Latest news with #nuclearabolition
NHK
2 days ago
- Politics
- NHK
US intelligence chief issues rare call for nuclear weapons to be abolished
US National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard has called for nuclear weapons to be abolished after paying a visit to Hiroshima. It is rare for an active US cabinet member to express opposition to nuclear weapons. Gabbard made the statement in a video message that she posted on social media on Tuesday. She said that she had recently visited the atomic-bombed Japanese city of Hiroshima. She explained that she learned about the devastation caused by the atomic bombings of the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In the video she said: "It's hard for me to find the words to express what I saw, the stories that I heard, the haunting sadness that still remains. This is an experience that will stay with me forever." Gabbard spoke about some paintings created by survivors of the bombings. She said the suffering, pain and sense of loss that the paintings convey are "almost more powerful than the photos themselves." The director said the destructive power of today's nuclear weapons surpasses that of the bombs dropped on the Japanese cities during World War Two. She said: "This is the reality of what's at stake, what we are facing now, because, as we stand here today, closer to the brink of nuclear annihilation than ever before, political elite warmongers are carelessly fomenting fear and tensions between nuclear powers." Gabbard concluded: "So it's up to us, people, to speak up and demand an end to this madness. We must reject this path to a nuclear war, and work toward a world where no one has to live in fear of a nuclear holocaust." US President Donald Trump has indicated that he wants to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss cutting back on nuclear weapons.
Japan Times
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Heads of hibakusha groups urge Pope Leo to promote abolition of nukes
The heads of atomic bomb survivor groups in Hiroshima and Nagasaki voiced hope Friday that newly elected Pope Leo XIV will promote nuclear abolition as his predecessor, Francis, did. The late pope, who died in April, visited the two atomic-bombed Japanese cities in 2019 and called for the elimination of nuclear weapons. "I want (the new pope) to think about peace first and aim for a world without nuclear weapons," said Toshiyuki Mimaki, 83, who heads a hibakusha group in Hiroshima Prefecture. He urged the 69-year-old new pope to "visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the near future." "It doesn't matter where he is from. I hope he'll work with the same mindset as previous popes," Mimaki said of Leo, the first U.S.-born pope. Shigemitsu Tanaka, 84, who heads a hibakusha group in the Nagasaki Prefecture, said that he wants the new pope to adhere to Francis' stance on nuclear abolition. "The wish of hibakusha is not to fight back, but to ensure that people never have to go through the same suffering again," Tanaka said. This year marks the 80th anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II. Still, there are constant military clashes around the world, including Russia's invasion of Ukraine. "World leaders should have more dialogue before fighting a war," Tanaka said.
NHK
09-05-2025
- Politics
- NHK
Nagasaki A-bomb survivor wants Pope Leo XIV to call for nuclear abolition
A senior official of a group representing atomic bomb survivors in Japan says she would like the new pope to call for the abolition of nuclear weapons. Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost from the United States was elected the new head of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday. He chose the papal name Leo XIV. A senior Nihon Hidankyo official, Yokoyama Teruko, who experienced the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, has met two popes in the past. Yokoyama said the new pope is from a major nuclear power, and could provide an opportunity for the people of the US and other nuclear countries to reconsider the issue of nuclear arms. Yokoyama said former popes have said nuclear weapons are evil. She said the number of survivors is decreasing, and she does not want people to forget about the bombings. Yokoyama also said she wants the new pope to visit the atomic bomb museums in Nagasaki and Hiroshima, and listen to the stories of the survivors. She said many Catholics suffered in Nagasaki, so she hopes the pope could send a message on nuclear abolition from the city.
