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1 WINDSOR MODEL UNITED NATIONS HIGHSCHOOL CONFERENCE 2016 CRISIS COMMITTEE: JUNE 6TH, 1944 D-DAY ALTERNATE HISTORY 2 Hello Delegates, Welcome to Windsor Model United Nations High School Conference, hosted by UWindsor Model United Nations here at the University of Windsor! My name is Kirthana Sasitharan and it is my privilege to serve as the Secretary-General at this year’s conference. I am a fourth year Bachelor of Arts Honours Student concentrating in Drama and English Literature. Having been apart of WinMUN for the last year and a half, I have been grateful enough to serve as the UnderSecretary General of Public Affairs and the Editor of the WinMUN Blog. I look forward to working with you all through this conference and having the opportunity to witness the growth and knowledge you all gain by being a part of such a fantastic opportunity! I am a fourth year Bachelor of Arts Honours major in Drama and English Literature. Many folks are quick to say: How does a Drama major find themselves interested in Model United Nations? To that I say Model United Nations is not restricted to one specific field of study, nor one specific interest. Model United Nations is about becoming more aware about the world around us and how we would tackle the issues we are exposed to each and everyday through various forms of media. Through Model United Nations, our delegates have become better public speakers, better debaters, better writers, and better people. We have been able to provide our University community with the opportunity to become more versed about the world, and we are excited to extend this opportunity to you during our conference! During our conference, you will have the opportunity to take on the role of your country or representative party and speak out on the opinions and perspectives of that specific establishment. You will gain a vast degree of knowledge through your research, through your discussions, through your debates, and merely through listening. We have a very intricate and innovative collection of committees this year. Delegates interested in security might want to take their place in our Specialized NATO Committee dealing with Cyber security and Women, Peace, and Security. Not interested in NATO per se? You may be interested in discussing the issues surrounding ISIS in our Security Council. Maybe history is more associated with your interests, and you might want to take a seat in our Crisis Committee dealing with the issue: What if D-Day had failed? Our General Assembly will be discussing Gender Equality on a global scale, an issue hot on the press across our world. And finally, maybe you are interested in journalism and writing and exploring the opinions of delegates and committees alike. For you, the International Press Committee might spark your fancy. All in all, we have opened the doors for our High School delegates to seize their liking and embrace the opportunities aligned with their committees. We hope your experience at the WinMUN High School Conference allows you to find your niche, all while having fun! We have a few social events planned, including a Black Tie Social and Games Night- both events worth checking out! All our resources can be found via our website at winmun.ca. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact your respective Chairs or myself. Your chairs and myself look forward to meeting you this coming April! Sincerely, Kirthana Sasitharan Secretary-General WinMUN High School Conference 2016 3 4 Letter From Your Chair Dear Delegates, Welcome to WINMUN High School Conference 2016! Following our resounding success last year, we welcome you all to our second ever high school conference. I am Jason Chang, your chair for the committee. I am a second-year International Relations major, and perhaps more importantly, a huge history buff. Jesse Matton-Pelloni, a sophomore in Political Science with experience and a multitude of skills of his own, will be our crisis director, managing all the crisis updates and your personal notes. Crisis committees are designed to be a more fast-paced, action-packed type of experience. This time, we will be tackling a long pondered question—“What if D-Day was a failure?” Delegates will assume the positions of important generals of the Allies, and are free to make strategic decisions different from the ones made historically by these generals. However, do keep your country’s best interest in mind. The goal is not simply the destruction of the Third Reich, but also the reshaping of geographic boundaries and political structures of the post-war Europe. While delegates from the West are focused on securing a foothold on Hitler’s Fortress Europe, our delegates from the East, having faced the Fascist onslaught alone for two harsh year, will be concentrated on gaining an offensive initiative for the first time as Hitler drew away troops to face the threat from the west. I hope that all delegates enjoy this experience as much as I’m determined to, and acquire the political cunning that will do your respective leaders, FDR, Churchill, and Stalin proud. Sincerely, Jason Chang Director, D-Day Alternate History Crisis Committee WinMUN High School Conference 2016 5 Letter From Your Crisis Director Dear Delegates, Hello, and welcome to the D-Day Alternate History Crisis Committee! My name is Jesse Matton-Pelloni, and I will be your Crisis Director for this committee. I am a sophomore at the University of Windsor studying Political Science. I am originally from London, but have lived in Windsor for most of my life and am a graduate of St. Joseph’s High School. I am very excited to welcome you to the University of Windsor for WinMUN 2016! I have been involved in Model UN since high school and have travelled to many conferences, and I am still just as engaged and energized in debate as when I began 4 years ago. I am currently the Director of Training for WinMUN and am tasked with organizing simulations and training new members. Model UN has given me the opportunity to explore many topics that I find interesting, particularly issues related to foreign policy and terrorism. Model UN offers all of us the chance to debate with people of many different viewpoints and learn new things that will help to shape our opinions as we develop as debaters. This year, the topic of our committee is sure to produce a riveting debate. I am myself a student of history in my spare time, and am interested to see in which direction this crisis will head. I expect the debate to be fast-paced, and in my role as Crisis Director I will be tasked with providing live updates concerning the situation on the ground. I will determine, depending on your actions as a committee, what the effects of those actions will be. I anticipate a hearty and fruitful debate, and hope that you all enjoy your experience at WinMUN 2016! Sincerely, Jesse