“Hiroshima Report” is released, assessing 36 nations in their efforts involving nuclear weapons
Apr. 19, 2016
by Kyoji Matsumoto, Staff Writer
On March 30, Hiroshima Prefecture released the latest “Hiroshima Report,” in which 36 nations were rated in three areas: nuclear disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation, and the safe management of nuclear materials. The prefectural government has been issuing this report every year since 2013, assessing how each country dealt with nuclear issues over the previous year. In the field of nuclear disarmament, 14 nations (38.9 percent), mainly non-nuclear weapon states that include Japan, received lower marks than last year, partly as a result of opposing the adoption of nuclear-related resolutions at the United Nations General Assembly or abstaining from voting for these statements. North Korea scored lowest in all three areas for the fourth time in a row.
The nations covered in this report are the five nuclear powers recognized by the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT), the four de facto nuclear states, and 27 non-nuclear nations. The prefecture entrusted the research for this assessment to the Japan Institute of International Affairs, a Tokyo-based think tank, which graded the actions taken in 2015 by each country in each evaluation category. As full marks are different depending on the category, the scores are presented in percentage points. The score can also become a negative number if a significant number of points are deducted.
In the field of nuclear disarmament, the countries were evaluated based on the number of nuclear weapons they possess and the actions they took, such as voting for or against resolutions at the U.N. General Assembly. Of the five nuclear powers (the U.S., the U.K., China, France, and Russia), Russia, which holds 7,500 nuclear warheads, scored lowest at 10.1 percent. China, the only country among the five that made no efforts to reduce their nuclear weapons, received 13.3 percentage points, while the U.S. scored 20.7 percent.
All of the four de facto nuclear nations scored lower than the five nuclear powers. North Korea, which has been actively pursuing nuclear and missile development, had many zeros or negative figures, ending up at minus 5.5 percent.
Of the non-nuclear nations that were rated, Austria, which has taken a leading role in confronting issues involving the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons, scored the highest at 77.1 percent. New Zealand came in second at 74.3 percent. Sweden, with 71.4 percent, raised its rank from sixth to third.
Japan was marked down by 1.0 points from its previous score, receiving 65.7 percent in the area of nuclear disarmament. Points were deducted because it abstained from backing a resolution at the U.N. General Assembly which calls for creating a legal framework for banning nuclear weapons. In the area of nuclear non-proliferation, Japan earned 88.5 percent, the same figure as last year. As for the safe management of nuclear materials, Japan scored 70.7 percent, up 4.8 percent from the last report.
The “Hiroshima Report” is part of the “Hiroshima for Global Peace” plan, promoted by the prefecture. The prefectural government has made its first booklet that offers an easy-to-understand explanation of the report for the general public. The booklet will be given out at peace-related events.
(Originally published on March 31, 2016)
On March 30, Hiroshima Prefecture released the latest “Hiroshima Report,” in which 36 nations were rated in three areas: nuclear disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation, and the safe management of nuclear materials. The prefectural government has been issuing this report every year since 2013, assessing how each country dealt with nuclear issues over the previous year. In the field of nuclear disarmament, 14 nations (38.9 percent), mainly non-nuclear weapon states that include Japan, received lower marks than last year, partly as a result of opposing the adoption of nuclear-related resolutions at the United Nations General Assembly or abstaining from voting for these statements. North Korea scored lowest in all three areas for the fourth time in a row.
The nations covered in this report are the five nuclear powers recognized by the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT), the four de facto nuclear states, and 27 non-nuclear nations. The prefecture entrusted the research for this assessment to the Japan Institute of International Affairs, a Tokyo-based think tank, which graded the actions taken in 2015 by each country in each evaluation category. As full marks are different depending on the category, the scores are presented in percentage points. The score can also become a negative number if a significant number of points are deducted.
In the field of nuclear disarmament, the countries were evaluated based on the number of nuclear weapons they possess and the actions they took, such as voting for or against resolutions at the U.N. General Assembly. Of the five nuclear powers (the U.S., the U.K., China, France, and Russia), Russia, which holds 7,500 nuclear warheads, scored lowest at 10.1 percent. China, the only country among the five that made no efforts to reduce their nuclear weapons, received 13.3 percentage points, while the U.S. scored 20.7 percent.
All of the four de facto nuclear nations scored lower than the five nuclear powers. North Korea, which has been actively pursuing nuclear and missile development, had many zeros or negative figures, ending up at minus 5.5 percent.
Of the non-nuclear nations that were rated, Austria, which has taken a leading role in confronting issues involving the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons, scored the highest at 77.1 percent. New Zealand came in second at 74.3 percent. Sweden, with 71.4 percent, raised its rank from sixth to third.
Japan was marked down by 1.0 points from its previous score, receiving 65.7 percent in the area of nuclear disarmament. Points were deducted because it abstained from backing a resolution at the U.N. General Assembly which calls for creating a legal framework for banning nuclear weapons. In the area of nuclear non-proliferation, Japan earned 88.5 percent, the same figure as last year. As for the safe management of nuclear materials, Japan scored 70.7 percent, up 4.8 percent from the last report.
The “Hiroshima Report” is part of the “Hiroshima for Global Peace” plan, promoted by the prefecture. The prefectural government has made its first booklet that offers an easy-to-understand explanation of the report for the general public. The booklet will be given out at peace-related events.
(Originally published on March 31, 2016)
