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Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida vowed to lead an effort to get the struggling global nuclear disarmament effort back on track, proposing to encourage nuclear-weapon states to engage in discussions with non-nuclear-weapon states Is.
Kishida proposed reactivating discussion of the 1993 Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty, or FMCT, which was never negotiated at the United Nations but whose importance remains unchanged.
Earlier on Tuesday, he co-hosted FMCT high-level talks with non-nuclear weapons defense partners Australia and the Philippines, hoping to garner broader support from countries in the so-called Global South.
Japan will contribute 3 billion yen ($A31 million) to establish Japan Chairs at foreign research institutes and think tanks geared toward achieving a world without nuclear weapons.
The aim, Kishida said, was to activate debate that could overcome polarized choices between deterrence and disarmament.
Kishida said, as a lawmaker representing Hiroshima, the victim of the world’s first nuclear attack, nuclear disarmament is his “life’s work.”
“Japan, as a non-permanent member, will cooperate with the United Nations and other participating countries to promote discussion among nuclear and non-nuclear states.”
Kishida also condemned Russia’s violations of the rule of law and called for more efforts to prevent human rights violations and nuclear threats.
He said the use of the UN Security Council’s veto power as part of a broader reform of the UN was “exacerbating divisions and disputes” within the organization.
“We need a UN Security Council that reflects today’s world.”
