Nobel Prize Winner Nihon Hidankyo and Kazakhstan set to jointly promote idea of nuclear-free world

Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Japan Yerlan Baudarbek-Kozhatayev met with representatives of the Japanese Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations (Nihon Hidankyo) headed by its Co-Chairperson Terumi Tanaka, Kazinform News Agency learnt from the Kazakh Foreign Ministry. 

Japan, Kazakhstan agree to promote nuclear-free world
Photo credit: mfa.kz

The ambassador congratulated those present on the recent awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Nihon Hidankyo, stressing that this recognizes the confederation’s efforts in eliminating nuclear weapons and contribution to strengthening international security.

Representatives of the Nihon Hidankyo noted that the term “hibakusha” (those affected by the consequences of a nuclear explosion) has become recognizable in the world and has been transformed into “global hibakusha”, uniting all people affected by nuclear tests, including those in the Semipalatinsk region.

Special attention was paid to Kazakhstan’s upcoming chairmanship over the Third Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), which will be held in March 2025 at the UN headquarters in New York.

Tanaka informed that Nihon Hidankyo will send its delegation to the event and expressed support for Kazakhstan’s chairmanship. It was noted that members of the Japanese Parliament representing the ruling coalition plan to participate in the upcoming meeting.

Representatives of the Japanese public organization appreciated Kazakhstan’s leading role in the global movement for nuclear disarmament. Following the meeting, Yerlan Baudarbek-Kozhatayev and Terumi Tanaka agreed to work closely together to implement initiatives aimed at creating a world free of nuclear weapons.

Nihon Hidankyo was established in 1956 by persons, who survived the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki (hibakusha), to provide assistance to the victims and promote the renunciation of nuclear weapons. The Confederation actively promotes the universalization of the TPNW and advocates for a nuclear-weapon-free world. In 2024, Nihon Hidankyo was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons.

As written before, a conference themed as “Fostering Cooperation and Enhancing Consultation: Mechanisms among the existing nuclear-weapons-free zones” was held in the building of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan jointly with the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs, the press service of the Kazakh Foreign Ministry reported August 27.

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