Call for Applications: The UN and Afghanistan

Seminar and Model UN WS 2026/2027 | Application Deadline: 6 October 2026

News vom 27.09.2026

On 15 August 2021, the Taliban reached the Afghan capital of Kabul and thereby completed a rapid takeover of the country, which they had ruled before from the late 1990s to 2001. The Afghan Government as well as the Afghan Army and Security Forces collapsed; President Ashraf Ghani left the country. The takeover came amidst the withdrawal by NATO allies and other countries related to the 2020 United States-Taliban Accord, which US-President Trump had negotiated with the Taliban. The international evacuation operation ended as the last US military and diplomatic personnel left Afghanistan on 30 August 2021.

20 years of international support to assist Afghan nation-building ended abruptly when the Taliban reinstalled their repressive policies, including massive human rights abuses especially against women and girls, extrajudicial executions and torture. As the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights put it: “Afghanistan is a graveyard for human rights.” The security situation is worsening daily, in December 2025 clashes between the Pakistani military and Taliban security forces erupted and UN Sanctions Monitoring Teams warn about the rising terrorism threat emanating from Afghan territory.

In 2026, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimates that about 21.9 million Afghans – or 45% of the population – require humanitarian assistance. The World Food Programme reported in March 2026 that 17.4 million even face severe food insecurity. The economy is on the brink of collapse and essential services like the health sector are under considerable stress. Worsening the already dire situation, two major earthquakes struck Afghanistan in August and November 2025, followed by a deadly flash flood in July 2026. The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), established in 2002, remains present in Afghanistan, yet the Security Council is facing a divide regarding the future mandate of the mission and asked the Secretary-General to conduct a strategic review of UNAMA until March 2027.

We like to invite you to a simulated Meeting of the Security Council to discuss the Situation in Afghanistan – which mainly disappeared in the News, but is the daily struggle for Afghans in Afghanistan and the diaspora – in the main organ responsible for international peace and security according to the Charter of the United Nations. Class sessions (Wednesday, 16.00 – 18.00 h, c.t.) prior will give you an ample overview of the topic. With this class we hope to deepen your knowledge about the functioning of an international body, various aspects of international diplomacy, negotiation techniques, and also hopefully the roots and causes of the diverging opinions on the subject among UN-Member States.

You will be asked to represent one of the members of the Security Council and take an active part in the class and negotiations. Participants are expected to research their respective countries position independently and to provide a Briefing (team work!) on a selected topic relating to the Situation in Afghanistan. Delegations are also asked to prepare a one-page Position Paper. Each Delegation will consist of 1-2 persons.

Please note that the seminar/conference language will be English. It is possible to receive 5 ECTS-credits (Schlüsselqualifikation or Fremdsprachenfachkompetenz, “ABV”, Faculty of Law).

Applications are to be sent via email until 6 October 2026 to Peggy Wittke, peggy.wittke@fu-berlin.de.

Your application should include:

Personal Details (Name, Phone, FU-Email, Field of Study + Semester, Student ID Number)
Short letter of motivation (3-4 sentences only)
3 Country preferences or Rapporteur*. Please indicate if you prefer a Delegation with two persons.
2 Briefing preferences (Topic No. 1-8)

Members of the Security Council 2026: Bahrain, China, Colombia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, France, Greece, Latvia, Liberia, Pakistan, Panama, Russian Federation, Somalia, United Kingdom, United States as well as the Rapporteur*.

* The Rapporteur will be responsible for monitoring the Meeting of the Security Council and providing a Report at the end as well as serving as Assistant to the Presidency/Chair during the Meeting.

Briefings

11 November 2026

The Situation in Afghanistan – Part One

1. History of Afghanistan
2. 9/11, the Bonn Agreement and NATO’s Involvement in Afghanistan