Description
The Sykes-Picot Agreement was a top secret deal struck between Britain and France early in WWI outlining the carving up of Arab lands that were under the control of the then defunct Ottoman Empire. This treaty, made between Mark Sykes and Franois Georges-Picot, was signed in 1916 dividing Middle Eastern land between the British and French as spheres of influence before the conquest of the Ottoman Empire by Britain and France.
One of the primary drivers behind the Sykes-Picot treaty was imperialism. Britain hoped to protect its trade route to India, while trying to gain political and economic control over the oil rich lands of Mesopotamia. The French desired political and economic control over Syria and the East Mediterranean. It was also desirable to the Russians in return for territorial gains around Constantinople and the Turkish Straits.
Part of the reason the Sykes-Picot Agreement proved so controversial is that it completely contradicted what the British had told the Arabs through McMahon-Hussein Correspondence; Arabs were promised independence if they helped Britain fight against the Turks, however, Sykes-Picot revealed that Britain and France had already divided the land up between themselves.
In this committee, delegates will act as representatives of Britain and France, and attempt to determine the top secret terms of the infamous Sykes-Picot Agreement. Delegates will have to fight for the biggest possible sphere of influence possible, and attempt to maintain utmost secrecy over the nature of their talks. Spies, intelligence leaks and crises could, at any given time, expose the top secret deal. Will you successfully divide the region secretly, or will the world find out before the agreement is final?