Security Council

by Soph Gautam

The delegate of the US was surprisingly neutral in their remark, only stating that they hope all nations involved will have a voice in the matter. Singapore took a different approach emphasized the economic consequences of continuing the South China Sea conflict by outlining the projected decrease in economic growth of all parties involved. Germany and UK showed support for their Asian allies, speaking on the importance of respecting other countries' sovereignty. UK further stated that they want a solution that is equitable to all countries involved, with Lebanon adding that anything less would set a dangerous precedent. Then, Lebanon raised a motion for a moderated caucus of 10 minutes. The motion passed, and the floor was given to Lebanon.

Lebanon, UK, Singapore, and Vietnam stood together in wanting a clear and universal guideline that is made equitably in order to benefit the majority of involved countries. Singapore further highlighted the importance of a demilitarized zone, with free navigation laws to encourage trade through the area. Russia and China emphasized that they would agree with the other side, but only if the solution is one that can actually be followed. Overlapping territories are a concern. China brings up the possibility of creating new laws regarding international trade and security, with clear clauses on the kind of military operations that could be held within those territories sovereignly.

The delegate of Russia raised a motion for an unmoderated caucus for the duration of 20 minutes, which passes. The delegates used this time to forge alliances, negotiate between allies, and draft a resolution. The unmoderated caucuses lasted a total of 40 minutes, after being extended twice. Then, the delegate of Lebanon raised the motion to open a speaking list on the topic of “Establishing guidelines on the division of the South China Sea territory”. The motion passed, and the floor was given to Germany, who began by arguing for maritime delimitation. The delegate maintained that reducing the territory lines from 12 nautical miles to 8 would decrease the amount of overlapping territory, and might solve some problems, but that the number is up for negotiation. China opposed this view entirely, stating that the delegation is more interested in increasing that number, not decreasing it. The delegate of China also stated that the country’s resources and sovereignty are the most important things to consider. Holding more resource-rich territory would help in making the country more stable. To this, Lebanon responded by asking China to elaborate on how this stance is in alignment with its opening remark of wanting peace. The UK echoed Lebanon’s question. Lebanon also asked China to consider that peace cannot be achieved by keeping only China’s needs in mind: that China must consider other countries in the region as well in this scenario.

China responded to this by stating that their priority is peace and stability within their country, and so, they need to press on this situation as a matter of national importance. The delegate also stated that China needed to defend itself from the threats in the area, which is what made military bases necessary. Germany added a counterpoint to this, asking China to explain what threats it faced before the South China Sea conflict arose, since their militarization and island-building has been going on for longer than the conflict has. To this, China responded by saying that the countries that hold territory in the South China Sea are not fond of China. Therefore, it is necessary for China to be able to protect itself. Moreover, militarization and island-building were investment projects, which China, being the largest and richest country in the region, could afford.

Lebanon and China got into a heated discussion about international peace-building and domestic peace-building. Lebanon asked China whether they believed international peace-building was an important part of domestic peace and prosperity, to which China then responded by laying down three steps to their motto: create peace within the country, make peace with other countries, and ensure international trade. Lebanon suggested that China take its own advice and make the effort to show they want peace by helping establish international guidelines in maritime delimitation. The delegate of the US joined in, speaking about the issues China is facing internally due to ethnic pluralism, and whether China might want to focus on that first, based on its own motto. This started another debate about who ought to have a say in this conflict: with China maintaining that it has a history of getting involved only in matters that concern it, something the US does not embody. The delegate of the US replied by stating that this is only a matter of what China believes because the US holds other beliefs, namely that the pursuit of world peace is worth neglecting some domestic matters.

As the day ends, we can see clearly that there are two sides: China, Iran, Russia, and Thailand seem to be aligned with each other, and we see most of the western participating countries, ASEAN countries (other than Thailand), etc. leaning more against China in this conflict. Stay tuned to hear more about the resolution the committee comes up with after much negotiation tomorrow.