UN Security Council (UNSC) in Model UN

Fifteen members, five with a veto, and decisions on peace and security that bind every UN member.

Find a UNSC conferenceHow it works

Similar: Historical committees · Futuristic committees · DISEC · ICJ

  • 5 permanent members, with veto: on 93 to 98% of seat lists
  • 10 more seats in a typical simulation of 15

UNSC applications closing soon

93 conferences close applications in the next 30 days. These close first.

More UNSC conferences

346 more upcoming

Browse all Model UN conferences

Where and when UNSC conferences run

Poland, the United States and the Netherlands host the most. December is the busiest month.

In 55 countries and online

Upcoming by month

67 in December 202649 open for applications now

137 of the 352 are for school students only and 33 for university students only; 113 are free. See all high school MUN conferences or university MUN conferences.

Most UNSC conferences are in Poland, the United States and the Netherlands.

How the UNSC works in Model UN

The UN Security Council holds the main responsibility for international peace and security, and every UN member has to carry out its decisions; five of its 15 members are permanent and hold a veto. In Model UN it is a small, fast room where the veto applies: a single no from a permanent member sinks a draft even if the other fourteen vote yes.

Who it suits

Take the UNSC once you have a General Assembly committee behind you; new delegates almost always start in the General Assembly. A permanent seat gives you the most leverage, because your no ends a draft. An elected seat matters more than it looks: even with all five permanent members in favour, a draft needs four of the ten elected members, so if seven elected delegates hold back their votes, it fails.

What it is

The Council's decisions bind every UN member, while General Assembly resolutions only recommend, and that shows in what you can write. Where a General Assembly draft can only recommend sanctions, a Council draft can impose them, from cutting trade to breaking off diplomatic relations, and the Council can take military action by air, sea or land. The Council's website lists this year's members and every resolution back to 1946, year by year.

How it runs in Model UN

In your committee the veto bites on substantive votes, which in practice means the final vote on each draft resolution. Motions, such as one to open a caucus, are procedural and stay out of the veto's reach.

States outside the Council can be invited to speak, without a vote, when a dispute involves them or touches their interests, and some conferences, American Model United Nations among them, call delegates in from other committees to play that part.

How to prepare

  1. 1

    Read the Council's past resolutions on your topic. They are numbered S/RES/ and listed by year on its website, and the research and documents lessons in the Model UN Masterclass point you to real Council resolutions and to the UN's own guide for drafting them.

  2. 2

    Know your country's record on the Council. The vetoes dashboard lists every veto since 1946, with links to the official records. For your government's speeches and votes, go to the UN Digital Library; researching your country shows you how to search it by country, topic and document type.

  3. 3

    Check which votes your conference counts as substantive. That is how far the veto reaches. The MUN glossary defines veto power, substantive votes and procedural votes in a line or two each. Many conferences count amendment votes as substantive in their rules of procedure, so a permanent member can kill an amendment as well.

  4. 4

    Build your position paper on the Council's past action. The position paper guide takes you from the header to your proposals. On the UNSC, the record paragraph covers the Council's resolutions on your topic and, if you hold a permanent seat, every veto your country cast on it.

Tip

A veto has a sequel. Since General Assembly resolution 76/262 of April 2022, every veto triggers an Assembly debate within ten working days, and the permanent member that cast it goes to the top of the speakers' list. That gives you a line for debate: a veto now means answering for it before every member state.

UNSC topics in Model UN

Of 2,961 UNSC topics on mymun, 24% are about armed conflicts, 7% about terrorism and extremism and 6% about maritime and border disputes. Rising this season: peacekeeping and peacebuilding (9% of topics this season, up from 5%) and humanitarian crises (9% of topics this season, up from 4%).

