Position paper for Iceland
| Committee: | GA Second |
| Topic: | Role of the United Nations in promoting development in the context of globalization and interdependence |
| Paper text: | |
| Iceland recognizes that, at the same time globalization has transformed the international
economy through increased levels of trade and information exchange, interdependence
remains profoundly uneven. Thus, we firmly believe in the importance of breaking down
barriers to asymmetrical economic development. These barriers include cyclical poverty,
unequal access to markets, and poor lending practices, the latter of which the UN and IMF
are not exempt in contributing to. Perhaps unexpectedly, the 2008 Global Financial Crisisâ
effect on Iceland provides an unsettling case of the cascading effects of uneven
interdependence, wherein our three largest private banks defaulted en vogue with the U.S.
precedent: refinancing short-term debts, increasingly risky lending, and a run on deposits. As
a body, we have no choice but to learn from previous financial blunders, and so Iceland calls
upon the United Nations to ensure that globalization is a shared process that reduces
inequality instead of reinforcing it; all Member States must be able to participate fully in the
opportunities of an interconnected world, especially through trade.
In this regard, Iceland supports initiatives such as the United Nations Development Programmeâs Four Trillion Dollar Challenge, which calls for mobilizing just one percent of global wealth toward SDGs (UNCTAD, 2025). Complementally, it is imperative that we accompany this effort by a real dedication to the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development, its 17 SDGs, particularly Goal 8 on decent work and economic growth, and Goal 17 on partnerships for the goals. Assenting with paragraph 43 of the 2030 Agenda, Iceland posits that international public finance (particularly ODA) should play a vital role in complementing domestic resource mobilization in the worldâs most vulnerable countries. This assistance must catalyze additional public and private investment while avoiding unsustainable debt; financing should always serve genuine developmental needs. | |
| Committee: | GA Second |
| Topic: | Protection of global climate for present and future generations of humankind |
| Paper text: | |
| The International Court of Justice, in an advisory opinion ruled on 23 July 2025 (2025/36),
reaffirmed the existence of customary international law in regards to the emission of
anthropogenic greenhouse gases. This customary law establishes that States have a duty to
prevent environmental harm and reinforces a duty of co-operation between States in good
faith. Iceland firmly believes that climate change is an existential threat to humanity and that
the development and implementation of international discourse related to climate change
and environmental degradation is a requirement of our present and future. This is not a
challenge that Iceland faces alone, nor something that the Nordic countries or even Europe
as a continent faces in isolation. Rather, the global climate crisis challenges each and every
State, organization and individual on the planet. In order to combat this existential threat,
Iceland firmly supports the concepts of both individual State level responsibility and co-
operation between member States.
This co-operation has already been established in the form of numerous treaties, including the Paris Climate Agreement, but global efforts have not yet led to lasting alleviation of these pressing circumstances. Iceland desires the reinforcement of existing climate agreements and the formation of a new Global Climate Task Force (GCTF) underneath the umbrella of the UNFCCC Secretariat, whose purpose will be to provide member States with the technical support to implement renewable energy and reduce fossil fuel emissions in their domestic industries. This GCTF will allow developing nations to reduce their contribution to the climate crisis whilst improving the resilience of their domestic energy grids, and allow for an increase in demand for trained specialists from developed nations. While the GCTF will cost member States, the existence of such a body will yield significant returns both economically and environmentally. | |
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