Paper 1 Section B/E: Conflict and tension in

June 2023

Q1: Source A is critical of the United Nations. How do you know?

Explain your answer using Source A and your contextual knowledge. Study Sources B and C in the Sources Booklet.

Answer:

features of the source. For example, answers may refer to details of the image which project the UN in a negative light, and link explicitly to factual knowledge; eg the cartoonist is making fun of the UN which is showing ‘No Mercy’ by issuing Resolutions – as if just UN words would have any hope of ‘hurting’ Saddam, in the light of the military dangers he poses to the Middle East (WMD) or to his own Kurdish people. The UN’s statement, ‘Take that!’ doesn’t scare Saddam. For example, the cartoon is making fun of the UN by showing that all the UN is doing is throwing paper at Saddam.

Q2: How useful are Sources B and C to an historian studying the Gulf War, 1990–91?

Explain your answer using Sources B and C and your contextual knowledge.

Answer:

In analysing and evaluating sources, students will draw on their contextual example, the context of the time in which source was created, place, author’s evaluate the relationship between the sources based on analysis of For example, candidates might recognise that while provenance determines the different purposes for each source, they still provide unwitting testimony of the contrasting claims about military action over Iraq. Eg in assessing utility, Source C might be seen as a rich source as it proves that Thatcher wants everyone to remember how strongly she backed and pushed Bush towards war by justifying it on the basis of Saddam’s ‘gangsterism’, even against his own people. In doing so Thatcher makes herself look an important international figure and war leader. Source B would be used by historians as further evidence that America’s actions were explained by its insatiable need for oil which was threatened by Saddam’s regime, despite the cartoonist’s use of popular imagery from a movie to build up American support for action against the Iraqi ‘beast’. Iraq was rearming and it proving expensive. The takeover of Kuwait was an obvious solution – oil rich with 8% of the world’s supplies and an important supplier to the west, especially the US. For example, the cartoon was designed to provoke US hostility against Iraq because of the dangerous threat it posed to the region and oil supplies – hence the portrayal of the US which might be caught in a dangerous spider’s web. On the other hand, the provenance of Source C shows how Thatcher was keen to remind people in her memoirs that she wanted to be remembered as a war leader because Saddam was a ruler who attacked his own people. For example, the cartoon is useful as it provides evidence that the US acted out of self-interest for oil and was threatened by Saddam’s spider’s web; Source C proves useful as it shows how a British Prime Minister justified war by recalling how Saddam was a threat to his own people and to other Arab to the enquiry point; for example, the Gulf War had to be fought because the US was worried about its oil supplies.

Q3: Write an account of the problems faced by President Karzai and the Coalition after the

invasion of Afghanistan.

Answer:

with complex sequencing and reasoning supported by a range of accurate and example, to an analysis of how/why tension increased at different stages and /or showing understanding about how much each part of the sequence increased tension and led to a crisis. For example, an answer might offer an additional consequence to that exemplified in L3; Karzai’s leadership was regarded as weak and corrupt. There were many examples of fraud, intimidation and election rigging so Karzai’s reputation was damaged; whereas the enemy was able to claim a ‘just cause’ in a ‘Holy War’. developed sequencing and reasoning supported by a range of accurate factual analysis of how/why tension increased at one stage in the process. For example, Karzai relied on US led military operations which put Iraq first and were not always strong enough to suppress the Taliban threat because it was well supplied from abroad, attracted jihadist fighters and opium sales provided finance for weapons. For example, apart from the fact that the Taliban grew stronger and the insurgency worsened, Karzai’s government was corrupt and needed Coalition Taliban grew in strength and the Insurgency brought many guerrilla attacks. should demonstrate their ability to construct and develop a sustained line of reasoning which is coherent, relevant, substantiated and logically structured.

Q4: ‘The main reason for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 was to deal with the issue of

Weapons of Mass Destruction.’ How far do you agree with this statement? Explain your answer. [SPaG 4 marks] and AQA will be happy to rectify any omissions of acknowledgements. If you have any queries please contact the CopyrightTeam.

Answer:

explanation of the relationship between causes supported by detailed factual For example, candidates will make a judgment about the way reasons interacted; the main reason was that Saddam posed a threat to US security and oil supplies as well as potentially upsetting the balance of power in the Gulf. Human rights abuses, against Kurds, were a concern but there were other important issues to think about. In the short term, the events of 9/11 however brought more urgency to the issue especially if Saddam was supporting al Qaeda, while the uncertainty about the existence of WMD served as the trigger for action. For example, Saddam was developing a nuclear capability and it was thought that this was a credible threat to the US and Israel, as well as oil supplies. The work of Weapons Inspectors who were searching for evidence of WMDs continued to be frustrated so, as a ‘rogue state’ according to Bush, invasion would neutralise the problem. Students may additionally identify alternative factors. For example, Saddam was thought to be supporting al-Qaeda through finance as well as offering training bases. Bush’s ‘War on Terror’ following 9/11 meant that an attack on Iraq would deal break this link. For example, Saddam was developing a nuclear capability and it was thought that this was a credible threat to the US and Israel. The work of Weapons Inspectors continued to be frustrated so, as a ‘rogue state’ according to Bush, invasion would neutralise the problem. of Mass Destruction were a danger if missiles could be fired on the US or was supporting global terrorism. • The learner’s achievement in SPaG does not reach the threshold