TOKYO: Survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on Tuesday called for new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to not backtrack on Japan's commitment to a world free of nuclear weapons, expressing concern over her past suggestion the country's long-standing three non-nuclear principles should be reviewed, Kyodo News Agency reported.
"While it is historic to have the first female prime minister, I am deeply concerned about her policy direction, which seems to rely more on force than dialogue," said Takeshi Yamakawa, an 89-year-old Nagasaki atomic bombing survivor who is active in sharing his testimony.
In 2022, while serving as the policy chief of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, Takaichi argued that exceptions should be allowed to Japan's three principles of not possessing, producing or permitting the introduction of nuclear weapons in certain emergency situations.
Yamakawa expressed alarm at the idea of revising the policy, saying, "As a nation that knows the horrors of the atomic bomb, such a change must never happen. (The three non-nuclear principles) should be upheld as a national creed."
Takashi Hiraoka, 97, who served as mayor of Hiroshima from 1991 to 1999, urged the new administration to "pursue peace diplomacy earnestly."
On Tuesday, the Japan Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, a nationwide movement that includes atomic bomb survivors, held an emergency online press conference to express concerns over the possible nuclear policies of the new administration. - Bernama-Kyodo
