Topic:
Country: Mexico
Delegate Name: Natalie Mouw
United Nations Security Council
Situation in Afghanistan
United Mexican States
Natalie Mouw
Forest Hills Eastern
Afghanistan is in crisis. After the removal of coalition forces in August 2021, the UN-backed Afghan government quickly fell to Taliban forces. Valuing neither Afghan citizens’ property nor lives, the Taliban has seized citizens’ land and persecuted its political opponents and women. Emigration of Afghanistan people has occurred in large numbers – over 35,000 have fled since the Taliban takeover this year. Unfortunately, many Afghan refugees are being turned away from countries; Afghan refugees do not have a safe place to which they can escape. Those who could not escape before the Taliban seized control do not have the money or resources to leave the country. Consistent with its pre 9/11 practices, the Taliban has denied Afghan women education, depriving them of their basic freedoms and safety. Finally, the Taliban’s historic allowance of terrorist groups, such as Al-Qaeda and ISIS, to train in Afghanistan must be prevented in the future.
Traditionally neutral in international conflicts, Mexico plans to stay true to its constitution and precedents of neutrality, but it recognizes the crisis of the Afghan people. Mexico emphasizes non-intervention in the domestic affairs of other countries and favors peaceful resolutions to conflicts. As with other issues of foreign intervention, Mexico will work closely with the United States in developing and implementing a formal policy. The safety of civilians is of utmost importance to Mexico. This is reflected in their signing of the Security Council Resolution 2596 on September 17, 2021, which extended the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (“UNAMA”) until March of 2022. Mexico does not currently have the resources to assist in the evacuation of Afghan refugees or the capacity to accept them into asylum; it calls upon world leaders (especially of G7 nations) and neighboring countries of Afghanistan to open their borders more readily to displaced Afghans. Mexico does not recognize the legitimacy of the Taliban government and would like to see a return to power of the UN-approved Afghan government or other democratically elected government. Nonetheless, Mexico appreciates that the previous attempt to reinstate the Afghan government fell weeks after US removal, and therefore it insists that the priority be providing humanitarian aid to both displaced Afghans and restricted civilians who cannot evacuate the country.
Mexico proposes that the emphasis of the United Nations’ solutions lie on humanitarian aid to Afghan civilians. Afghans who evacuated before complete Taliban control are in dire need of asylum. The United Nations should provide medical, monetary, and humanitarian aid to migrants. For the Afghans remaining in Afghanistan, their human rights are being suppressed, especially women’s rights. The United Nations should send peacekeepers, not armed forces, to Afghanistan for the purpose of evacuating refugees and providing humanitarian aid.
