Position Paper

Name: Committee: SPECPOL Country: Japan Topic: Syrian conflict affecting other Arab States Institution: Japan strongly believes and has a vested interest in ensuring stability in the middleeast. Avoiding human bloodshed has been Japans top priorities in self-defense for past years. Our stance can be clarified by the statement attributed to Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs Takeaki Matsumoto published on 24 April condemned the Syrian government's use of force and noted the rising numbers of casualties and fatalities in Syria. The statement said additional reforms beyond the government's lifting of the emergency law were urgently required and called for a stop to the violence. In the past 50 years, Japans sole military operation, was one intended to ensure peace in the mid dle east. The Syrian conflict has led to a massive flow of migrants from one place to another like Turkey, UAE, and Saudi Arabia. This has led to a massive flow of refugees together with the flow of deadly weapons like guns, bombs in the Arab states which has led to uprising in the Arab states to begun. Japans main oil imports, about 87.1% of total crude oil used in Japan, all originate from the Middle East. The effect of refugees and weapons flooding into the neighboring countries has started to destabilize Japans main trade partners in the area, leading to a spike in oil prices, which have a terrible effect on Japans economy. Japans investment in neighboring Arab states is taking a beating. Other than that, Japanese companies hold a major market in Syria for exports up to 66.9 billion yen (automobiles, general machinery) and imports 1.5 billion yen (2008) (cotton wool, soap etc.). Therefore instability in the Middle East has dire effects on Japans Economy. The General Assembly should hold dialogues with the opposition groups in Syria to hear their issues and demands and the dialogues fail then allow military intervention to be legal in Syria and take Security Council in confidence for holding military intervention so that further causalities could be controlled. Humanitarian help through the Red Cross and Red Crescent must be increased. Turkey, in particular, must be assisted in dealing with refugees from Syria. After military intervention, Japan believes an interim government, comprising the major parties in Syria should be formed, overseen by the UN. A security force, along the lines of the ISAF, should be set up in Syria, for a period for atmost 5 years, until proper elections and a democratic government is elected. Syrian borders should be closed to refugees and contraband from further spilling into Syrias most stable neighbors. Japan is also ready to offer interest-free loans only if the chaos subsides so that refugees can be habilated within Syria.