MUN BRIEFING PAPER
Fraying at the edges: How do we resolve border disputes?
Hi delegates! I'm David Thorburn and as you know, along with Luca Marasa I will be chairing the
Political II Committee at GWCMUN 2013 in March. It will be my sixth conference but my first
time chairing so I'm looking forward to a proper baptism of fire.
I'll be chairing the topic "Fraying at the edges: How do we resolve border disputes?"
To start with, I'll be explaining the issue, then going on to some in-depth examples of border
disputes.
First, a definition of what constitutes a border dispute. A border dispute is a situation where 2
countries both claim ownership of a particular piece of land and are in conflict, either through
diplomatic means or warfare.
Border disputes and how to resolve them are pressing issues right across the world, and these
issues, if not properly addressed, can spill over into war. As the U.N. has a duty to preserve
world peace, surely it has a duty to get involved in these situations and to try and prevent them
from escalating?
This issue has come up very recently, with China and Japan clashing over the ownership of the
Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands and their oil reserves. Border disputes are a problem for all across the
globe, with the disputes between Spain and Morocco over Ceuta and Melilla and the dispute
between Britain and Spain over Gibraltar just three of the countless examples.
And, of course, there is the ever-present Israel-Palestine conflict, a prime example of a border
dispute with wide-ranging and complex causes that has escalated and has almost taken on a life
of its own.
These border disputes are often raised at the UN, but it is generally impossible to resolve the
dispute in a manner that does not leave some hurt feelings on one side or the other, often with
the bigger country with more powerful allies winning out, and often the needs and desires of the
residents of the territories and disputes are ignored. Would it be better to have a forum in which
the arguments of both sides were given equal credence and the views of the inhabitants could
be taken into account when trying to resolve these issues, and whose decisions were binding in
international law?
Not every border dispute spills over into conflict, but when it does it gets a lot of media exposure
and usually creates a wave of emotional feeling in the belligerent countries. You may have
heard of the Falkland Islands (or the Malvinas, if you’re Argentinian) - a prime example of a
dispute that escalated into war and resulted in the loss of 907 lives and received regular frontpage news coverage both in Britain and Argentina, the countries having the dispute.
George Watson’s College MUN Conference 2013
MUN BRIEFING PAPER
Here's an in depth example for you:
Gibraltar:
Gibraltar is a peninsula, bordered by Spain on its landward side, that is claimed by Spain and
administered by the U.K. as a British Overseas Territory. Gibraltar has almost complete internal
self-government through an elected parliament, with defence, foreign policy and internal affairs
formally the responsibility of the Governor of Gibraltar, the representative of Queen Elizabeth
who is the head of state.
The British claim rests on 300 years of administration since its capture in the War of the Spanish
Succession, according to the terms of the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht, in which Spain ceded: "the full
and entire propriety of the town and castle of Gibraltar, together with the port, fortifications, and
forts thereunto belonging … for ever, without any exception or impediment whatsoever." This
would seem to suggest that Spain agreed to give Gibraltar to Britain in perpetuity. Britain also
bases its claim on the democratic right to self-determination of the Gibraltarian people, and their
overwhelming wish to remain part of Britain, with 98.97% voting ‘no’ to a hypothetical proposal
on shared sovereignty with Spain.
The Spanish claim rests on the principle of territorial integrity which, according to U.N.
Resolution 1514 (XV), complements and constrains the right to self-determination. The Spanish
view is that Gibraltarians are only settlers from the United Kingdom and other countries and only
their interests, not their wishes (as the right to self-determination would involve), must be
safeguarded. The U.N. has also previously passed resolutions that call for talks between the
British and Spanish Governments with a view to “ending the colonial situation in Gibraltar and to
safeguarding the interests of the population”, seeming to support the Spanish positions that,
firstly, Gibraltar is a colony of the U.K., and secondly, the wishes of the Gibraltarians need not
be taken into account, only their interests.
The U.N. has been unable to resolve the dispute, despite passing a number of resolutions on
the subject, and the ownership of Gibraltar continues to be a bone of contention between the
British, Gibraltarian and Spanish Governments to this day, with Queen Sofía of Spain cancelling
plans to travel to England to participate in the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II, as a protest in
response to a planned visit to Gibraltar by Prince Edward, with the Spanish Government also
lodging a protest. Relations between Britain and Spain "returned to a state of growing
confrontation" following the election of Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy in December
2011. Plans for a 100-boat flotilla to sail around the peninsula to mark the Queen's Diamond
Jubilee were adopted in Gibraltar as "a show of defiance against Spain."
This is an example of a dispute to which, despite attempted U.N. intervention, there is no end in
sight.
The debate over how to resolve border disputes still goes on today, and poses many pressing
and difficult questions for the U.N.:
Who should decide which side’s claim is more valid?
Does your country believe that the decision should be made by a process conducted by the U.N.
or other body?
George Watson’s College MUN Conference 2013
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Or does your country believe it should be left to the disputing countries to come to an agreement
through peaceful negotiation?
How do you ensure that the countries in dispute actually participate in any process and respect
its outcome?
You should consider all these questions in your resolution.
If you hope to be considered for an award at the conference, which you all should really, you do
need to submit a Position Paper (50 words explaining your country’s views on the given issue)
by 15th February at the latest. It really is easy and shouldn’t be hard to do, so please all do one.
You can email these to me at [email protected]. You are also expected to bring a
Resolution on two of the 4 Committee topics with you when you come to the Conference. Have
fun making your resolutions, and I’ll see you all in March!
Useful Links:
listverse.com/2011/09/02/top-10-controversial-territorial-disputes/
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2070.html
Country Profiles:
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/country_profiles/default.stm
www.nationsonline.org/oneworld
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/
For issues of current debate:
www.idebate.org
www.newint.org
www.amnesty.org
George Watson’s College MUN Conference 2013