IE Application Essay: If you had the opportunity, what actions would you demand of the United Nations Secretary General and why?

1. IE Application Essay: If you had the opportunity,
what actions would you demand of the United
Nations Secretary General and why?
Prepared by: Char Evangelista

2. Currently, there are three key wars that are ongoing in the Middle East…
Pro-Government Anti-Government
Syrian Forces
Free Syrian Army
(FSA)
Pro-Government
Militias
Nationalist Jihadis
Iran
Jabhat Fatah al-
Sham
Hezbollah
Islamic State of Iraq
& Syria (ISIS)
Foreign Shia Militias
United States of
Americas*
Russia* Saudi Arabia*
Turkey*
Pro-Government Anti-Government
Yemeni military Houthis
Saudi Arabia^ Iran
Al Qaeda*
Islamic State of Iraq
& Syria (ISIS)*
^ Backed by: USA, Jordan, UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain,
Morocco, Egypt, and Sudan.
* Opposes both the Yemeni Government & the Houthis.
Both are against the Houthis for they are Shia Muslims.
* Openly opposes ISIS.
Pro-Government Anti-Government
Iraqi army
Islamic State of Iraq
& Syria (ISIS)
Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq^ Naqshbandi Army
Badr Organization
Hezbollah^
Promised Day
Brigades^
Peshmerga*
Combined Joint Task
Force – OIR~
Country: Syria
President: Bashar al- Assad
Country: Iraq
President: Fuad Masum
^ Backed by Iran.
*Fights with the Shia as it is against ISIS and Sunnis.
~ Composed of: USA, Saudi Arabia and >15 countries.
Country: Yemen
President: Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi

3. These wars have been so destructive that they lead to the death and displacement of millions of people…
Syria War
(2011 – Present)
No. of Casualties
Total # of people killed
during the war*
470,000
Refugees 5,500,000
Internally displaced
people
6,300,000
People requiring
humanitarian
assistance
13,500,000
*Estimate of Syrian Center for Policy Research
Sources: Refugees and IDP – UN 2016 Global Trends Report; People Requiring Humanitarian
Assistance – UN 2016 Global Appeals Report.

4. These wars have been so destructive that they lead to the death and displacement of millions of people…
Iraq Civil War
(2014 – Present)
No. of Casualties
Total # of people killed
during the war*
53,000-72,000
Refugees 308,000
Internally displaced
people
3,600,000
People requiring
humanitarian assistance
>10,000,000
*Wikipedia: Iraq Civil War (2014-present)
Sources: Refugees and IDP – UN 2016 Global Trends Report; People Requiring Humanitarian Assistance – UN 2016 Global
Appeals Report.

5. These wars have been so destructive that they lead to the death and displacement of millions of people…
Yemen War
(2015 – Present)
No. of Casualties
Total # of people killed
during the war*
10,000
Refugees 18,000
Internally displaced
people
2,000,000
People requiring
humanitarian
assistance^
22,140,000* Estimate of United Nations
^ PRHA: 82% of 27M people in Yemen – UN 2016 Global Appeals Report;
Sources: Refugees and IDP – UN 2016 Global Trends Report

6. Furthermore, the mass migration destabilized its receiving countries as it made them targets to terrorist attacks…
Turkey
No. of refugees
received
2,870,000
Lebanon
No. of refugees
received
1,000,000
Jordan
No. of refugees
received
685,000
Germany
No. of refugees
received
669,000
France
No. of refugees
received
305,000
Sweden
No. of refugees
received
230,000
* Figures taken from UN 2016 Global Trends Report.

7. …and placed additional pressure on their economies…
Italy
Real GDP Growth % (2016) 0.9%
Unemployment Rate (2016) 11.7%
Gov’t debt as % of GDP
(2015)
157.3%
Greece
Real GDP Growth % (2016) 0.0%
Unemployment Rate (2016) 23.5%
Gov’t debt as % of GDP
(2015)
185.2%
… this is bad especially to those who are still struggling due to the recent global financial crisis..* Figures taken from OECD Country Profiles.

