the United States Energy Department and the IAEA to exchange best practices. The Lab-to-Lab program of 1995-1998 allowed scientists in the United States and China to share technical expertise, and significantly advanced China’s nuclear safety practices. China’s nuclear facilities are also required to undergo periodic testing regarding security; however, there is currently no set of international guidelines regarding such testing. The People’s Republic of China proposes a multifaceted solution to preventing nuclear terrorism. Firstly, uniform rules must be established to quantify the “effective” safety guidelines mentioned under UN Security Council Resolution 1540, which bindingly commits member states to preventing non-state groups from acquiring nuclear material. These rules must address security of intact nuclear warheads, fissile material storage upgrades, reporting of security breaches, and cooperation with nations that do not currently collaborate with the IAEA, under an international forum specifically addressing nuclear terrorism. Secondly, in order to prevent corruption and encourage investment into safety measures, member nations should provide rewards (financial or otherwise) to operators of nuclear facilities who upgrade their facilities in compliance with the aforementioned aforementioned guidelines. Inspections can be facilitated by the IAEA, however nations should still have the flexibility flexibility to pursue their nuclear programs with flexibility and an appreciable level of secrecy. Finally, programs similar to the Lab-to-Lab initiative between China and the United States should be established worldwide. These programs are not only useful for developing safety
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism measures, but also for developing new ways to convert highly enriched uranium to low-grade uranium, and use this safer form of nuclear fissile material for electricity generation and other civilian uses. The People’s Republic of China hopes that the Security Council can come to a consensus regarding the delicate balance between security and sharing of information, in order to best protect the global community against nuclear terrorism.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Country: French Republic Delegate: Brian Wong (
[email protected] (
[email protected]); and.edu.hk); Island School
Positioned on the verge of a new technological era, the French Republic acknowledges the future as a double-edged double-edged sword: whilst technology certainly has its benefits; it may also result in catastrophic consequences, such as nuclear terrorism and warfare. The only solution to issues of such nature, as viewed by the French Republic, is via close collaboration between the United U nited Nations Nati ons and regional regi onal bodies. bodies .
A “dirty bomb” bo mb” that can detonate detona te to obliterate oblit erate hundreds hundred s of lives and a nd cast death de ath on thousands tho usands over millennia to come; a nuclear missile that can wipe out the populations of entire cities and jeopardize the stabilities of countries and continents… – it is high time for the United Nations to agree with France that nuclear terrorism is a crisis of the present. Attempts and claims from terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda and Northern Caucasian extremists to include nuclear energy in their arsenals have been proliferate and far too frequent. Bin Laden even conceded that the acquisition of nuclear weapons was a “religious “religious duty”. The vested intentions of such radical groups are made even more treacherous by the fact that there have been 18 incidences incid ences of theft the ft and loss of highly enriched enric hed uranium uraniu m and plutonium plut onium confirmed co nfirmed by the IAEA, in addition to numerous infiltrations of allegedly well-guarded well-guarded nuclear facilities in South Africa and Pakistan. It is such slovenly and poor regulations, as well as the lack of legal framework for deterrence, prosecution, prosecution, and inter-state collaboration that have led to the loopholes and gaps through which terrorists can infiltrate our systems and retrieve our resources – via corrupt channels and officials.
