By Sharlotte Khit
DAY TWO
The Historical committee debated the resolution clause-by-clause. The main submitter of the resolution was West Germany. After the delegate gave his speech and read out all the operative clauses, the POI session took place, with points of information from China, France, East Germany, Ireland, and Venezuela. Generally, the concerns were over bias, consent from governments, tension between countries, and the possibility of a nuclear war. Delegates who gave speeches opposing the resolution all criticized the possibilities of the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) elevating tensions between countries and economic sanctions violating national sovereignty. The general opinion was to strike the clause regarding the establishment of the IAEA. In response, the delegate of West Germany propose an amendment to strike “in the present and the future in regard to this crisis” and to replace with “in the event of a closing approach to nuclear war such as this crisis” rather than striking the entire sub-clause regarding the IAEA, stating in his speech that it is under the jurisdiction of the UN and a nuclear conflict was nearing, therefore the IAEA is necessary. The POI session was interrupted by a crisis: “A U.S. reconnaissance flights over Cuba indicated the Soviet missile sites were nearing operational readiness. There has been no developments since this but President Kennedy is anxious, and has suggested attacking Cuba.” The delegates were given 10 minutes of unmoderated caucus to come up with a clause to address the crisis. The debate over the amendment continued afterwards. Delegates in opposition to the amendment argued that nuclear war was far from approaching, even though the submitter of the amendment explained that the crisis was a clear indication of the nuclear war approaching very closely. However, with three votes for and eight votes against, the amendment eventually did not pass. Immediately after, another amendment was submitted by the delegate of Venezuela, which proposed striking ‘subclause d, sub-subclause i’, stating that it was unrealistic and irrelevant. With six votes four and five votes against, the amendment passed and all delegates marked the change on their resolution. Then came the time for delegates to vote on the clause as a whole. With three votes four, six votes against, 2 abstentions, clause 1 did not pass.
DAY THREE
The Historical Committee was discussing like the previous day about the Cuban Missile Crisis. The USSR was defending a clause that requested the removal of nuclear weapons from all non-originating members. Two delegates condemned the hypocrisy of the delegate of the USSR. They condemned the USSR for wanting nuclear weapons out of Turkey and Japan but continue sending nuclear weapons to Cuba. This discussion was interrupted by a crisis. This crisis centered around the arrival of an anonymous source stating President Kennedy was considering an invasion of Cuba. The Kremlin’s response was to offer the dismantlement of missiles and missile sites if the the naval blockade around Cuba is lifted and if the US doesn’t invade Cuba. A further development stated that a Soviet nuclear submarine was hit by a US depth charge signaling it to resurface. The Soviet submarine are going to send a nuclear missile on the US since they seem to believe war has been declared. The Crisis Clause gave concessions to both sides. So to avoid all out nuclear war, the Crisis Clause was implemented by unanimous decision. The committee continued after lunch with clause 1, submitted by the delegate of France, which recommended the USSR and the USA to withdraw connections from Cuba. After the delegate’s speech, concerns were raised over the possibility of instability and less security in Cuba. However, the delegate of France stood by her point and emphasized the importance of Cuba’s sovereignty. Afterwards, an amendment was submitted by the delegate of West Germany to amend the sub-clause b of clause 1 that was forceful in nature, as explained by the delegate in his speech. With ten votes for and two votes against, the amendment passed.
DAY TWO
The Historical committee debated the resolution clause-by-clause. The main submitter of the resolution was West Germany. After the delegate gave his speech and read out all the operative clauses, the POI session took place, with points of information from China, France, East Germany, Ireland, and Venezuela. Generally, the concerns were over bias, consent from governments, tension between countries, and the possibility of a nuclear war. Delegates who gave speeches opposing the resolution all criticized the possibilities of the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) elevating tensions between countries and economic sanctions violating national sovereignty. The general opinion was to strike the clause regarding the establishment of the IAEA. In response, the delegate of West Germany propose an amendment to strike “in the present and the future in regard to this crisis” and to replace with “in the event of a closing approach to nuclear war such as this crisis” rather than striking the entire sub-clause regarding the IAEA, stating in his speech that it is under the jurisdiction of the UN and a nuclear conflict was nearing, therefore the IAEA is necessary. The POI session was interrupted by a crisis: “A U.S. reconnaissance flights over Cuba indicated the Soviet missile sites were nearing operational readiness. There has been no developments since this but President Kennedy is anxious, and has suggested attacking Cuba.” The delegates were given 10 minutes of unmoderated caucus to come up with a clause to address the crisis. The debate over the amendment continued afterwards. Delegates in opposition to the amendment argued that nuclear war was far from approaching, even though the submitter of the amendment explained that the crisis was a clear indication of the nuclear war approaching very closely. However, with three votes for and eight votes against, the amendment eventually did not pass. Immediately after, another amendment was submitted by the delegate of Venezuela, which proposed striking ‘subclause d, sub-subclause i’, stating that it was unrealistic and irrelevant. With six votes four and five votes against, the amendment passed and all delegates marked the change on their resolution. Then came the time for delegates to vote on the clause as a whole. With three votes four, six votes against, 2 abstentions, clause 1 did not pass.
DAY THREE
The Historical Committee was discussing like the previous day about the Cuban Missile Crisis. The USSR was defending a clause that requested the removal of nuclear weapons from all non-originating members. Two delegates condemned the hypocrisy of the delegate of the USSR. They condemned the USSR for wanting nuclear weapons out of Turkey and Japan but continue sending nuclear weapons to Cuba. This discussion was interrupted by a crisis. This crisis centered around the arrival of an anonymous source stating President Kennedy was considering an invasion of Cuba. The Kremlin’s response was to offer the dismantlement of missiles and missile sites if the the naval blockade around Cuba is lifted and if the US doesn’t invade Cuba. A further development stated that a Soviet nuclear submarine was hit by a US depth charge signaling it to resurface. The Soviet submarine are going to send a nuclear missile on the US since they seem to believe war has been declared. The Crisis Clause gave concessions to both sides. So to avoid all out nuclear war, the Crisis Clause was implemented by unanimous decision. The committee continued after lunch with clause 1, submitted by the delegate of France, which recommended the USSR and the USA to withdraw connections from Cuba. After the delegate’s speech, concerns were raised over the possibility of instability and less security in Cuba. However, the delegate of France stood by her point and emphasized the importance of Cuba’s sovereignty. Afterwards, an amendment was submitted by the delegate of West Germany to amend the sub-clause b of clause 1 that was forceful in nature, as explained by the delegate in his speech. With ten votes for and two votes against, the amendment passed.