• The question of enhancing accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity

• The question of establishing frameworks to prevent and counter terrorism

• The issue of the jurisdiction of the UN Peacekeeping Force

As the HSMUN procedural chair of the Reform Security Council for the upcoming March conference, I was given the opportunity to interview Mr. Apostolos Mitrakos, the aquatics director here at UNIS Hanoi on his thoughts on the theme and topics of the conference. Mr. Apo, a nickname he goes by, mentioned that his previous school had also had an MUN program. “There was a program in London, but it wasn’t as big as it is here,” he said. He understood what it was, and even knew what the abbreviation MUN stood for, but his knowledge was limited. 

The first question I asked Mr. Apo was regarding where his interests were in global, regional, national and/or local issues. He talked about his passion for sustainability and cleanliness when recycling. Being sustainable is a topic that he and his family often discuss. “My older son also knows about that (recycling and sustainability) because we talk at home about this.” He described an average family dinner at home. He mentioned multiple times over the course of the interview on him and his family's feelings  regarding this issue, stating that “it really annoys us as a family, how much trash the streets have, and how big the lack of bins are,” also talking about it will be beneficial for the city. 

The second question I asked was his thoughts and interpretation of our theme this year, “Is our rules based international system able to adapt to contemporary challenges to security and sovereignty?” After a simple explanation, he talked about how AI is an example of this. He stated that “it’s happening now and it’s not new. It has been many years now, since people have found the internet.” He talks about how countries have been planning and executing attacks through simple things like cookies, which people don’t pay too much attention to. Big companies, such as banks and media companies are able to prevent and fight these types of threats, he also says. 

The final question I asked Mr. Apo is regarding each topic going to be debated. The first one, “The question of enhancing accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity.” He answered stating that he doesn’t believe the consequences need to be higher. “We need to find a way to educate people, and I know that it’s crime, so it’s not the same.” He said, emphasising that education is one of the primary ways. The second topic, “The question of establishing frameworks to prevent and counter terrorism.” He answered that “you have to find that balance, because we might create a rule, but it might never happen.” He is unsure whether we are able to create rules strong enough to fight terrorism as well as open this topic for conversation. Finally, the third topic, “The issue of the jurisdiction of the UN Peacekeeping Force.” Mr. Apo was unsure of an answer for this topic, but mentioned that he felt as if there weren’t enough laws regarding this yet. 

It has been an honour to have interviewed and talked to Mr. Apostolos. He voices his concerns and opinions that many others also have. Thank you Mr. Apostolos!!

As the UNISMUN Reform Security Council Chair for the March 2026 conference, I was given the opportunity to interview and talk to Ms. Aisling O’Brien, the director of the advancement department of UNIS Hanoi. She has worked closely with our scholarship program, helping kids around Hanoi earn scholarships into UNIS. Upon asking her about her knowledge of MUN, she mentioned that she had previously worked at the International School of Beijing, and Singapore American School, which like UNIS, both also have strong MUN programs. She says that “MUN is just such a great experience to understand the mechanisms and the emotion and skills that it takes to make change and policy.” This resonates with a lot of people’s views and reasoning behind why they joined MUN in the first place; to be a world leader.

The first question I asked Ms. O’Brien was on her opinion and perspective on this year's conference theme of “Is our rules based international system able to adapt to contemporary challenges to security and sovereignty?” Ms. O’Brien’s answer to this was that the human race often experiences setbacks in regards to long term cooperation and interconnection. She brought up a point in saying that “we’re (the human race) on a continuum between high tribalistic behaviors to highly cooperative rules bound behaviors, but I see it still even in time when there are challenges as a progression. It’s just happening at a speed that is sometimes so much slower than we might like,” said Ms. O’Brien. 

The second question I asked Ms.O’Brien was on her opinion on each of the committee topics. When asked about the first topic, “The question of enhancing accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity,” she expressed that it is hard for the United Nations in order to enforce full accountability for these crimes. “I think that the encouragement to be fully intentional about the values is greater than the sort of enforcement of punishment. It’s more important to win hearts and minds than to exact justice,” she says, explaining the importance of not only physical punishment, but also really instilling the right values in people.On the second topic, “The question of establishing frameworks to prevent and counter terrorism.” Ms. O’Brien quotes “I think it’s a human right to live without fear of violence.” Growing up in Ireland, she says from first hand experience that when countries come together to create multifaceted solutions to these underlying issues of these terrorists, solutions will genuinely be created. On the final topic, “The issue of the jurisdiction of the UN Peacekeeping Force,” Ms. O’Brien first mentioned that Ireland had contributed many peacekeepers to the UN over the years. She said “the intention of the individual soldiers and their missions is to prevent greater bloodshed.” Her opinion on this topic was that the responsibility should be distributed amongst different people who are ultimately responsible for these actions. 

