U4 AOS 2 - Global Crises Flashcards
What are the 4 key terms of the Global Crises area of study?
- Globalisation
- Unilateralism
- International cooperation
- Crisis Diplomacy
Define Globalisation
-refers to the acceleration and intensification of exchanges of goods services, labour, and capital, which promote global interdependence.
Define Unilateralism
-refers to the policy of a state acting alone with little regard for the views or interests of other global actors, in pursuit of foreign policy objectives.
Define International cooperation
-refers to occasions when global actors work together to achieve common ideals and goals.
*differs to crisis diplomacy as it is long term.
Define Crisis diplomacy
-refers to negotiations between actors in the global political arena in response to an immediate crisis.
*differs to International cooperation as it is immediate and short term action.
What are the 3 key aspects of the Syrian Armed Conflict?
- Prosecuting war crimes in international law.
- War as an instrument of state policy (terrorism if you count Hezbollah).
- Intervention.
What are the 3 causes of the Syrian Armed Conflict?
- Authoritarian/dictator rule of Syria by the Assad family.
- Religious-ethnic divide.
- Arab Spring.
What are Syria’s Ethnic and Religion percentages?
Ethnic
80% Syrian Arab, 12% Alawite, 5% Kurd
Religion
74% Sunni, 12% Alawite (sect of Shia), used to have Christians pre-war.
Disenfranchisement of the majority, rebel groups fighting for equality.
What was the Arab Spring, and what were the series of events that sparked civil war?
The Arab Spring was a series of pro-democracy protests across North Africa and the Middle East from 2010-11.
Mar. 2011 - Peaceful protests in Daraa demanding the release of 14 schoolchildren who were being tortured after writing pro-democracy statements on a wall, turned violent when the army opened fire.
May 2011 - 1000 civilians had been killed by the gov.
Jul. 2011 - The Free Syria Army was formed after soldiers defected. This marked the transformation of the conflict into civil war.
Who are the global actors involved in the Syrian armed conflict (that you should talk about)
Syrian Government - Response to war, SCC
United Nations - Intervention, resolutions
USA - Intervention
Russia - War as an instrument of state policy, protecting their ally.
Iran - War as an instrument of state policy, becoming a hegemon.
ICC - Prosecuting atrocity crimes.
How was the Syrian Constitutional Committee created?
UN Resolution 2254 - calling for a “Syrian-led political process, facilitated by the UN, providing a schedule and process for drafting a new constitution and UN-supervised elections.”
The SCC is made up of 3 groups.
50 members nominated by the Syrian government.
50 members nominated by the UN to represent the various civil groups in Syria.
50 members nominated by the Syrian opposition.
Has the Syrian Constitutional Committee been successful?
In the 8 meetings between 2019-22, the committee has made zero progress.
At the 5th meeting UN special envoy Geir Pedersen stated “We can’t continue like this.” He also stated the Syrian government lacked “true engagement” in the process. Additionally the Opposition delegation has accused the government delegates of presenting “irrelevant” proposals.
How is Hezbollah involved in the Syrian armed conflict? (War as an instrument of state policy)
Hezbollah is a Lebanese Islamic terrorist group in support of the Assad regime, fighting against other rebel groups in Syria.
“All of Hezbollah’s budget, expenses, wages, food, drinks, weapons, and rockets are all supplied by the Islamic Republic of Iran.” - Hassan Nasrallah (2016).
The Al Qusayr offensive (2013) on the Lebanese-Syrian border against the FSA secured the border under government control.
Why is the US involved in the Syrian armed conflict (intervention)
Following the vetoing of Resolution s/2022/538 in Jul. 2022, the US ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said “this is a life and death issue and tragically, people will die because of this vote and the country who shamelessly deployed the veto.”
Following chemical weapons attacks from Syria in 2013, USA made a deal with Moscow to dismantle Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal.
Oct. 2015 - The USA trains 50,000 SDF soldiers to fight ISIS, who drove the Jihadists out in 2019.
Why is Russia involved in the Syrian armed conflict? (War as an instrument of state policy)
Syria is a long-standing ally of Russia. Russia has deployed 63,000 troops, and conducted 39,000 airstrikes against “terrorist targets”, which have killed 86,000.
Jul. 2022 Russia vetoed resolution s/2022/538 that called for the only remaining UN border crossing to remain open for another year, citing that the UN aid operation violated Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
