Disarmament and International Security Committee DISEC

The Disarmament and International Security Committee (DISEC) is the First Committee of the United Nations General Assembly. It concerns itself with questions of international importance regarding the security and demilitarization throughout all countries and regions, while ensuring that citizens around the globe remain protected. In particular, DISEC focuses on the regulation of all member states’ armaments with particular care taken to work towards the UN’s goal of total disarmament. This year, the thematic topic of DISEC will be focused on confronting a new generation of risks born at the intersection of breakthrough science and military ambition. Artificial intelligence‑driven systems and rapidly-advancing bioengineering promise transformative benefits. Yet, if left unchecked, they equally threaten to upend humanitarian law, verification regimes, and the balance of power. Delegates will be challenged to craft forward‑looking norms that preserve scientific progress while safeguarding humanity from catastrophic misuse.

Topic A: AI Weapons
From autonomous drone swarms selecting targets without human oversight to machine‑learning decision aids that edge commanders toward nuclear escalation, artificial intelligence has already begun to redefine what it means to wield military force. Traditional arms‑control architecture has not yet been adapted to situations where a missile might instead be an algorithm that can be copied, tweaked, or hidden in civilian code. At the same time, AI has the potential to reduce civilian casualties and remove the need for humans to get in harm’s way, both in combat and in humanitarian aid operations, and it can also reduce collateral damage through tools like precision targeting. As AI rapidly develops, delegates can think about whether these new technologies will entrench great-power dominance or empower smaller states and actors while considering how to regulate AI to maximize its use for good rather than harm.

Topic B: Bioweapons
One can argue that advances in biology are one of the most beneficial things for the well-being of society. However, with great power comes great responsibility, as the militarization of biotechnology poses one of the biggest existential threats that humanity has yet to face. Bioweapons are deadly, silent, and hard to counter. While international law prohibits such weapons from being developed and used, this committee is an opportunity for delegates to understand such treaties but also think of ways in which they can be enforced. At the same time, with our current accelerated pace of technology, the possibility of non-state actors using bioweapons becomes more and more likely, and plans to deal with such scenarios are yet to be explored. In this committee, delegates will have the opportunity to think about all of these challenges and put together solutions to mitigate the existential threats and dangers of rapid acceleration and misuse with technology.

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