The Security Council
The Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, established by the UN Charter. Its primary functions are the maintenance of international peace and security, the identification and management of threats to such, the promotion of international cooperation and its coordination. The UNSC must also approve any amendments to the UN Charter, effectively meaning its powers could only be curbed with its own approval.
The UNSC is composed of 15 States, five of which are permanent members with veto powers. The permanent nations are China, France, Russia, the United States of America, and the United Kingdom. The remaining 10 members alternate every two years.
Additionally, the UNSC acts as an international mediator, both politically and legally. Its powers, superior to those of any other UN organs, help to discharge the friction in the regions affected by a particular conflict. The goals of the UNSC are achieved through the fostering of negotiations, impositions of sanctions and the authorisation of the use of force in exceptional cases.
TEIMUN 2023
Security Council 2023 Topics
“Cyberspace: Preventing and Managing Cyber Terrorism” and “USA’s Middle East Withdrawal and the Nuclear Threat”
Topic 1: Cyberspace: Preventing and Managing Cyber Terrorism
Security stakeholders have long discussed issues within cyber security, ICT, and social media.
However, most of them missed another piece of the chain: cyber terrorism. As data and digital
privacy becomes more crucial, cyber terrorism becomes increasingly important. In its definition,
cyber terrorism is an advanced attack targeted towards corporations, governments, and agencies.What made this term different is the involvement of police and intrinsic motivation among the terrorists. The term “cyberterrorism” has gained considerable attention as a potential threat to government and private computer systems, which could paralyze various sectors of advanced economies, including the military, financial, and service sectors. This has led numerous securityexperts, politicians, and others to further speak about the danger of cyberterrorists hacking intocomputer systems. Psychological, political, and economic factors have combined to promote fear around the idea of cyberterrorism to the public. Moreover, modern terrorists view cyberterrorismas an attractive option because of its anonymity, potential to inflict massive damage,psychological impact, and higher media publication. While the fear of cyberterrorism is
understandable given its potential impact, it is important to keep the threat in perspective and to
take a measured approach to addressing it. The council will find solutions to tackle cyber
terrorism and establish clear protocols to manage cyber terrorism.
Topic 2: USA’s Middle East Withdrawal and the Nuclear Threat
For slightly more than two centuries, the US has been involved in the Middle East, particularly in North Africa during the 1800s. A sought mission, US oil companies were driven to rely on middle eastern countries, e.g. Saudi Arabia and Iraq. The US also participated in the allied conflicts in North Africa during World War 2 and proceeded with efforts to stop Soviet expansion in the Middle East up until the collapse of the USSR. A number of the countries that the US interfered with were Greece, Turkey, and Iran. The US played a big role in the foundation of Israel and post its foundation in 1948 Israel has become the biggest US recipient of economic and military assistance, the US received a backlash from the Arab nations, including Egypt, Syria, and Iraq. Later On, the US mediated between Egypt and Israel during the 1967 War, but also tried to stabilise the equation since the USSR was Egypt’s biggest arms supplier and the US was involved in a direct conflict which ended with Nuclear threats alert from both The US and USSR. However, the aftermath of all that was Egypt becoming one of the US’ biggest arms receivers and further strengthened the US presence in the Middle East. After the cold war took place and the USSR’s Middle East withdrawal, The US became dominant in the region, but that did not last long until The Israeli-Palestinian relations worsened and the occurrence of terrorist attacks in the US including 9/11. The USA initiated a war on Afghanistan following 9/11, backing their claim by fighting terrorism and avenging the deaths of their nationals, followed by the Iraq War, then the indirect US involvement in the region up until their recent wishes to withdraw from the region, including the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.
Meet the Chairs!
Mohamed Qassem
Hi ! It’s Mohamed Qassem, I come from Alexandria, Egypt and I am writing this after gladly taking my role as a chair of the Security Council in the TEIMUN Foundation for the period 2022/2023. Let me share a little snippet of my life.
My first Model UN conference was almost exactly 6 years ago and since then my passion for politics has skyrocketed. I am always eager to update my mind with the daily news, and I enjoy hearing everyone’s perspective regarding our everyday issues. Whether those perspectives are based upon facts or merely personal reflections, it is always up to me to make sure I am not guided by misleading information throughout my little research.
That is what I am asking from you, TEIMUN 2023’s theme is Beyond Truth and I would love for each and everyone to be able to extract the truth from the right sources. Just as the Eastern propaganda might be biased, the Western one is on a whole another level.
Additional boring information on my behalf would be my passion for writing, music, and social work.
Fun Fact: My last MUN conference was in Italy and on my way back I was taking the bus to the airport. I had 1 hour left for my flight and I didn’t expect i would make it. Gladly, I did make it and I was the happiest until I remembered my luggage was in the bus. The bag is still in Italy by the way
Mu’taz Syahputra
I am Mu’taz, a BBA student at KU Leuven, Brussels campus. Recently, throughout my MUN career, I have snatched awards ranging from Verbal Commendation to Best Delegate, served as the MUN organizer, and chaired both national and international conferences. More importantly, I have gained various lessons, friends, and experiences that cannot be gauged just through the awards. I believe MUN is a safe place for everyone to learn regardless of any obstacles or barriers one may encounter, so make tons of mistakes and learn from them! Feel free to reach out to me should you have any inquiries or need some assistance, I would be more than happy to help (for real)!
So cultivate the hunger, conduct your research, and godspeed delegates!
Fun Fact: I am!