As an active act ive member of the IAEA and a nd sponsor spons or of the 200 2 resolution resolutio n “Measures to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction”, the French Republic Republic is party to 13 conventions related to counter-terrorism, including the 2005 International Convention Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism. The French Republic encourages efficient national guidelines to ascertain the security of storage and handling of sensitive materials, which is why it supports support s the Convention Conven tion on the Physical P hysical Protection P rotection of Nuclear Material M aterial (CPPNM). Even within the nation itself, the French Republic operated closely with the IAEA in identifying and securing “orphan” radioactive sources in Georgia, as well as removing potentially exploitable radioactive elements in Cote d’Ivoire, in compliance with its overarching strategy for safe, systematic, and rigorously monitored experimentation with radioactive materials. The French Republic is very content to declare its relative success in controlling controlling the usage of radioactive substances.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Our honorable former President Sarkozy once commented, “France will not and does not approve of the outcome and idea of banning nuclear weapons completely.” The French Republic views the complete removal of nuclear weapons as a jeopardisation of its national security, as well as other nations’. With this in mind, the French Republic recommends sensitive export control, which can lower the risk of terrorists’ accessing materials, facilities, facilities, and technology that can further the synthesis of weapons of mass destruction. The French Republic also advocates for the universalisation universalisation of conventions and standards, and increased legal crackdown on non-state usage of nuclear weapons. The French Republic sides with the US in that both nations will push for increasingly increasingly rigorous enforcement of laws on private entities.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Country: Germany Delegate: Monica Wadekar (
[email protected]); FIS
Over the past few years, nuclear terrorism has increasingly become an international threat and yet is not taken seriously by many nations. The materials in order to make nuclear bombs are a re accessible access ible and it is not difficult difficu lt for terrorist terroris t groups to t o access instruction instruct ion for building these the se bombs. bombs . Therefore, for fo r these terrorist terrori st groups, groups , the main obstacle would w ould be to acquire materials such as plutonium or uranium in order to create the bombs. Germany feels that steps need to be taken in order to prevent access to these materials before use of nuclear weapons escalates es calates for fo r as Angela Merkel stated, stat ed, “It is a question of o f the perception percept ion of the threat and of a culture of security which is not yet established in the public arena” In cooperation with the United Nations, Germany has already participated in movements to limit access to these materials, and to limit proliferation proliferation of nuclear weapons. Though T hough it is in possession posses sion of nuclear nuc lear weapons via the United Unit ed States of America under the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Germany has signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Non-Proliferation Treaty and in addition, a ddition, is a participant of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, which governs the export of materials designed for nuclear use. Furthermore, Germany has announced support of the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) plan of protection for nuclear materials and facilities. In addition, following the Fukushima Crisis, Germany has announced the decision to shut down all nuclear power stations in Germany by 2021, seven of which have already been shut down. In addition several (over 15) years ago, Germany made contributions to the Nuclear Security Fund (NSF) as part of the G8 Global Partnership Partnership in order to aid Russia Federation and the Newly Independent States manage their nuclear and other radioactive materials.
Germany feels that the United Nations should take measures against the acquisition of nuclear materials through strict monitoring of both imports and exports of materials possibly used for nuclear purposes. Any materials that could be used for nuclear purposes should be documented and kept track of. Germany also feels that although there are already nations with nuclear power, no new nuclear states should be created in order to best m onitor fissile materials and decrease chances of terrorism. Furthermore, all existing nuclear material should be strictly secured and any nuclear facilities heavily guarded. Not only do facilities need to be guarded, but also any nuclear material in transit should be monitored. If these materials are not guarded and kept track of, it will be impossible imposs ible to know of o f any fissile fissi le material that t hat goes missing, m issing, and a nd as less 18 pounds of plutonium or 55 pounds of highly enriched uranium are necessary to make a nuclear
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism bomb, monitoring m onitoring of these materials mat erials is crucial. cru cial. If terrorist terro rist groups group s cannot access a ccess material m aterial to create nuclear weapons, the threat of nuclear terrorism is minimal, thus Germany feels that monitoring of fissile material is key in preventing nuclear attacks. Germany is strictly against the creation of a new nuclear state, as this would augment the risk of nuclear terrorism. Germany suggests the possible creation of a new United Nations Committee whose purpose will be to strictly monitor all nuclear plants in addition to any materials either stationary, or in transport that could lead be used for nuclear weapons and/ or nuclear energy. By doing so, Germany hopes to ensure that terrorists do not have access to nuclear material, and if access to these m aterials is limited, the threat should diminish.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Country: Israel Delegate: Matthew Tam (
