The Disarmament and International Security Committee (DISEC) has long stood at the crossroads of peace and power; from nuclear non-proliferation to the regulation of conventional arms, its mandate is as complex as it is consequential. In this year’s DSMUN, DISEC turns its attention to a challenge that has cemented itself in global politics: the far-reaching influence of the military-industrial complex (MIC). Initially cautioned by the U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1961, the military-industrial complex has transformed from a post-war partnership between weapon producers and governments into a worldwide network of defense contractors, private military firms, and lobbyists. Currently, five nations comprise over 75% of total global arms exports—an inequality that reinforces dependence and disparity in the international framework.

DISEC’s mandate requires sovereignty to go hand in hand with accountability. One must analyse how states justify militarisation, why disarmament often fails, and whether peace can realistically exist in a world where weapons are a commodity. This committee will be divided, and that is by design. Prepare to debate with clarity, and negotiate with intent. The Executive Board encourages delegates to approach this agenda as a systemic inquiry into how the victims of war have been commodified.