09|02|23 Earthquake in a Conflict Region: Lift the Sanctions? | Current Affairs Lecture by scholars of international relations Nora Stel, Bertjan Verbeek and Haley Swedlund

 09|02|23 Earthquake in a Conflict Region: Lift the Sanctions? | Current Affairs Lecture by scholars of international relations Nora Stel, Bertjan Verbeek and Haley Swedlund | Thursday 09 February 2023 |  Collegezalencomplex | VOX and Europe Direct Nijmegen

There will be no podcast or video | VOX: Jelle loopt stage bij Nederlandse ambassade in Ankara: ‘De hulp is in volle gang’

Announcement - 16.000 people have died, and that number will only rise the coming days. Meanwhile, homeless survivors are trying to stay warm in the freezing cold. The earthquakes in Turkey and Syria were not only in itself devastating, but they also took place in a region torn by war. The suffering of the victims calls on other countries to act. Can the crisis soften international tensions? And should the UN and the EU lift the sanctions against Syria? Come and learn from scholars of international relations Nora Stel and Bertjan Verbeek about humanitarian aid in a conflict region. See full annnouncement below.

Review - Global empathy, but with political interests

The number of deaths keeps rising. Meanwhile, homeless survivors are trying to stay warm in the freezing cold. The earthquakes in Turkey and Syria were not only in itself devastating, but they also took place in a region torn by war and conflict. The suffering of the victims calls on other countries to act. Yet, the international community is divided.

During this current affairs lecture in CC1, scholars of international relations Nora Stel, Bertjan Verbeek and Haley Swedlund discussed the difficulties of providing aid in a conflict region and the impact the disaster has on diplomatic relations. Radboud Reflects’ program maker Liesbeth Janssen interviewed them.

Disaster upon disaster

On 6 February, Gaziantep trembled. The Turkish city was near the epicenter, but the earthquake stretched over a far larger region. Towns in the border area between Turkey and Syria lie in ruins, with still thousands of inhabitants beneath the debris. While the victims desperately need aid, it is difficult to get the convoys with emergency supplies to the communities that need them the most.

While showing maps of the area, Swedlund pointed to the many actors controlling parts of the Syrian region. The Syrian part of the disaster area is politically unstable and complex. All aid for northern Syria has to go through Turkey, but there is just one access point left: Bab Al-Hawa. ‘4,1 million people,’ Swedlund emphasized, ‘rely on humanitarian assistance for their livelihoods. And they are relying on this single access point.’

‘A decade of war of course means that Syria has little resilience to face this devastating earthquake,’ Stel added. Even before the earthquakes, ‘there was little infrastructure intact, most hospitals were deliberately bombed by the regime. Refugees live in the worst buildings, which are now collapsed.’ The trembling earth is latest of a long series of catastrophes that the inhabitants of the region have to cope with.

Empathy mixed with geopolitical interests

Confronted with the suffering of the victims, people and states from around the globe came to aid. ‘Empathy for natural disaster victims,’ Stel noted, ‘tends to be more forthcoming than empathy for those suffering from so-called man-made disasters. They are unequivocal victims, instead of what is often perceived as a mess of warring parties.’ Verbeek maintained that the reaction of the international community is, at least partly, an expression of genuine empathy. Yet, it would be naïve to ignore the geopolitical interests and ramifications.

In some cases, disasters can lead to a softening of international tensions, Verbeek analyzed. When Turkey was hit by a earthquake in the summer of 1999, the Greeks sent assistance. A month later, the ground trembled in Athens, and Turkey reciprocated. The two countries were in conflict over Cyprus, but the bidirectional relief operations improved the diplomatic relations. Yet, the earthquake diplomacy only worked for a while, Verbeek noted. The tensions resurfaced soon.

‘Aid is always politicized’

Also within the disaster area, the earthquake has political impact. ‘Aid is always politicized,’ Swedlund claimed, ‘but it is especially in the Syrian context.’ The Syrian Assad regime tries to centralize the streams of assistance. As such, it wants to assist those regions that it bombed recently. Is this not contradictory? Not at all, Stel concluded. For Assad, co-opting assistance and using violence are just two tactics leading to the same goal: re-establishing control.

Meanwhile, Turkish president Erdogan also hopes to instrumentalize the earthquake. Later this year, Turkey holds its presidential elections. Now the Turks are suffering from staggering levels of inflation and recession, Erdogan’s popular support is dwindling. Yet, by presenting himself as the savior of the earthquake-hit region, he could safeguard his re-election. It would not be the first time, Verbeek noted, that the president used a disaster to raise his political stature. Erdogan’s rise to power was accelerated when he, as mayor of Istanbul, protested against the national government that could not handle the aftermath of the 1999 earthquake. However, now it is Erdogan himself who is the face of that national government.

Lifting sanctions?

The Syrian Red Crescent – an organization that is part of the international Red Cross – asked the UN to lift the sanctions against Syria. While the current regulations allow other countries to provide Syria with food and other emergency supplies, it withholds states from sending heavy equipment. And this is the equipment that rescue workers need to dig out victims from under the debris.

Should we indeed lift these sanctions? Swedlund reacted cautiously to this question. Yes, the sanctions do make it more time consuming to transfer money to local organizations, which does impede relief operations. However, the anti-sanctions argument is specifically made by the Syrian Assad regime to normalize its position. Lifting the sanctions would play in its hand.

For now, Swedlund emphasized, there is also a far more important issue at hand here: access. With only one border point open, it is hard to send the emergency supplies to Syria in the first place. Lifting sanctions will not solve this problem.