The final question I asked her was on which world issues she was passionate about. Ms O’Brien, as I previously mentioned, was a prominent figure in the scholars programme at UNIS Hanoi. She is passionate about the right to education, and says that education is truly phenomenal, and will have long term consequences for society. Thank you Ms. O’Brien for this wonderful interview! 

Greetings honorable directors, fellow chairs, distinguished delegates, and most esteemed guests,

My name is Donggyu Han, a junior at St. Paul American School Hanoi, and I am wholeheartedly honored to serve as the head chair of the Reform Security Council in the upcoming March 2026 UNIS MUN Conference. This conference marks my 11th MUN conference overall, 6th as a chair.

The theme of the March 2026 Conference, “Is our rules-based international system able to adapt to contemporary challenges to security and sovereignty?” lies at the heart of controversies surrounding the Reform Security Council. The global order that the international society relies on nowadays was shaped after World War II, making it difficult to efficiently counteract contemporary issues such as transnational terrorism and contested peacekeeping mandates. Therefore, all delegates must critique existing structures, but also formulate reforms that preserve legitimacy, accountability, and cooperation in a rapidly changing world.

The Reform Security Council is a variation of the United Nations Security Council, where the permanent members with veto power are increased from 5 to 9. Therefore, in the Reform Security Council, the topics are debated more diversely as more nations from various geopolitical locations are equally represented.

In this conference, the RSC will be debating 3 topics. The first topic, “The question of enhancing accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity,” invites the delegates to construct a plan on how institutions can reduce accountability gaps without politicizing or infringing justice. This issue is especially relevant when most of the warrants from the International Criminal Court (ICC), such as Vladimir Putin’s warrant for his inhumane orders in the Russo-Ukraine War, still remain ineffective. The second topic, “The question of establishing frameworks to prevent and counter terrorism,” is a common yet complex topic in which the delegates must carefully balance state sovereignty and bilateral responses against terrorism. With the global increase of extremism, especially among the younger generation, it is crucial to find a solution to this problem. Lastly, “The issue of the jurisdiction of the UN Peacekeeping Force” demonstrates the current issue that the UN Peacekeeping Force is facing with their limited operational capabilities. UN Peacekeepers showed their inability to effectively protect civilians or mediate a conflict in regions such as Lebanon during the 2024 Israeli invasion of Lebanon. Therefore, it is crucial for this topic to be debated in the RSC to ensure mission effectiveness and civilian protection.

The RSC is an exciting committee with a unique structure, and I would like to encourage all the delegates to approach the topics with innovative and bold ideas. With that said, I am truly looking forward to meeting all of you in March. Cheers.

Hello, fellow chairs, distinguished delegates, and esteemed directors,

I am Isaac Zenko. I will be serving as the deputy chair for the Reform Security Council in this year’s iteration of UNISMUN. I am a junior at Shekou International School in Shenzhen, China. This will be my 11th MUN conference and my 7th time as a chair. I love playing and watching football, watching F1 and quality cinema, listening to quality music, PPE (philosophy, politics, and economics), and linguistics. I am looking to be an entrepreneur, as well as a politician or diplomat in the future. My goal in this conference is to be the chillest chair in the conference. But that doesn’t mean you, delegates, can do anything you want. My other goal is to facilitate not only a smooth and efficient conference, but also a fun and lively one. Now, let’s move on to the blander things I have to cover.

Our theme, “Is our rules-based international system able to adapt to contemporary challenges to security and sovereignty?” aims to question the foundations of our modern policymaking regarding the extent of its jurisdiction over problems that concern itself with security and sovereignty. The topics in RSC that we will be covering are very on-topic with its content. We will be looking at how the UN is able to influence the accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity, the prevention of terrorism, and security through the UN Peacekeeping Force. The global status quo is an ever-changing landscape. These same topics will continue to be relevant in a future landscape as they are relevant now and were relevant years before. The question is whether the international system we have is able to keep up with new issues that will continue to arise.