8. It also caused unrest within the countries such as:
Slovakia Czech Republic
United Kingdom

9. …and worse…
The Independent
UK Business Insider
The Guardian
CNBC
The Guardian
Financial Times
BBC News
Bloomberg
The Independent

10. Proposed Actions
Address Saudi Arabia –
Iran Problem
Convince US & Russia to
work together and stop
giving aid
Lead negotiations
between the government
and people
Lead international effort
against extremist groups
 The United Nations (UN) should facilitate negotiations between the
two countries for their rift has destabilized the entire Middle East.
 In the course of the discussions, the UN should make sure that:
 They would stop supporting the different players of the war.
 They would work together in rebuilding the Middle East,
especially those that were ruined by the war.
 They would support UN’s efforts to bring peace in the Middle
East and eradicate the extremist rebels.
 They would enter a deal that would make their economies
more integrated; thereby, decreasing the incentive of bringing
down one another.
 They would remove policies that would harm certain sects of
Islam (ie. Shia, Sunni).
 Saudi Arabia and Iran should set an example for their neighboring
Islam countries by showing that it is possible for a Shia and a Sunni –
dominated country to work and live together peacefully.

11. Proposed Actions
Address Saudi Arabia –
Iran Problem
Convince US & Russia to
work together and stop
giving aid
Lead negotiations
between the government
and people
Lead international effort
against extremist groups
 The United Nations (UN) should facilitate negotiations between the
two countries for their rift has destabilized the entire Middle East.
 In the course of the discussions, the UN should make sure that:
 They would stop supporting the different players of the war.
 They would work together in rebuilding the Middle East,
especially those that were ruined by the war.
 They would support UN’s efforts to bring peace in the Middle
East and eradicate the extremist rebels.
 They would enter a deal that would make their economies
more integrated; thereby, decreasing the incentive of bringing
down one another.
 They would remove policies that would harm certain sects of
Islam (ie. Shia, Sunni).
 Saudi Arabia and Iran should set an example for their neighboring
Islam countries by showing that it is possible for a Shia and a Sunni –
dominated country to work and live together peacefully.
 After that, the UN should convince the United States of America and
Russia to see eye-to-eye on how this particular problem should be
handled going forward.
 Their conflict has seriously dampen UN’s credibility and legitimacy in
the international community especially with regards to this particular
issue, so I hope the UN Secretary General can convince them to work
together or, if that’s not possible, persuade the other countries to take
action against Russia and the United States of America through UN
reforms.
 Furthermore, the UN should influence them to:
 immediately stop supporting any of the players in the war both
through funding and UN protection.
 not interfere with the negotiations regarding the rebels and
the government for all three countries.
 back its efforts wholeheartedly may it be through dialogue or, if
it can’t be avoided, war.

12. Proposed Actions
Address Saudi Arabia –
Iran Problem
Convince US & Russia to
work together and stop
giving aid
Lead negotiations
between the government
and people
Lead international effort
against extremist groups
 The UN should then act as mediators between the government and
the non-extremist rebels in each of the countries.
 With their funding and UN protection cut off, I believe the players
would be more open to start a dialogue.
 Moreover, I’m hoping the threat of going against the full force of the
UN will scare them to accept a deal.
 For me, it is of utmost importance that the UN is involved with this for
it gives the newly established government international recognition.
 The new UN-backed government, once established, can work with
Saudi Arabia and Iran in instituting policies that will help bridge the
sectarian divide.
 With the civil conflicts settled, everyone (UN, Iran, Saudi Arabia and
etc) can now focus on the threat at hand – Islamic State of Iraq and
Syria (ISIS) and other extremist groups such as al Qaeda.

13. Proposed Actions
Address Saudi Arabia –
Iran Problem
Convince US & Russia to
work together and stop
giving aid
Lead negotiations
between the government
and people
Lead international effort
against extremist groups
 The UN should stop their funding by cutting off their revenue sources,
which in the case of ISIS, is primarily through the oil and sex slave
market.
 With the support of its members, the UN should impose strict
sanctions against countries buying ISIS’ oil. The sanctions should be
significant so that the cost of disobeying would be greater than the
benefit.
 Then, the UN can try to see reason with the members of the extremist
groups. I hope that those who joined these groups due to sectarian
violence and discrimination would reconsider with the help of Iran and
Saudi Arabia.
 However, if the problem still cannot be fixed through peaceful
negotiations then the UN should put its foot down and utilize its
members’ militaries to bring down the group by force.
 The UN should then act as mediators between the government and
the non-extremist rebels in each of the countries.
 With their funding and UN protection cut off, I believe the players
would be more open to start a dialogue.
 Moreover, I’m hoping the threat of going against the full force of the
UN will scare them to accept a deal.
 For me, it is of utmost importance that the UN is involved with this for
it gives the newly established government international recognition.
 The new UN-backed government, once established, can work with
Saudi Arabia and Iran in instituting policies that will help bridge the
sectarian divide.
 With the civil conflicts settled, everyone (UN, Iran, Saudi Arabia and
etc) can now focus on the threat at hand – Islamic State of Iraq and
Syria (ISIS) and other extremist groups such as al Qaeda.

