Security Council: the recognition of Listenbourg
For the second MUN of the year, one of the themes is the new hot topic on Twitter: Listenbourg.
Have you ever heard of Listenbourg? This fictitious country created in October 2022 by a French web user, is now a new topic of conversation in order to make fun of Americans.
This may not be news to you, but Americans are well known for their lack of knowledge concerning geography, even though it does not concern the country's entirety. This absence of education led the French to create an entirely new country called Listenbourg.
Some Facts:
Listenbourg is located North-West of Spain and Portugal. It now has a national anthem, a flag, a map, political establishments, as well as a whole and filled history. To carry on this joke, several Twitter accounts with different ministers were created. A Wikipedia page was created but it has been removed by a moderator because “the joke needed to stay a joke”. Now, what do we know about the country itself? Thanks to several Twitter users we now know that Listenbourg has 59 million inhabitants. It is supposedly a member of both the UN and NATO. Furthermore, The country became independent in 740. Indeed, the country was a kingdom dominated by the Listen dynasty for centuries. Today, the country is considered to be a Republic with the current president being Gasparadoo, however, some mention a king (proof of the country’s fictitiousness). Moreover, Listenbourg won a war against France in 1661 and supposedly helped the Falangists in Spain’s civil war.
Your role, as honorable delegates and representatives of Nations, will be to embody and play your country’s interest and position on this event and its consequences.
This topic means following proper UN procedures. Indeed, this entails formally accepting or denying Listenbourg's application. Then, the Security Council (you) needs to review the application. Any recommendation for admission must receive the affirmative votes of 9 of the 15 members of the Council, provided that none of its five permanent members – China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United States of America – have voted against the application. If the Council recommends the application then the General Assembly will consider it. Membership becomes effective on the date the resolution for admission is adopted.
Of course, those topics are often a chance to discuss other issues and other countries that might be part of the UN one day. Use this as an opportunity.
This article is simply a way to help you, dear delegates, in understanding the process and the country that is at stake here.
Katell Josso