[email protected] (
[email protected]); om); CIS
The issue of nuclear terrorism is one of extreme importance to Israel both as a theoretical and realistic horror. Although the Israeli government is actively against terrorism, it fears that terrorism with the aid of nuclear armaments can create a potentially much direr situation in which resistance would be difficult. The Israeli delegation is concerned over the risk of nuclear terrorism in two main ways, depending on the entity possessing nuclear arms that intends to utilize such arms for terrorism. It does, however, wish to direct the main focus of the debate specifically to the context of terrorist, radical groups. When defining terrorism as a s the use of terror to achieve a chieve political polit ical aims, aims , one finds that t hat nuclear terror is not limited to the use of nuclear armaments by terrorists, but also encompasses the use of nuclear armaments by legitimate and recognized states to inflict terror in order to achieve a political aim. Thus, it is important for states known for and have admitted to the possession of nuclear armaments to head towards nuclear non-proliferation, non-proliferation, and to express their goodwill through signing and ratifying the Treaty on the NonProliferation Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). The Israeli delegation is primarily concerned over the possession of nuclear arms in the case of Iran, which has in the past threatened the Israeli government of an attack precisely to inflict terror in Israel, and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, which officially recognizes recognizes neither Israel’s statehood nor its right to sovereignty, and further did not sign the NPT. To this end, the Israeli delegation delegation wishes to express its disgust over any state’s practice of inflicting terror in another state through nuclear armaments, all the while maintaining the fact that Israel does not possess nuclear armaments of any kind, and that the only nuclear developments developments in its borders are confined to the area of atomic energy. The delegation of Israel strongly believes that a greater potential threat lies in the possession of nuclear arms by radical extremists conventionally conventionally labelled “terrorists”. Nuclear terrorism is far more dangerous here as the underlying guarantee of Mutually Assured Destruction when dealing with radicals in possession of weapons of mass destruction, especially nuclear weapons, cannot be applied: realistic examples of suicide bombings and the nature of operation of a cell-based terrorist organization itself means that while antiterrorist activities can hinder the operation of terrorists greatly, and the Israeli government has been doing so in the past years against the Hamas and other terrorist organizations, against a terrorist with a large-scale and operational nuclear weapon there is no guarantee that he will not use such armaments. A terrorist with access to nuclear armaments is potentially much more harmful than a state with an arsenal of nuclear armaments. While nuclear armament production remains a difficult and expensive project and the protection of
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism nuclear armaments and materials are generally done meticulously in states, it is theoretically still possible for terrorists terrorists to get hold of radioactive materials, as seen in the case of dirty bombs. Although A lthough such su ch bombs bomb s are, as of o f now, harmful harm ful more psychologica psy chologically lly than physically, phy sically, they do serve as a reminder that as developments continue in the nuclear industry, the fears may well become true. Thus it is as important to protect the current nuclear armaments from falling into the wrong hands, as it is to prevent the development of such armaments by terrorist organizations. organizations. At the same time the international community should be wary of developments that can make the construction of nuclear weaponry less difficult and more accessible.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Country: Pakistan Delegate: Chris Crabbe (
[email protected]); WIS
The Islamic Republic of Pakistan realizes that we live in an era where protection against terrorist activities continues continues to be of the highest priority to national security and that the greatest our concern is the proliferation proliferation of nuclear armaments and fissile materials to extremist organisations within our territory. Thus it in our interests to encourage nuclear arms control and nonproliferation throughout, not only our region but internationally. internationally. We are deeply concerned regarding the issue of nuclear terrorism within our own region as Pakistan faces the ever present threat of extremist forces, such as those linked with AlQaeda, infiltrating our nuclear stockpiles in order to steal valuable technology and m aterials, to further their hostile agendas. Since developing nuclear capabilities over two decades ago, we have continued cont inued to take t ake steps in order to increases in creases the th e physical physica l security of o f our nuclear nuclea r technology and have taken an active role in securing against the proliferation proliferation of nuclear, armaments, materials and technology.
Since 2000 we have worked tirelessly with other member states, such as the United States of America, in order to im prove our security se curity against aga inst outside out side extremist extrem ist forces. forces . We have also a lso have helped to establish control systems within our nation, through founding the National Command Authority (or NCA) which monitors the use and organization of nuclear weapons. The United States has also collaborated with our armed forces in carrying out operations to eliminate known Al-Qaeda operatives, which have only helped to increase security within the region at large. By carrying out these joint operations we have drastically decreased the possibility of our own nuclear armaments coming under threat. Thus we can assure other member states that we are capable of the safety of our nuclear facilities. facilities.