14. Sources
Photo Sources:
 Background Photo (Soldiers):
http://images1.fanpop.com/images/photos/1600000/SPR-wallpaper-
saving-private-ryan-1669232-1680-1050.jpg
 Background Photo (UN Logo): http://www.clker.com/clipart-
29188.html
 Middle East Map:
http://www.pangeosubsea.com/images/maps/middle-east/ac/Maps-
Middle-East-AC.2.png
 Bashar al Assad Photo:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9905
784/William-Hague-dismisses-Bashar-al-Assad-as-delusional.html
 Fuad Masum Photo:
http://media.worldbulletin.net/news/2016/07/05/fuad-masum.jpg
 Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi Photo:
http://zeenews.india.com/news/world/yemen-president-abd-rabbu-
mansour-hadi-quits-throwing-country-deeper-into-
chaos_1534942.html
 Istanbul Attack Photo:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/istanbul-
nightclub-attack-shooting-turkey-gunman-injured-killed-victims-new-
years-eve-2016-2017-a7504046.html
 Paris Attack Photo:
http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/619363/Islamic-State-ISIS-
Twitter-Paris-attacks
 Berlin Attack Photo:
http://www.oldthinkernews.com/2016/12/20/cnn-responds-to-
islamic-terror-attack-in-berlin-by-blaming-conservatives/
 Lebanon Attack Photo: https://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Lebanon-
News/2015/Nov-15/323102-interior-minister-says-sbeirut-attacks-
were-to-be-carried-out-by-5.ashx
 Jordan Attack Photo: http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/castle-attack-
exposes-jordan-s-vulnerability-to-isis-threat-1.3232872
 Sweden Attack Photo: https://www.rt.com/news/384694-suspect-
stockholm-attack-isis/
Photo Sources:
 Italy Flag Photo: http://flagpedia.net/italy
 Italy Rally Photo:
https://blogs.voanews.com/photos/2011/09/06/september-06-2011/
 Greece Flag Photo: http://fla.fg-a.com/flags/greece-flag-large.jpg
 Greece Rally Photo: : http://www.ndtv.com/world-news/angry-at-
demands-greeks-rail-at-german-humiliation-780620
 Slovakia Rally Photo:
https://www.samaa.tv/international/2015/09/thousands-flock-to-
anti-migrant-demos-in-e-europe/
 Czech Republic Rally Photo: https://www.yahoo.com/news/czech-
leader-calls-migrant-wave-europe-organised-invasion-193015933.html
 UK Rally Photo:
http://i.huffpost.com/gadgets/slideshows/475856/slide_475856_649
4394_free.jpg
 Brexit Logo Photo: http://www.europeanunionreferendum.com/
 Saudi Arabia Flag Photo: https://gallery.yopriceville.com/National-
Flags/Saudi_Arabia_Large_Flag#.WcUg8rIjG00
 Iran Flag Photo: http://flags.fmcdn.net/data/flags/w580/ir.png
 Russia Flag Photo: http://flagpedia.net/data/flags/normal/ru.png
 United States of America Flag Photo: https://www.fg-
a.com/American/1-lg-american-flag.jpg
 Handshake Photo: https://www.game-learn.com/wp-
content/uploads/2016/09/The-importance-of-satisfaction-in-win-win-
negotiations.jpg
 ISIS Photo:
https://img.rt.com/files/2017.04/original/58feba66c46188ed7f8b460
3.jpg
Information Sources:
 Iraq War Players: https://www.stripes.com/news/middle-east/major-
players-in-the-iraq-conflict-1.288687#.WcS98rIjG00
 Yemen War Players: http://www.theweek.co.uk/middle-
east/62496/yemen-crisis-who-are-the-rebel-groups-and-why-are-they-
fighting

15. Thank You! =)