Topic: Trade in High-Tech Weapons Systems
Country: Netherlands
Delegate Name: Catherine Russell
School: Williamston High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Netherlands position papers GLIMUN 2016 committees
Trading weapons is one of the oldest human professions the world has. The ancient world benefitted greatly from the exchange in technologies that could allow them to better protect themselves from intruders and those who wished them harm, including a nation they could be warring with. It had allowed an imbalance of power and yet still allowed for a relatively fair fight and would allow conflicts to settle down at a faster pace than if the nation's weapons were too similar, but now the tides are beginning to turn. In recent years, there has been an imbalance of power in the weapons trade. Some nations have been producing several models of their weapons systems, one usually more superior than the others. The nation will keep the best for itself, but trade the weaker ones to other nations. Though this is seen as trying to keep a balance of power, rather than ending conflicts, it could very well make them drag on for a longer time. In addition, it will cause more harm to the populace and in turn, more harm to the environment and economy of the land in which the weapons are used in combat. It is time that the DISEC committee delves into this issue and hopefully comes up with a solution that will benefit all nations.
The Netherlands is ranked as ninth in the world for exporting weapons, however, there are strict regulations in place regarding where our nation will ship the weapons. The kingdom’s government has put bans on weapons trade on some nations such as Saudi Arabia because our nation disagrees with their violation of humanitarian laws and rights. Netherlands believes that if nations put bans or stricter regulations on who arms are traded with, wars may be able to end faster and could be less devastating in the future. However, the bans do not need to be put in place forever, and should be lifted once a country is stable again so the economy of both countries may boost and potential trade relations between countries may be established in the future.
Netherlands would like to write a resolution that would call for stricter policy on high-tech weapon trade control. This could mean halting weapons trade with some nations for some time by means of trade embargo, but they can be lifted when the country reaches stability. The Netherlands would also like to add some humanitarian rights in the resolution, such as aiding the countries whose rights are lacking if they so desire by providing support by UN humanitarian aid and support form humanitarian NGOs. It should not be implemented in any country without consent as not to infringe on the national sovereignty of that nation.