Pakistan believes that through working with the Security Council in order to strengthen nuclear security and the physical safety safety of nuclear arms and personnel, personnel, we can begin to curb the threat of nuclear proliferation within Pakistan and the surrounding South Asian region.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism
Country: The Russian Federation Delegate: Justin Lee (
[email protected]); (
[email protected]); LPCUWC
As to date, da te, nuclear terrorism t errorism occupies oc cupies the th e top of the pyramid of deadly threats t hreats for the t he international community. The attempts of extremist groups s uch as the Chechen rebels and Al-Qaeda to t o acquire nuclear weapons weapo ns and material ma terial in the past p ast decades, deca des, poise pois e a serious menace for the global stability, and the lives of thousands of civilians. The Russian Federation reaffirms reaffirms that it is of outmost importance that the Security Council establishes effective measures to counter acts of nuclear terrorism, which could threaten global peace and security and cause irreparable damage to the environment. The Russian Federation has experienced the perils of nuclear terrorism. To date, the only confirmed case of attempted nuclear terrorism occurred in Russia on November 23, 1995, when Chechen separatists put a crude bomb containing 70 pounds of a mixture of cesium-137 and dynamite in Moscow’s Ismailovsky Park. Among international international terrorists, Chechen rebels have achieved a reputation for extreme ruthlessness, including torture, executions, and beheadings. For this reason, we are convinced that lasting stability and security can only be secured once the possibility of nuclear terrorist attacks is ruled out not only in Russia, but also in the international international community. The Russian Federation, as the main proposer of the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, reaffirms its initiative to address such a crucial problem, and urges the international community to ratify the convention, and take further actions to prevent terrorist groups from getting hold of nuclear weapons.
For the Russian Federation, the most important challenge in this issue is to prevent terrorists from obtaining a nuclear weapon or material from which a weapon could be made. National security experts agree that the most likely way terrorists will obtain a nuclear bomb will involve not theft or purchase purc hase of a fully fu lly operational operatio nal device, but b ut purchase purcha se of fissile material from which they construct their own. Terrorists would find it easiest to steal fissile material because it i t is smaller, sma ller, lighter, more mo re abundant, abundant , and less protected p rotected than t han the weapons weap ons themselves. In addition to this, the secrecy of nuclear programs in different countries also means that the security of fissile material is not granted. Thus, no registration and control of nuclear centers and programs leaves a huge loophole for terrorist groups to obtain such weapons.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism In order to confront the acknowledged issues, the Russian Federation relies on international cooperation cooperation with the IAEA and the Security Council to strengthen the global alliance against nuclear terrorism, by ratifying the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism. Furthermore, as one of the main signatories of the Non Proliferation Treaty, we strongly believe in the regulation of nuclear programs with the supervision of the IAEA, which will aim to ensure international security regarding nuclear materials and a shut down of the nuclear black market. The Russian Federation also calls upon the Security Council and all the United Nations organs responsible for the impartation of justice, to prosecute the war on terrorism to eliminate those who attempt to conduct nuclear attacks.
In conclusion, the Russian Federation reaffirms the importance of international performance on designing programs to support transparency in nuclear research and development. The Russian Federation believes that keeping nuclear weapons and materials out of the hands of the world’s most dangerous people is a challenge to international will and determination, not to our technical capabilities. By creating stronger bonds between nations, cooperating with the UN agencies, and complying with the nuclear energy conventions, the Russian Federation hopes to achieve global stability in the near future. Russia looks forward to designing a convention aimed at combating new and dangerous manifestations of terrorism, stimulating the adoption of effective preventive measures in that sphere, and establishing a reliable international international legal mechanism for cooperation at all stages of combating nuclear terrorism. The Russian Federation Federation is ready to lead such a convention, and cautions the Security Council that failing to reach an agreement would send the wrong signal to the terrorist groups.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Country: South Africa Delegate: Christopher Au (
[email protected] (
[email protected]); k); AIS
