Peace and disarmament, MPs from G7 countries ask leaders to act for denuclearization at the next Hiroshima summit

ROME – Some members of parliaments of the G7 countries have urged their leaders to take concrete actions on nuclear disarmament, on the occasion of the summit to be held in Hiroshima from 19 to 21 May next. The commitment was made following participation in the G7 Parliamentarians Forum for the elimination of nuclear weapons in Tokyo and Hiroshima, where they met the survivors of the first atomic attack in history which killed 140,000 people and obliterated the entire city in 1945. The Forums was organized by International campaign for the abolition of nuclear weapons (ICAN) and concluded with a collective statement by the political representatives. Even the mobilizationItaly, think again” (promoted by Atomless And Italian Peace Disarmament Network) participated in this important initiative, accepting the commitments made and emphasizing the importance of maintaining an official working group on nuclear disarmament also in view of the 2024 G7 summit, which will take place in Italy. Also in this sense, the action on Deputies and Senators will now be strengthened with a relaunch of the “Parliamentary Pledge” of the countryside ICA extension.

The collective statement. In the joint statement, participants urged G7 leaders to listen to the survivors they will meet in Hiroshima – known as Hibakusha – and to recognize the devastating damage to people and the environment caused by nuclear weapons. The statement calls on G7 leaders to unequivocally condemn any threat to use nuclear weapons and to recognize the importance of Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), which currently has 92 signatory states, which entered into force in 2021, enjoys growing international support, to advance the idea of ​​global nuclear disarmament.

The text continues with these words. “We believe that all countries should engage in sincere and constructive negotiations to achieve the total elimination of nuclear weapons, so that never again will anyone be subjected to the fate suffered by the Hibakusha.” The Declaration condemned North Korea’s missile tests and nuclear weapons program for “dangerously and irresponsibly” increasing the risk of nuclear war. He also highlighted the “unacceptable risks associated with nuclear weapons” evoked during the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Nuclear threats are explicitly prohibited by the TPNW and in this regard the Declaration points out how: “In order to strengthen the norm not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons, we condemn any and all nuclear threats and reaffirm that the only guarantee of non-use is the total elimination of nuclear weapons.”

An international emergency. MPs have called for an end to the nuclear arms race involving all nuclear-weapon states, because it increases the risk of use by accident or by will and “must therefore be stopped as a matter of international urgency”. With this in mind, they invited their governments to engage constructively with the countries adhering to the TPNW Treaty and underlined how this international standard integrates the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). They have personally pledged to strengthen both treaties, which “together provide the crucial, mutually reinforcing framework for achieving a world free of nuclear weapons.”

The visit to Peace Memorial Museum. The international members of the Delegation were hosted by their Japanese counterparts at the House of Councilors of the Diet in Tokyo on Friday, April 28, where they made official statements and listened to a speech by Kuniko Inoguchi, MP of the LDP and former ambassador of Japan for disarmament. They then traveled to Hiroshima on Saturday, April 29, where they visited the Peace Memorial Museum and attended a memorial event at the Cenotaph Peace Memorial Park. They later attended a workshop with the Hibakusha to better understand what happens to people when they are attacked with nuclear weapons.

Laura Boldrini: the Memorial is more powerful than many speeches. “A visit to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial gives a clear idea of ​​what war and peace mean. It is more powerful than a thousand speeches. Everyone, especially young people, should once in their life take the opportunity to come here and listen to the stories of the Hibakusha, the impact that the atomic bomb has had on their lives and their pain. This leaves no doubt about the importance of promoting the abolition of nuclear weapons. For this reason we must urge the G7 leaders to increase their efforts for a world free from the threat of nuclear weapons and to accede to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons”.

Heather McPherson, Canadian Congresswoman. “There is no better place than Hiroshima – he said – to recognize that the use of nuclear weapons would have catastrophic consequences for humanity and the planet. Visiting these memorial sites, especially in light of recent nuclear threats from countries such as Russia and North Korea, highlights the urgent need to eliminate these weapons of mass destruction.The upcoming G7 summit in Hiroshima – he added – is the perfect opportunity for Canada to join the growing international consensus and announce a delegation to observe the forthcoming meeting of states parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. We have heard a lot of empty rhetoric from Prime Minister Trudeau, now is the time to act.”

Countries with nuclear weapons within its borders. All G7 states have nuclear weapons in their security policies, whether as nuclear-weapon states (France, the United Kingdom and the United States), as host states of nuclear warheads (Germany and Italy) or as part of the so-called “nuclear umbrella ” (Canada and Japan)

Japanese Prime Minister. Fumio Kishida represents a district of Hiroshima and some of his relatives were killed when the US used the atomic bomb to attack the city in 1945. He decided to host this year’s G7 summit in Hiroshima and put the disarmament and nuclear proliferation on the leaders’ agenda due to the growing risk that nuclear weapons could be used for the first time since 1945, following Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine and continued tests by Korea of the North on short- and long-range nuclear-capable missiles.