Letter of Request to Prime Minister Kishida Regarding the TPNW (November 18, 2021)

November 18, 2021

His Excellency Fumio Kishida
Prime Minister
Japan

Request to the Central Government
Regarding the Treaty of the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons

Excellency:

On behalf of the citizens of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, we would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude for your efforts towards the realization of a world without nuclear weapons.

Originating from the hibakusha’s strong conviction that “no one else should suffer as we have,” the movement for nuclear abolition has swept across the globe, culminating in the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) this past January. TPNW is the first treaty to establish a fundamental norm that nuclear weapons are subject to comprehensive prohibition. Amid the stalled nuclear disarmament process and rising threat of nuclear weapons, hibakusha and many other citizens strongly wish for the increased effectiveness of the treaty, and for the international community to take steps toward the earliest possible realization of a world without nuclear weapons.

In order to achieve this goal, it is essential that nuclear-weapon states, their allies, and many other nations join the treaty to engage in discussions towards its effective implementation and development while advancing nuclear disarmament discussions at the NPT Review Conference. Japan should participate in the discussions to convey the ardent desire of hibakusha and the realities of the atomic bombings, eliminate the division between nuclear and non-nuclear weapons states, and serve as a bridge between them for forming a common basis for nuclear abolition.

As the only nation to have suffered the devastation of atomic bombings in warfare, we urgently appeal to the government to sign and ratify the TPNW as soon as possible. In the meantime, we ask that the Japanese government attend the Meeting of States Parties to be held next March as an observer in order to become a driving force in the realization of a world free from nuclear weapons.

Sincerely yours,

MATSUI Kazumi
Mayor
The City of Hiroshima

TAUE Tomihisa
Mayor
The City of Nagasaki