Since its invention in the 1930’s, the issue of nuclear weapons in our society have continued to be a major concern, having the potential to develop widespread conflict and unrest between many ma ny countries. countri es. Incidents Incident s such as the bombings bomb ings in Hiroshima Hiros hima and Nagasaki Nagasa ki in 1945 have shown firsthand, how devastating the use of Nuclear weapons can be towards the long term futures of human health and the state of the surrounding environment. South Africa believes that the issue of nuclear terrorism applies to all forms of developments, theft and/ or uses of nuclear resources that are against the current laws and treaties issued by the United Unit ed Nations. Natio ns. These treaties trea ties being mainly m ainly the Treaty Trea ty on the NonN on- Proliferation Prolifera tion of Nuclear Weapons which South Africa is proudly a member, since 1991. South Africa believes that the main root of the issue of nuclear terrorism terrorism stems from three critical problems. These three problems are the lack of an effective and strict legal framework to prosecute individuals who commit nuclear terrorism, lack of inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) due to restrictions and also inadequate safety measures currently used to protect nuclear devices. South Africa believes that solving these three issues will eliminate all issues of nuclear terrorism. South Africa being one out of the nine nuclear-armed states has effectively effectively abolished all nuclear weapons present within the country. Since 1991, the nuclear weapons program in South Africa known as the Atomic Energy Corporation (AEC) has been shut down with all 6 nuclear weapons being disposed of. Currently South Africa is aggressively promoting the disposal of all nuclear weapons, being a key member of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and also playing a leading role in the establishment of the African Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Treaty (Treaty of Pelindaba). The main governing body of the Treaty of Pelindaba, known as the ‘African Commission on Nuclear Energy’ is currently established in South Africa. Being a nuclear free country, South Africa believes that effective communication and cooperation between nuclear-armed nuclear-armed states and the IAEA is the key to solving this issue. Effective cooperation will ensure that the current restrictions by member states towards the inspections by the IAEA will be removed. As a result resu lt the IAEA can c an gather critical cri tical information inform ation on the th e security systems system s of current nuclear facilities. This would help prevent possible physical attacks or cyber attacks from terrorist organisations organisations such as Al Qaeda. Another improvement im provement to t o this current cur rent issue would wo uld be to combine c ombine all conventions, c onventions, treaties and a nd initiatives on the issue of nuclear terrorism into a single organisation. This would greatly
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism increase the productivity in efforts to combat these issues, as there would be less duplication of effort and financing. South Africa would like to express its appreciation towards all member states in their efforts to help combat the issue of nuclear terrorism and hopes that the issue will be resolved as soon as possible at the next United Nations Security Council to ensure global peace and security.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Country: The Republic of Turkey Delegate: Kevin Chen (
[email protected]); Yew Chung International School
In the past, three attacks have been done by terrorists on nuclear military bases of Pakistan, but all the attacks a ttacks have h ave failed and an d nothing was wa s stolen. All A ll the intruders have been killed or captured successfully, nonetheless, nonetheless, the Republic of Turkey believes measures need to be in place to prevent any repeat of these cases. As well as that, the target for the terrorists were the American planes. The Republic of Turkey believes that this is a planned attack from the Taliban for vengeance purposes and not the thieving of nuclear weapons the United States of America is i s suggesting. suggest ing. The Republic Repub lic of Turkey therefore believes believe s that the terrorist attacks at tacks on on Pakistan military bases would stop once the United States removes all its weapons and property off Pakistani soil.
The Republic of Turkey believes that the attacks conducted by the terrorists may not be done because beca use of the nuclear nu clear technology, techno logy, nor do we believe the assumpt a ssumption ion of the terrorists te rrorists wanting to use nuclear weaponry. To T o think about abo ut it, there ther e is no reason reaso n why a terrorist terro rist group would want to cause caus e mass destructio d estruction n by the means me ans of a nuclear nu clear weapon. weapon . Most terrorist te rrorist actions are irrational but they will still not risk the end of the world. Nonetheless, it is a problem that has to be resolved. This is why the Republic of Turkey believes that according to article 2 of the International Convention Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, any person or group that possesses radioactive material with the intent to cause harm will be seen as an act of nuclear terrorism and therefore the Republic of Turkey
However, the Republic of Turkey recognizes the right of every country, unless as declared by this Council’s Resolutions and the international laws, to use nuclear technology in for civil purposes in peaceful means, such as electrical power production; the Republic of Turkey stands that this right shall not be deprived of member states, unless they have seriously and clearly breached International Peace and Security or any International Law or any Resolution of this Council with regards to International Peace and Security.
The Republic of Turkey has seen past actions by the United Nations by setting up the non-nuclear prohibition prohibition treaty, however, not much action was done after that was set up. This problem was ignored for som e time, until terrorists attacked the Pakistani nuclear military air base terrorist base three times.
The Republic of Turkey recognizes the lack of military defenses in Pakistan and calls upon the United Nations and more economically developed countries to provide assistance
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism to if requested by Pakistan by providing their country with the troops and arms required to defend its facilities.