If we want to help Syrian victims of the earthquake, Verbeek added, we should do it via non-governmental organizations. However, if we want to assist Syrian victims, the scholar said, we should accept that the ruler’s regime will profit from it to some degree. We have to take this fact for granted if we want to save the lives of unequivocal victims.

Adriaan Duiveman

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Announcement

Nederlands volgt Engels.

16.000 people have died, and that number will only rise the coming days. Meanwhile, homeless survivors are trying to stay warm in the freezing cold. The earthquakes in Turkey and Syria were not only in itself devastating, but they also took place in a region torn by war. The suffering of the victims calls on other countries to act. Can the crisis soften international tensions? And should the UN and the EU lift the sanctions against Syria? Come and learn from scholars of international relations Nora Stel and Bertjan Verbeek about humanitarian aid in a conflict region.

Disaster following disasters

On 6 February, the Turkish city of Gaziantep shook. It was the epicenter, but the earthquake stretched over a far larger region. Cities in the border area between Turkey and Syria lie in ruins, with still thousands of inhabitants beneath the debris. One of those cities is Aleppo. Its two million inhabitants are isolated, now the roads to the city are impassable. And there already were shortages.

Before the earthquakes, the Turkish-Syrian border region suffered from economical and humanitarian problems. Because of the violence of war, there were shortages of food and medicines. Because of these horrific circumstances, the World Health Organisation estimates that the number of deaths will rise to 20.000.

International community

Supplies and donations are arriving from all sides of the world. China, the USA and Russia have already committed to sending aid. Sweden also sends tents and temporary homes to the disaster region. Even though the diplomatic relations between the Scandinavian country and Turkey cooled recently. Will the disaster improve the relation between the EU and Turkey?

The Syrian victims also receive international relief. Yet, only a part of the affected region is still governed by Assad’s regime. In addition, UN sanctions hinder countries to send aid. Within the current rules, states are allowed to provide food and medicines. Sending heavy equipment to dig up victims from under the debris, however, is prohibited. Because of this, the Syrian Red Crescent asked the UN to suspend the sanctions. Is this possible? And if so, what would the consequences be?

Participation

Attending the lecture is free of charge. You do not need to register.

About the speakers

Nora Stel is an international relations scholar at Radboud University. She investigates political authority in conflict situation.

Bertjan Verbeek is an international relations scholar at Radboud University. His research focusses on international crisis management.

Haley Swedlund is associate professor of international relations at Radboud University

This is a program of Radboud Reflects, VOX and Europe Direct Nijmegen

NEDERLANDS

16.000 mensen zijn omgekomen, en dat cijfer zal de komende dagen blijven stijgen. Ondertussen proberen de dakloze overlevenden de vrieskou door te komen. De aardbevingen in Turkije en Syrië waren niet alleen zwaar en vernietigend, maar vonden ook nog eens plaats in een gebied geplaagd door oorlog. Het leed van de slachtoffers doet een beroep op de internationale gemeenschap, maar die is verdeeld. Moeten de VN en de EU sancties tegen Syrië opheffen? Kom en luister naar internationale betrekkingenonderzoekers Nora Stel en Bertjan Verbeek over hulpverlening in conflictgebied.

Ramp op ramp

Op 6 februari schudde de Turkse stad Gaziantep. Daar was het epicentrum, maar de aardbeving dreunde veel en veel verder. Steden in de grensregio van Turkije en Syrië liggen in puin, met nog duizenden bewoners eronder. Eén van die zwaar getroffen steden is Aleppo. De twee miljoen inwoners staan er alleen voor, omdat de wegen naar de stad door de beving onbegaanbaar zijn. En er waren al tekorten.

Voor de aardbevingen kampte het Turks-Syrische rampgebied al met economische problemen. Door het oorlogsgeweld waren er tekorten aan voedsel en medicijnen. Onder andere door die beroerde omstandigheden verwacht de Wereldgezondheidsorganisatie dat het aantal slachtoffers zal oplopen tot 20.000.

Internationale gemeenschap

Getroffen door het leed van de Turken en Syriërs biedt de internationale gemeenschap hulp aan. Noodgoederen en donaties komen uit allerlei hoeken. China, de VS en Rusland hebben al hun steun toegezegd. Maar ook een land als Zweden stuurt tenten en tijdelijke woningen naar het rampgebied. En dat terwijl de diplomatieke betrekkingen tussen Turkije en Zweden de laatste tijd slecht zijn. Zal deze steun de relatie tussen de EU en Turkije verbeteren?

Syrië krijgt ook internationale hulp aangeboden. Een deel van het getroffen gebied wordt echter niet beheerst door de regering van Assad. Daarnaast heeft de VN sancties afgekondigd tegen de Syrische staat. Binnen deze regels is het wel mogelijk om voedsel te sturen, maar zwaar materieel om slachtoffers uit te graven komt het land niet in. Het Syrische Rode Kruis riep daarom de VN op om de sancties op te schorten. Kan dat zomaar? En wat zouden daar de gevolgen van zijn?

Deelname

Deelnames is gratis. Inschrijven is niet nodig.

Over de sprekers

Nora Stel is onderzoeker internationale betrekkingen aan de Radboud Universiteit. Ze bestudeert politieke autoriteit in conflictgebieden.

Bertjan Verbeek is hoogleraar internationale betrekkingen aan de Radboud Universiteit. Hij onderzoekt internationaal crisismanagement.

Haley Swedlund is docent Internationale betrekkingen aan de Radboud Universiteit. Ze doet onderzoek naar internationale hulp en diplomatie en vredesopbouw na conflicten. Ze vertelt iets over de gevolgen van VN sancties voor de hulpverlening in Syrië.

Dit was een programma van Radboud Reflects, VOX en Europe Direct Nijmegen.