The United Nations is an international organisation that was founded in 1945 by 51 various countries that were committed to maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations, encouraging social progress, better living standards and human rights. The UN has been and still is involved in many peacekeeping missions around the world, including Afghanistan.
The conflict in Afghanistan has been in motion since 2001 and it still being fought today with 351 Australian troops assisting. The catalyst for this conflict was the terrorist attacks of 9/11 that were carried out by Al-Qaeda, the Unites States responded to this terrorist threat with the launch of ‘Operation Enduring Freedom’. The UN Security Council expressed their support for efforts of the Afghan people to replace the Taliban regime as a result of them being condemned for allowing Afghanistan to be used as a base for export of terrorism and also providing a safe haven for Osama Bin Laden, the leader of Al-Qaeda.
The United Nations organisation intensified their efforts by delivering more than 94,000 tons of food aid to 1.13 million people in the year 2000, while also vaccinating roughly 5.3 million children against polio disease and provided support for non-discriminatory education to more than 300,000 children, including home schooling projects for young girls. The Secretary-General of the UN at the time said, “Our challenge is to help the Afghans help themselves”. He also stated that the country’s reconstruction needs were immense. The United Nations also supported other projects that were essential such as, reintegration of combatants, revival of economic activity, a fairer justice system, democratic institutions and mechanisms to pr...
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...re are also humanitarian concerns which are proving to be an ongoing challenge. Due to the ongoing instability in Afghanistan 124,000 people have been newly displaced from their homes and communities and the number of internally displaced people has risen to more than 630,000. Furthermore the unending challenge of the Opium Drug Trade within Afghanistan continues to be the primary source of income to the Taliban. Afghanistan is the largest source of illicit opium and heroin, and an estimated 90% of the world’s opium trade and an estimated 74% of the world’s heroin trade originated in Afghanistan.
In conclusion the United Nations organisation has proved to be an indispensable asset when assisting the Afghan nation to rebuild not only their government but the improvement of the basic human rights being recognised and respected throughout the nation.
Emily Everett
In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the United States was incredibly eager to strike back at the nations thought to be responsible for this horrific tragedy. These attacks were quickly attributed to the terrorist group al-Qa’ida, led by Osama bin Laden, and to the Taliban-run government of Afghanistan, which had provided sanctuary to al-Qa’ida. In response, Washington approved a covert plan led by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to directly attack those responsible in their Middle East safe haven. Initiated on 26 September 2001 with the approval of the warlords of the Afghan Northern Alliance, with whom the CIA had formed an intelligence liaison relationship, Operation Jawbreaker resulted in the fall of the Taliban regime, the killing and capture of a significant amount of al-Qa’ida leadership, and elimination of a terrorist safe haven by early December 2001. Moreover, the Taliban’s collapse denied al-Qa’ida a pseudo-nation-state partner, serving to reduce the organization’s sanctuary to areas residing along the Pakistani border. Operation Jawbreaker, one of the first post-9/11 covert operations carried out by the United States in support of its national security interests, had proved successful. Word of the operation’s swift success astounded those back in Washington; dubbed the CIA’s “finest hour,” it signified the first of many victories by deposing the Taliban’s control of Northern Afghanistan.
every nation in the world belongs to the United Nations. The United Nations has four purposes: to maintain international peace and security; to develop friendly relations among nations; to cooperate in solving international problems and in promoting respect for human rights; and to be a center for harmonizing the actions of nations.The United Nations is not a world government though,and it does not make laws.
September 11, 2001, Osama Bin Laden decided to “wake the sleeping giant.” The US immediately sent SOF units and CIA officers to recon the area and meet with the Northern Alliance. The primary battle leading up to this operation was Tora Bora, which was absent of conventional forces. Up until this point, the war on terror was predominantly a Special Operations fight along with Air Force for overhead support.3 SOF and the Northern Alliance had already displaced Taliban forces out of many towns and villages in northern Afghanistan to gain control of key terrain. Key towns in northern Afghanistan including Taloqan, Konduz, Herat, and Mazar-e Sharif took only three weeks to clear.4 The SOF units were making huge impacts across the country calling in air strikes. At the same time the SOF units were diligently...
The United Nations was formed shortly before the end of World War II when the League of Nations was deemed useless when it failed to prevent the outbreak of the war. Canada was so obliged to helping UN because they were a part of it when it was formed. Canada alongside the "Big Five" and others, became one of the original members of the peacekeeping and peacemaking UN. It was stated that "Canada has always been a strong supporter of the United Nations and of peacekeeping, and has participated in almost every mission since its inc...
