Afghan-Soviet Conflict in HSC, June 1st 1982

The Afghan-Soviet conflict may lead to consequences of unimaginable scale. 

King Zahir and his brothers reasserted government control over the anarchy in the Democratic Republic Afghanistan (DRA) at the end of 1920s. During his reign, King Zahir sponsored a number of development projects, such as irrigation and highway constructions while maintaining Afghanistan relatively neutral in international politics. However, some of his projects were funded by the Soviet Union and the United States, which kept a level of influence in the kingdom. Most of his programs had relatively little effect outside of Kabul, and civil unrest continued at the border close to Pakistan. In 1973, Mohammed Daoud overthrew King Zahir. Daoud was supported by one of the factions of the People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA), founded in 1965 on a Marxist platform and supported by the soviet government in Moscow. 

The PDPA was split into two opposing factions, however, the Parchamists, led by Babrak Karmal (who supported Daoud), and the “Khalqis” led by Noor Taraki. During Daoud´s 5-year rule over the country, he tried to decrease the enmity between the two factions of the party while governing Afghanistan's Islamic tribal regions. Meanwhile, Daoud attempted to move away from the USSR and build stronger political relationships with the USA. 

On the 28th of April, 1978, soldiers aligned with Taraki’s “Khalq” faction assaulted the presidential palace, and his troops executed Daoud and his family. Taraki became Prime Minister and, in an attempt to bring unity to the country, he invited his previous political rival, who had supported Daoud in the past, Babrak Karmal, to become Deputy  Prime Minister. In Washington, this news was received with concern Regardless, the relationship with Taraki´s government was stable until February of 1979 when the US ambassador in Afghanistan, Adolph Dubs, was murdered. 

In December of 1979, Soviet Union troops invaded the Afghanistan to support the communist government in a fight with anticommunist Muslim guerrillas. Soviet troops were able gain control over some areas of the country, including Kabul. 

In January 1980 Security Council started to discuss the issue of soviet presence in a sovereign nation, but didn't reach a consensus. So today, June 1st, 1982, the Historical Security Council is trying to reach an agreement that they failed to reach two years ago. 

IMUN Press Team asked delegates of the USA, USSR and Afghanistan questions related to this topic.

 

I: ‘What is your country’s position on the Afghan-Soviet conflict?’

Afghanistan: ‘We are strongly allied with the Soviets. Our position is that there is no ongoing conflict. We invited the Soviet Union  to come and assist with some political struggles which are internal to the country.’

USSR: ‘We believe that conflict is not between the Soviet Union and Afghanistan, but the major issue is Western intervention in the political life of Afghanistan by funding terrorists in the country and sending troops there. The Soviet Union is there only to protect our ally. [Our alliance] is something that we hold very strong and something that should never be discussed in the Historical Security Council.’

USA: ‘The US is against the Soviet invasion in Afghanistan and believes it is a war crime.’

 

I: ‘How do you believe the conflict will be resolved?’

Afghanistan: ‘I believe the conflict will be resolved when the internal conflict itself is  resolved so that USSR  troops can leave their positions and come back home. So Afghanistan will be just a sovereign state with no assistance [from outside].’

USSR: ‘This conflict should never have been brought into the Historical Security Council, but the only method we can find to resolve this conflict is to get the West to stop funding terrorist organizations and anti-afghan groups and to allow Afghanistan to have self-determination and to decide for itself what they need to do.’

USA: ‘Conflict can be resolved through peaceful negotiations between two sides.’

 

I: ‘What repercussions do you think the conflict will have on an international level?’

Afghanistan: ‘I think that if there is significant influence from the West which there has been in the past, especially in Afghanistan, it will have very negative impacts on the people in the country. On the international level, there are many more issues ongoing now so it will create another problem for  the international community that’s not necessary and just imposed by the West.’ 

USSR: ‘There will be repercussions on an international level. The Cold War period  of detente has escalated, and I believe this will pose challenges depending on what solution comes out.’ 

The delegate of the USA was not able to answer this question. 

 

The general hope is that the resolution submitted by Ireland will enable the Member States to reach a consensus on the question of the Afghan-Soviet conflict.