Nuclear Elimination in Trouble

It must have been a routine resolution in a committee of United Nations. But, Japan, as the main sponsor of it, was fundamentally disappointed with the conclusion, because the minority opposing or defying the resolution were too major to make the concept against nuclear weapon prevalent. The effort of Japan to eliminate nuclear weapon, which severely devastated the island nation seventy years ago, is facing serious trouble.

Japan has been submitting resolutions to declare complete elimination of nuclear weapon and they passed the First Committee of General assembly, which dealt with disarmament and security, for the each of consecutive twenty-two years. This year, the resolution was supported by 156 countries out of the 176. However, United States and United Kingdom, which had been co-sponsors of the resolution until last year, and France, which had been supporting it, abstained from voting.

In the year of seventieth anniversary from atomic devastation in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japanese delegation to U.N. went one step forward in details of the resolution. Using an expression of “Hibakusha,” sufferers from nuclear bombs, the resolution required world leaders to visit Hiroshima or Nagasaki to realize inhumanity of nuclear weapon. On the other hand, it attempted to include nuclear possessing countries into supporters of the resolution by avoiding describing concrete time limit for total elimination of nuclear weapons.

Japanese government was shocked by defiance of U.S., which had been co-sponsoring the resolution from 2009, when U.S. President Barack Obama proposed “the world without nuclear weapon” in Prague. It is likely that U.S. changed the attitude, because the resolution this year included an expression of inhumanity of nuclear weapon. But, U.S. must be worrying about the trend after bitter breaking off in Reviewing Convention of Non-proliferation Treaty this May, which has been moving toward Nuclear Banning Treaty.

Further insulting, China denounced Japan of its insistence on nuclear elimination. “It was a direct consequence of the aggressive war,” told Chinese delegation in the committee. It is rarely heard that war can be settled by using nuclear weapons, if the opponent were aggressive. Sincere reflection of relying on the immoral weapons could not see in this pragmatic nation.

Japan has been appealing the inhumanity of nuclear weapon, which can instantly kill a huge number of innocent people. Upholding a concept of “human security,” Japan has been trying to lead the discussion toward nuclear disarmament. One can think that current shift of Japanese security policy to unleash its military capability caused skepticism on traditional pacifism of Japan.