Matton-Pelloni Crisis Director, D-Day Alternate History Crisis Committee WinMUN High School Conference 2016 6 June 6, 1944: D-Day Alternate History CRISIS Committee Topic: Allied plans to defeat Germany following the failure of the Anglo-American invasion of France. Background: The Second World War officially began on September 1st, 1939 when the German Wehrmacht invaded Poland. The Soviet Union, staying true to its commitments in the MolotovRibbentrop pact between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, invaded Poland on September 17th from the east. Polish defenses crumbled and by the end of the month Warsaw had fallen. Shortly after the Germans invaded, both Britain and France (as well as their respective empires) declared war on Germany. For the next several months, the war failed to produce more than a mild bombing campaign, thus prompting observers to call it the “Phony War”. That all ended on May 10, 1940 when Germany invaded Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and France (complete dodging the heavily fortified French Maginot Line along the Franco-German border by invading via Belgium). Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg are conquered with little effort by the Germans while France put up an incredible 6 week fight against the Germans culminating in their unconditional surrender on June 22, 1940. All of Western Europe, except the United Kingdom, is now under full control of the German army. The Germans then begin a massive air campaign aimed at crippling Britain’s Royal Air Force. The campaign is nearly successful in crippling the RAF until the decision is made to bomb civilian areas of Britain in order to turn public opinion against the war and force a British surrender. The plan backfires and the British vows to never surrender. Hitler becomes frustrated and turns his attention towards his real ideological enemy, the Soviet Union. Despite an official alliance between the two countries, Hitler’s views on communism are no secret. Hitler could tolerate the British, and at one point was even considering allowing them to keep their empire upon their eventual surrender, but he refused to coexist with a communist state on his doorstep. Hitler began planning the invasion of the USSR and on June 22, 1941 Germany invaded. The invasion prompted an alliance to form between the West and the USSR. Four million Axis soldiers invaded along a 2,900 kilometre front, making it the largest land invasion in world 7 history. Overwhelmed, underequipped, and surprised Soviet armies surrendered en masse. By Christmas of 1941 German units were kilometres from the centre of Moscow. However, the Germans were unprepared for the German winter and did not expect the Soviets to last as long as they did. The German army was rife with weather-related casualties and massive equipment failure, thus giving the Soviets much needed time to regroup. Vast troop reserves are brought in from Siberia and begin to push the Germans back from Moscow. Another critical moment in the war was on December 7th, 1941. It was Japan’s attack on America’s Pacific naval fleet at Pearl Harbor, prompting an American declaration of war against Japan. Unexpectedly on December 11, just four days later, Germany declared war on the United States after Hitler made a fiery speech in the Reichstag. Over the next two years Germany and the USSR would fight over Eastern Europe, slowly turning from an initially successful German invasion to a successful Soviet repulsion. By June 1944, being unable to replenish troops as quickly as they were being lost, the Germans were in full retreat on the eastern front and had been routed from Africa by British and American forces. Stalin was urging the Western powers to open up a second front in what was then German-occupied France. This, in Stalin’s view, would be the crushing blow needed to defeat the Germans once and for all. The Alternate History: The Western Allies, in preparation for their invasion of France, employ diversionary tactics to throw the Germans off the scent with respect to where the invasion will take place. The Germans were expecting an invasion at any time but were unsure where it would be concentrated. As many of their forces in France had been diverted to fight the Soviets, intelligence about the invasion would prove crucial. The Allies began building fake tanks and army encampments on the coast in Northern England which would indicate an invasion on the northern part of the French coast near Calais. The Allies also planted fake battle plans on a corpse that floated onto a French beach, making it look like the corpse had been a soldier on a reconnaissance mission and had died after bailing from his plane. These diversions were meant to distract from the real point of invasion: Normandy. However, unbeknownst to the Allies, there was a German Abwehr agent placed highly within Allied Command. The spy discovered that Normandy was the target and that the troops in the north were a diversion. This information reached the Germans who prepared themselves for the battle. The best German Panzer divisions were deployed to Normandy, camouflaged well enough so that Allied reconnaissance would not be alarmed by a heavy concentration of German equipment. The Allies invaded as planned on June 6, 1944 and were met with fierce resistance. Within days, the Allies had sustained over 100,000 casualties and had failed to gain a foothold. They then began a full retreat back to England. It is now June 15th, 1944 and the Allies are trying to figure out what went wrong and if it is still possible to establish a second front. 8 Your Task: To represent a member of the Alliance and to work to reshape the allied war strategy against Germany. Delegate Choices: USA • • • • • Dwight D. Eisenhower-Supreme Allied Commander Omar Bradley-Lieutenant General, General of the Army Walter Bedell Smith-Lieutenant General, Eisenhower’s chief-of-staff George S. Patton-Brigadier General, Commander of the American 3rd Army Norman Cota-Brigadier General, Commander of the 29th Infantry Division Britain • • • • • Sir Arthur Tedder-Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Sir Bernard Law Montgomery-Field Marshal Sir Bertram Ramsay-Naval Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Expeditionary Naval Force Sir Trafford Leigh-Mallory-Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Expeditionary Air Force Sir Miles Dempsey-Major General, Commander of British 2nd Army USSR • • • • • Aleksandr Vasilevsky-Marshal of the Soviet Union, Chief of General Staff Georgy Zhukov-Marshal of the Soviet Union Nikolai Vatutin-General of the Army Nikolay Kuznetsov-Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Sergei Khudyakov-Marshal of Aviation of the Soviet Union Canada • • Harry Crerar-Chief of General Staff Guy Simonds-Lieutenant General Australia • Sir Thomas Albert Blamey-Field Marshal