The Republic of Turkey calls upon all member states under provisions of Chapter VI of the Charter of the United Nations and Resolution 1874 of this Council, to inspect, in accordance with their national authorities and legislation, and consistent with international law, unauthorized nuclear materials and any arms with the exception of light arms thereof, that are in the process of being transported to DPRK, or are in their possession, in the extent of their national territory and international territory. territory.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Country: Uganda Delegate: Sammy Tsui (
[email protected]); Heep Yunn
The delegate of Uganda recognises that nuclear terrorism is a rising crisis in the world. Nuclear Nuc lear terrorism refers to terrorist ter rorist attacks att acks which whic h utilise nuclear nu clear or radiological radi ological weapons and a nd sadly we see nuclear proliferation. p roliferation. The delegate of Uganda would like to state clearly that, Uganda is against any forms of nuclear terrorisms. Nuclear weapons are explosive and dangerous to use. Resulting from the fission of nucleus, it is powerful and the release of radioactive chemicals causes chronic and permanent suffering suffering to a person. Nuclear weapons do not construct, but they destruct. They cause tremendous harm and impairment to humans’ central nervous system, rendering humans unhealthy and decelerating humans’ reaction. With the increased number of nuclear weapons and a nd attacks, attac ks, numerous numero us cases of deaths and casualties casu alties are caused c aused and an d the delegate delegat e of Uganda assures that it is against the ongoing peacekeeping effort. effort. Moreover, the utilization of nuclear weapons wastes nuclear resources, though abundant. Confronting with the shortage of fossil fuels, nuclear resources can be more effectively effectively used if they are used to develop alternative energy sources so as to alleviate current energy crisis. As one of the alternative energy sources, nuclear power is abundant, has a high yield of energy and cheap in long run and is ideal for energy usage, instead of for military usage. Using nuclear weapons will only sacrifice innocent lives, obstructing the world from seeking s eeking peace. peace . Besides, nuclear weapons produce water and air pollutants, which will intensify global warming and shortage of water, stirring up vigorous conflicts and fierce competition. The delegate of Uganda believes that nobody would like to see that as the human basic needs are endangered and challenged. Should the nuclear resources be used as an alternative source of energy, not only is the world energy crisis alleviated, but also people can benefit from the use of nuclear energy such as constructing and planning, since it is mentioned that nuclear power is renewable. Consequently, the delegate delegate of Uganda is in favour of the usage of nuclear power as it generates huge amount of energy which favours the development of Uganda. We believe firmly, that if nuclear power is used to generate energy instead of militarily used, the world will be a much muc h safer place plac e to live.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Country: United Kingdom Delegate: Nathaniel Norman (
[email protected]); RCHK The United Kingdom acknowledges nuclear terrorism as one of the largest threats to international security and peace. Nuclear non-proliferation, the safeguarding of fissionable materials and especially nuclear weapons, and the transparency of governments in regards to their nuclear programs are of utmost importance. The vitality of nuclear disarmament and prevention of nuclear armament of non-transparent and unstable governments cannot be stressed enough.
Leaders of the United Kingdom’s government have taken an active role in preventing preventing nuclear terrorism in both the Washington Nuclear Security Summit in 2010 and the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit in 2012.
Nuclear detection technology should not be underutilized in the efforts of the United Nations, IAEA, and other governmental bodies in the tracking, detection, and prevention of nuclear terrorism.
The government of the United Kingdom recognizes with gratitude the role NATO has played in fighting terrorism internationally. internationally. This government supports the use of similar tactics by the United Nations to combat organizations with reasonable who pose a threat of nuclear terrorism.
The government of the United Kingdom would support requirements for the protection of nuclear weapons, nuclear sites, and fissionable materials in order to minimize the ease and thus the ability of terrorist organizations from attaining fissionable materials.