“Over the past century, Canadian attitudes towards the use of force and the exercise of military power in support of national aims have fundamentally shifted”. This is a quote written by Major Todd Strickland in his article, titled, “From the Boers to the Taliban: How Canadians Attitudes towards War Have Changed”. This article reviews Canada’s history within the wars and also Canadian’s thoughts on war. The Afghan war began in 2001 and is still ongoing today. The war began due to the terrorist attacks that took place in the United States on September 11th, 2001, also known as 9/11. The purpose of this war was to invade Afghanistan and to disassemble an organization, known as the al-Qaeda terrorist organization. Another objective was to dismantle the Taliban government. The Taliban government was simply to blame for the deaths of so many Americans on 9/11. The leader, brains and financial support behind this organization was one by the name of Osama bin Laden. Because his country did not surrender him, the United States made the decision to declare war on Afghanistan and fight for those who lost their lives in 9/11. Canada became involved in the Afghan War very quickly after the attacks of 9/11. Because the Afghanistan war is a war that is constantly covered by the media, it makes the information overwhelming. To narrow the topic down, this paper will focus mainly on the Canadian’s involvement in the Afghanistan war. Violent political wars have been reoccurring for as long as anyone can remember, and the intensity of this violence continues to rise. The magnitude of political violence involved, the main interpretations on the causes of political violence, and the prospects for conflict resolution are all topics that will be covered...
In this piece of writing “What We Are Fighting For,” Rex Murphy outlines the most persuasive reasons for the existence of Canadian troops in Afghanistan. Murphy commences with the description of annihilation of Taliban government by Canada is not only because of Canadian affiliation with the USA but also because our people got killed on 9/11. Furthermore, Afghani citizens need assistance in structuring a new type of government in order to guard against potential attacks. He continues that Canadian troops stay behind in the Afghanistan to aid in the construction of the essential elements- schools, a justice system, infrastructure, roads- that any society must have. Moreover, Murphy also considers our countries support in Afghanistan from conflicting
Witte, Griff. "Afghanistan War (2001-present)." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.
The United Nations was formed on October 24, 1945, after the Holocaust, to prevent genocide from ever happening again. A cartoon depicted by Michael Sutherland illustrates the unsuccessful intent of the United Nations. The United Nations is pictured standing over the graves of countries and groups that have suffered from genocide. However, many genocides have taken place since the formation of the United Nations (i.e. the Bosnian genocide). Both genocides began as simple misconceptions or dislikes between peoples but ended in tragic and unnecessary murder.
Along with the financial costs, there is human cost with the loss of life of civilians, Canadian soldiers. The invasion of Afghanistan is only a short term solution to a bigger problem. When Canada and other nations leave the country, the Taliban and the warlord tribes will continue to insight fear on the Afghan citizens (Endersby, 2011). Conclusion Canada’s involvement has brought about a continuous debate on whether or not they should be in Afghanistan fighting a war that is half a world away. The events of September 11, 2001 in the United States reinforced the need to fight terrorism on a global scale.
Afghanistan since its beginning has been a place of conflict, despair, and at times lost hope. It has been taken advantage of and lost its sense of identity, which has had a direct effect on its people, and there own sense of what justice truly is.
2. The United Nation idea was first brought to head during World War II, when 26 nations of the world pledged to work together as one. The United Nations was officially operational as of the 24th of October 1951, with a minor 51 countries signing the UN charter. A stable base was set-up in New York.
Afghanistan is like a time capsule. Many people farm for subsistence, and few are able to read or write. Afghans have been compared to Spartans in that they are a martial people who have been at war for thousands of years. The rough terrain in which they live lends itself to long periods of resistance. Time and time again they have been able to push away would be conquerors. The current war in Afghanistan stands in contrast to previous wars because its purpose is not one of conquest for land or for the exploitation of resources. The purpose of the current war in Afghanistan is to win over the Afghan people and to help them grow ideologically to assimilate into an ever more technologically advanced global environment.
In the past ten years the Afghan Government has been dealing with a number of issues that have caused problems for the country, problems such as illegal drug trade, terrorism and violence. But nowadays they are fighting a problem that has long existed between people, and quite recently has taken a whole new aspect to it. Ethnic conflict is the destructive factor that has caused problems between people for generations, often leading to fights, outbreak of violence and grudge between different ethnicities.
Council, H. P. (2012). Afghanistan's vision by 2015 . Kabul: High Peace Council law committee .
Fifty-one countries established the United Nations also known as the UN on October 24, 1945 with the intentions of preserving peace through international cooperation and collective security. Over the years the UN has grown in numbers to include 185 countries, thus making the organization and its family of agencies the largest in an effort to promote world stability. Since 1954 the UN and its organizations have received the Nobel Peace Prize on 5 separate occasions. The first in 1954 awarded to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, for its assistance to refugees, and finally in 1988 to the United Nations Peace-keeping Forces, for its peace-keeping operations. As you can see, the United Nations efforts have not gone without notice.