Topic: 2026 – Verification of Disarmament
Country: Gabon
Delegate Name: Abigail Kearney
The United Nations was founded upon a core tenant of disarmament. It is an acceptance of peace and a willful invitation towards cooperation. However, failures to properly verify disarmament in nations leads to borders filled with distrust and disingenuity. The United Nations has developed programs to aid nations in verification of their disarmament, but almost always does so through outside organizations. This means that if nations wish to utilize such programs, they must allow domestically unvetted and potentially untrusted groups into their borders and provide them access to highly sensitive information and facilities. This presents a major obstacle towards verification of disarmament.
The solution Gabon proposes works on a more regional and connected level than current systems. Many nations involve themselves not only in United Nations affiliations, but also more regional organizations such as the African Union and CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States). These organizations work with nations on a much more personal level than the United Nations does due to size and localization. It would be much more beneficial for the United Nations to offer resources that allowed regional organizations to verify disarmament instead of attempting to conduct verification through non-regional, external outside groups. This adds an element of trust and transparency to the verification process that only organizations built around countries in that region can provide.
Current proposals and programs designed to aid nations in verification of disarmament are failing. They are imbued with distrust and inefficiency. Resources that could be used effectively instead go to support programs that lack the widespread acceptance to make them truly useful. Gabon proposes a solution that is built around the countries it holds obligations to, instead of external groups that act as threatening and foreign. A changed utilization of UN resources funneled towards regional managing organizations is the best way to move forward and protect global stability.