It is the strong desire of the United Kingdom to work with almost any nation seeking to eliminate the threat of nuclear terrorism.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Country: Ukraine Delegate: Jonathan Wong (
[email protected]); KGV
Ever since the birth of nuclear armaments and their subsequent use in the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to end World War II, arms races came and went, and the threat of a nuclear war became a major concern that had echoed throughout much of the latter half of the twentieth century. Numerous efforts and negotiations have taken place in order to inhibit further progress in the development and testing of nuclear weapons, such as the Nuclear non-Proliferation non-Proliferation Treaty. Whilst this has been largely successful, the threat of nuclear armaments continue to exist in the form of the nuclear terrorism terrorism - the utilization of nuclear weapons by terrorist groups gro ups in order ord er to make threats within wit hin the international interna tional community co mmunity and disrupt international peace and security. Up till 1991, the Ukrainian republic was the hub for the nuclear arsenals of the Soviet Union and upon its dissolution; our nation became the world’s third largest nuclear weapons operator. Despite the right to legal possession of such weaponry, our government adopted the resolution on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Weapons in 1991 and the Lisbon Protocol to the Treaty of May 23, 1992. Subsequently, our government signed the Trilateral Statement by the Presidents of Ukraine, Russia, and the United States on January 14, 1994 in which all nuclear weapons on our territory were destroyed. Thereafter, we acceded to the nuclear non-proliferation non-proliferation treaty (NPT) and have not had any involvement regarding nuclear technology technology as of the present. Actions so s o far to control co ntrol the use us e of nuclear weapons we apons have hav e included the th e NPT, the purpose pu rpose of which is to control the th e development, development , use, and spread of nuclear nu clear weapons weapo ns between member m ember states. Other treaties are also in place. However as mentioned, these do not cover the potential threat posed by non-government sanctioned groups. The Ukraine believes, that in order to address this issue, the following, but not limited to, should be implemented: 1. If states cannot guarantee control over their weapons, or have bodies that won’t subvert to bribery or corruption, c orruption, then they should sh ould not possess po ssess nuclear nu clear weapons weapo ns and either eithe r surrender them for destruction or have them removed. 2. If states wish to continue to possess nuclear weapons, they must make their inventory publicly available, and grant the United Nations Security Council power to oversee and overrule their nuclear operations operations should it be deemed appropriate. The Ukraine believes that these two points are rudimentary for a realistic yet nuanced approached to resolving this current problem. Whilst the problem regarding rega rding nuclear nuclea r terrorism will doubtless doubtles s never recede, as a nation nati on that prides itself in responsibility, Ukraine would greatly support any motions favoring the monitoring and control of nuclear armaments, and look forward with working with member
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism states in resolving this issue.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Country: United States Delegate: Caitlin Fischer (
[email protected]), Elliot Chen (
[email protected]); (
[email protected]. hk); GSIS
The issue of nuclear terrorism is one with significant implications for the global comm unity. With rising risin g accessibility accessi bility to the t he technology technolog y needed to create nuclear nuc lear weapons with the capacity to cause significant harm to large groups of people, the threat of terrorist organizations utilizing such technology is rising accordingly. Thus, we can see that we are increasingly increasingly being pressed to create an internationally acceptable global framework framework to deal with these terrorism t errorism related rela ted issues issu es that are ar e accompanying accomp anying our general shift towards t owards a society in which access to resources pertaining to these industries become more readily available. The delegation of the United States of America hopes to be able to collaborate with the other member states to create a globally acceptable resolution regarding this matter. Many initiatives have been undertaken by the United States in the past to combat both ‘conventional’ ‘conventional’ terrorism, as well as the threat of nuclear terrorism. In April 2010, the president of the United States, Barack Obama, hosted the first summit on nuclear terrorism (the Washington Nuclear Security Summit) along with global leaders representing representing 50 countries. This succeeded in establishing that the general consensus among nations was that nuclear terrorism is indeed an upcoming significant threat, as well as establishing an aim to lock down access to vulnerable materials materials within four years. Ultimately, this summit culminated in countries agreeing to undertake several commitments in order to safeguard access to materials with the capacity to aid the creation of nuclear weaponry for use by terrorist organizations. However, However, a generally accepted framework for the reduction of the use of highly enriched uranium in civil projects was not decided upon, and hence, while several global leaders agreed to reduce or even entirely halt the use of highly enriched uranium, the issue of this dangerous material still being in a vulnerable position remains at large. Other actions and schemes have also been embarked upon by the United States, including, for example, the increased regulation and monitoring of United States Enrichment Corporation, Corporation, a Kentucky based United States firm operating to enrich uranium for civilian usage, in particular for usage by comm ercial nuclear power plants. This has allowed the plant to even reprocess bomb grade uranium from dismantled Russian nuclear warheads into uranium suitable for use in nuclear power plants. On a more domestic scale, the United States has also established protocol for rescue services and medical personnel detailing the procedures that should be followed in the event of the detonation of a small-scale nuclear bomb, as well as procedural drills involving involving simulated ‘dirty bombs’, with particular focus on the nature of terrorist acts at present and its link to dirty bombs.
