 Gensuikyo calls for states' efforts for nuclear weapons abolition A Japan Council against A & H Bombs (Japan Gensuikyo) delegation visited New York on the occasion of the NPT Review Conference and made representations to permanent missions to the United Nations, calling on them to make efforts to abolish nuclear weapons. On April 29, delegation members led by Gensuikyo Secretary General Takakusagi Hiroshi met with Pakistan Ambassador Munir Akram. While asking them to understand Pakistan's concerns over security issues between Pakistan and India, the ambassador expressed support for Gensuikyo's call. On May 2, Gensuikyo delegates visited the Swedish, French, and British permanent missions. A representative of the Swedish Foreign Ministry responded to Gensuikyo's presentation by stating that the 830-member Japanese delegation gave them courage and that public support is important. Fran¨ois Rivasseau, Permanent Representative of France, said that France is in compliance with the agreement made by the 2000 NPT Review Conference more than any other nuclear weapons state. However, he stopped short of promising that France will make efforts to establish an international treaty for the elimination of nuclear weapons, stating that nuclear weapons abolition is a future task and that it is necessary to take one step at a time. British Ambassador Jones Parry said that his county is striving to fulfill its duty as a state party to the NPT. He also said that the nuclear equilibrium defended the western structure and paved the way for the collapse of the eastern structure. - Akahata May 1,4, 2005 |