ThemeShare of topics
  1. Armed conflicts 24%

    Example: The Syrian Civil War, Denning Hyderabad Model United Nations III

  2. Terrorism and extremism 7%

    Example: Preventing radicalization and recruitment of Youth by extremist groups, Aetolia MUN

  3. Maritime and border disputes 6%

    Example: Maritime sovereignty and security, City University of London Model United Nations

  4. Cyber and AI 6%

    Example: Addressing Emerging Threats to International Peace and Security in the Digital Age, shagun chaudhary

  5. Peacekeeping and peacebuilding Rising6%

    Example: Reevaluating the Need for UN Peacekeeping Operations Worldwide, Karlsruhe Model United Nations

Places named in UNSC topics

  1. Israel 4%
  2. Middle East 4%
  3. Palestine 3%
  4. Iran 3%
  5. Ukraine 3%
  6. Yemen 3%
  7. South China Sea 3%
  8. Syria 3%
  9. Russia 2%
  10. Sudan 2%

Recent UNSC topics

  1. Strengthening International Peace and Security Through Conflict Prevention and Diplomatic Intervention

    shagun chaudhary
    Peacekeeping and peacebuilding

  2. Environmental Crisis: A Natural Disaster or a Failure of Leadership?

    Unify Model United Nation

  3. Election of the Next United Nations Secretary-General

    Intelligence Model United Nations

  4. The United Nations (UN) plays a central legal, diplomatic, and judicial role in addressing the Cambodia–Thailand border and maritime disputes

    Open Relations and Engagement Model United Nations

UNSC countries in Model UN

The United States, France, China, the United Kingdom and Russia appear on 93 to 98% of UNSC seat lists on mymun. Each year the General Assembly elects five of the ten non-permanent members, and a retiring member cannot be re-elected at once.

  • 5 permanent members, with veto: on 93 to 98% of seat lists
  • 10 more seats in a typical simulation of 15

Most often seated

CountryShare of seat lists
  1. 1United StatesP598%
  2. 2FranceP598%
  3. 3ChinaP597%
  4. 4United KingdomP597%
  5. 5RussiaP593%
  6. 6Japan61%
  7. 7Switzerland44%
  8. 8South Korea44%
  9. 9Algeria40%
  10. 10Ecuador40%
  11. 11Mozambique40%
  12. 12Malta39%

Most requested

CountryShare of applicants
  1. 1United StatesP515%
  2. 2FranceP514%
  3. 3United KingdomP513%
  4. 4RussiaP512%
  5. 5ChinaP512%
  6. 6Germany3%
  7. 7Japan3%
  8. 8India3%
  9. 9Egypt2%
  10. 10Switzerland2%
  11. 11Israel2%
  12. 12Iran2%

Often still open

CountryStill open
  1. 1Venezuela11 of 11
  2. 2Somalia10 of 10
  3. 3Zimbabwe10 of 10
  4. 4Ukraine11 of 12
  5. 5Kenya10 of 11
  6. 6Latvia10 of 11
  7. 7Mexico10 of 11
  8. 8Denmark9 of 10
  9. 9Ecuador26 of 30
  10. 10Guyana24 of 28
  11. 11Italy12 of 14
  12. 12Mozambique24 of 29

How the UNSC compares

The UNSC runs at more upcoming conferences than the committees below. Its rooms seat about 15, against 24 in DISEC.

CommitteeUpcomingOpen nowRoom sizeSchool onlyMost debated
UN Security Council (UNSC)3521851539%Armed conflicts
Historical Committees137591754%Armed conflicts
Futuristic Committees21141738%Future and science fiction
DISEC (GA First Committee)154742449%Arms control and disarmament
International Court of Justice (ICJ)52231354%International law and justice

UNSC in Model UN: questions and answers

How many delegates are in a UNSC committee?

The real Council has 15 members. UNSC simulations on mymun seated about 15 delegations.

Does the veto apply in Model UN?

Yes. As in the real Council, a draft resolution needs 9 of 15 votes and fails if a permanent member votes against it, while an abstention is not a veto and procedural votes cannot be vetoed.

Is the UNSC a good committee for beginners?

It is demanding: the room is small, each delegate speaks often, and one permanent member voting no defeats a draft resolution. DISEC covers similar security ground without a veto.

What topics does the UNSC debate in Model UN?

Top themes in 2,961 UNSC topics on mymun: armed conflicts (24%), terrorism and extremism (7%) and maritime and border disputes (6%). Places named most often: Israel, the Middle East, Palestine, Iran and Ukraine.

Can school students join a UNSC?

Yes. 319 of the 352 upcoming conferences with a UNSC take high school delegates, and 137 are for school students only.

Prepare for your UNSC committee

Updated Nov 15, 2026