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism On a more global scale, the United States has been an integral part of the international effort effort against nuclear terrorism. Aside from prompting much of the international discussion regarding this issue, the United States has also been a driving force behind many of the global committees that pertain to this issue. In particular, attention should be drawn to the International Atomic Energy Energy Agency, an agency that the United States both participates in as well as contributes cont ributes to financially. In 2002, the th e agency passed pa ssed its first antinuclear antinu clear terrorism terroris m act, deciding upon an initial plan to upgrade worldwide defenses that could act as an effective system for the reduction of the risk of nuclear terrorism. This act, at its core, promotes physical protection of centers involving the enrichment, treatment, processing and utilization of radioactive materials with potential destructive uses. The United States is also a key supporter of the global organization known as the Nuclear Threat Initiative, a nonpartisan organization organization that has had a great deal of success thus far in reducing the spread of the risk of usage of nuclear weapons, as well as in biochemical weaponry. Apart from being intrinsically intrins ically linked with w ith a related infant organization, orga nization, the t he ‘World Institute Ins titute for Nuclear Security’, the Nuclear Threat Initiative has had success in pressing for increased security, and has established an international nuclear nuclear fuel bank, allowing countries access to nuclear materials for the peaceful use of nuclear energy without the creation of proliferation threats. Aside from this, the United U nited States Sta tes has also als o lent its support s upport to many UN sanctioned appeals for the protection of nations against the threat of nuclear terrorism, including having signed the Treaty on the Non －Proliferation Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, as well as having been an active participant in United Nations discussions and committees regarding the internationally internationally recognized threat. In the present situation, the United States sees a number of threats from nations and groups with the intent inte nt to exploit explo it possessed posses sed highly enriched e nriched uranium urani um to cause ca use potential potent ial harm. Although enriched en riched uranium urani um is said sa id to contain cont ain only 2 －3% uranium㬀235, highly enriched uranium contains anywhere above above 20 uranium㬀235. Aside from posing a far greater nuclear hazard when utilized in civilian situations, highly enriched uranium also passes into the threshold of being considered as weapon usable uranium. Highly enriched uranium is also not necessitated in situations intended only for civilian use: regular enriched uranium suffices in these situations. Thus, it is evident that the continued usage of such highly enriched uranium, aside from not being a necessity, also has the potential to cause significant harms to humanity. Countries such as Iran, Israel and Pakistan, who are known to possess highly enriched uranium and the capacity to continue to produce m ore, thus have the potential to endanger the global community by opening up possibilities for nuclear terrorism on a more dangerous scale than using regular enriched uranium would facilitate. To illustrate this point further, a more recently discussed example can be visited. Under the
Committee: Security Council Topic: Nuclear Terrorism Qaddafi regime in Libya, large quantities of uranium was enriched in the process of researching the development of weapons of mass destruction, though the regime agreed to dismantle research following mounting international economic pressure and sanctions. The process of dismantlement was cut short by the civil war, leaving stores of possibly unprotected uranium yellowcake yellowcake in the south of the country, a danger to the global community, due to unprotected nuclear material in a politically unstable country. The lack of transparency surrounding nuclear activities activities for alleged civilian usage is also an issue that should be considered: without this clarity, much discussion of methods of prevention of nuclear terrorism tends to be halted due to the potential misunderstandings that could be being developed develop ed in these clouded c louded situations. sit uations. This has proven p roven to be the t he case in both bo th Iran and in North Korea, where the apparent secrecy obscuring their projects has in the past and continues to hinder productive discussions regarding these nations’ nuclear technologies. The delegation of the United States fully believes that through cooperation, an effective global framework for defense against nuclear terrorism can be established. The key factor in this would be the unification of the current efforts to combat nuclear terrorism, particularly particularly as the status quo means that both funding and international support is presently spread out in such a manner that ultimately hinders the effectiveness of these organizations. This would also be beneficial to the establishment of a global system with which to monitor large-scale large-scale activity involving radioactive materials spanning the globe, with particular focus on those using fissionable materials. Greater transparency transparency with regards to such activities is also something that this delegation calls for, as this would ensure that no member states are actively breaching any terms set forth in international regulatory regulatory acts, as well as promoting a reduction in the potential for governments governments to be accused of such acts. In addition, as the private sector begins to play a comparatively small yet increasingly increasingly important role in the production and such materials, the United States advocates specific parameters to be determined with regards to how participants in this industry should be able to act. Lastly, this delegations calls for the strengthening of current treaties and resolutions calling for cohesive global actions against nuclear terrorism, and urges for countries that have yet to join such acts to do d o so with due agility. agility . In summation, summa tion, it is evident that tha t nuclear terrorism te rrorism is an ever-looming threat, and, due to the global implications of the issue, a collusive global effort is the only way to effectively minimize the risks posed to nations. The delegation of the United States sincerely hopes to discuss the problems mentioned above, and looks forward to being able to contribute to an effective resolution on the topic.