Our first topic is “The question of enhancing accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity”. The first thing that came to mind with this topic is most evidently the crimes committed by Nazi Germany and the Nuremberg Trials, as it could be seen as a defiance of Germany’s sovereignty. However, we must approach this issue through a modern lens for modern issues. Our second topic, “The question of establishing frameworks to prevent and counter terrorism”, examines the effectiveness of the international body’s war on terrorism while respecting sovereign states’ powers, and the upholding of domestic policies to curb political, ideological, or religious extremism. Similarly, our third topic, “The issue of the jurisdiction of the UN Peacekeeping Force,” looks into the constraints they face as a result of the host nation’s sovereignty, while bringing peace to those nations. All these topics align with the theme of this conference. All three shed light on the challenges of balancing international security and national sovereignty through different aspects of international peace.

The Reform Security Council is the same as the Security Council, just that it has an additional 4 veto powers in the countries of Brazil, India, Japan, and Germany, so that veto power is more evenly distributed globally. Otherwise, the RSC’s role is identical to that of the SC, which functions as a hub for peacekeeping, conflict resolution, enforcement measures, provisional measures, threat assessments, and the creation of subsidiary bodies. Its resolutions are binding, and Member States are obligated to comply with its decisions. In essence, it looks at addressing threats to global security, wielding significant political and military authority. With great power comes great responsibility.

So, delegates, after reading all that, I hope it brings more clarity and understanding of our committee and the conference as a whole. I will put a lot of effort into making this conference a memorable, fun, and smooth experience for you all! I am open to questions from anyone, no matter how “unimportant” you might think it is (maybe it kinda is). I love to help people, so please don’t be shy about asking me questions or just getting more involved in the conference. I am looking forward to meeting all of you in March. 

Kind regards,

Isaac Zenko

Deputy Chair of the RSC

Welcome, honourable chairs, distinguished delegates, respected directors and most esteemed guests, 

My name is Ashley Lim, a freshman at United Nations International School of Hanoi, and I am so honoured, and excited, to be your procedural chair for the March 2026 UNISMUN Conference. This is my 3rd year participating in MUN, and 3rd conference as a chair. As your procedural chair, I aspire to make this conference run a memorable one, one filled with many fruitful debates and fun. 

This year’s March 2026 conference theme is “Is our rules based international system able to adapt to contemporary challenges to security and sovereignty?” This year’s theme is prone to encouraging many questions and debates, and is likely to bring out the best delegates in all of you. The theme has a strong connection to our topics this year: “The question of enhancing accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity,” “The question of establishing frameworks to prevent and counter terrorism” and “The issue of the jurisdiction of the UN Peacekeeping Force”. All these topics emphasise the importance of the changing world, something that needs to be discussed promptly. 

The Reform Security Council is part of the United Nations Security Council. It’s aim is to build and refine the Security Council. The RSC is also just as important as the SC, because of it’s aim and it’s work. The RSC is considered more of an ongoing debate, debating on ways to refine the SC to, similar to our topic this year, adapt to the new changes and conflicts of this world. An example of an ongoing debate within the RSC is the debate for more permanent members that are subjected to different requirements then non-permanent members, proposed by the G4 nations. 

The topics this year could be sensitive to some and are big threats to many countries. The first topic, “The question of enhancing accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity,” holds a significant role in our world. This decisions made for this topic will influence the growth of crimes committed in the future, which will effect our global peace. An example of a crime that has been overlooked is what happened in Xinjiang, China, where there is strong evidence from Amnesty International about persecution and murder against Uyghurs. The crime has been overlooked due to China’s strong political power and influence in the world. 

The second topic, “The question of establishing frameworks to prevent and counter terrorism”, is a topic very dear to me. This topic is one of the most important topics that is going to be discussed in this conference. Countries like Afghanistan have suffered immensely from terrorism, and though the UN has taken action against terrorism, more needs to be done. This topic is a very interesting topic, focusing on what the UN should do moving forward. 

The final topic, “The issue of the jurisdiction of the UN Peacekeeping Force” focuses on who and where the UN Peacekeeping force has authority on. The UN Peacekeeping Force is extremely important to our world, but problems can arise when power and authority aren’t clear, weakening the missions of the Peacekeeping force. Different countries will have many different view on who should hold authority of this force, and will lead to very fruitful debates. 

Delegates, I hope that by reading this profile you are able to understand my views and our topics more clearly. A word of advice for all of our delegates is to remember to do you’re country research thoroughly. Be sure to have you’re country stances ready and reasons supporting them ready as well, so we have more time to debate during the conference. 

Again, I am so excited and honoured to be serving as your procedural chair this conference, 

See you in March!

Sincerely,

Ashley