Message from the Secretary General 

Esteemed directors, distinguished delegates, and most-welcomed guests,

"Machine men, with machine minds and machine hearts!"

In Charlie Chaplin's final monologue in the 1940 film The Great Dictator, he calls for peace. 

Today, we continue to call for peace. After decades of negotiated peace, conflict and unrest seem to have resurfaced with greater intensity in recent years. Tensions continue to build between nuclear-weapon states, forcing us to engage in peace agreements only to meet new and unexpected escalations of conflict. In Yemen, a humanitarian crisis, fueled by regional rivalries and the involvement of foreign powers, has left thousands dead and millions displaced. In South Sudan, the world's most devastating ethnic and political tensions fuel a continued, decade-long violence.

Conditions have only worsened.

But it's not just about war—our technological advancements have opened the door to new ethical dilemmas, demanding our urgent attention. We now face questions that challenge the foundations of what we understand as war and peace: How do we combat the weaponization of artificial intelligence? As AI becomes more integrated into military technology, we must ask: What happens when machines, not humans, make life-and-death decision? How do we regulate private military contractors and mercenaries in contemporary conflicts? These actors, operating outside traditional military and legal boundaries, complicate the increasingly difficult task of achieving peace. The world continues spinning like an engine that may someday combust under pressure

During the last arms race, the last Cold War, Richard Nixon stated, "The world is your oyster, and you can choose how to shape the future. Peace comes through understanding and cooperation."

Just as our predecessors put their lives on the line for peace, we must now carry that torch forward. The future is in our hands, and it is through our understanding and cooperation, our collective human spirit, that we have the potential to change the course of history and find the path to a better tomorrow.

Warm regards,

Grace Yeelan Hou

Secretary-General, SMICMUN VIII