U.S. to send representative to take part in meeting of foreign ministers in Hiroshima
Mar. 17, 2014
by Jumpei Fujimura, Staff Writer
At a press conference held on March 14, Fumio Kishida, the Japanese foreign minister and a lawmaker from Hiroshima’s first district, announced that Rose Gottemoeller, Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security for the U.S. State Department, will take part as a guest in the Non-Proliferation and Disarmament Initiative (NPDI) Ministerial Meeting, to be held on April 11 and 12 in Hiroshima. The NPDI is comprised of 12 non-nuclear states.
The next foreign ministers’ meeting will be the eighth such gathering and the first time that a representative from a nuclear weapon state will attend. The United States responded to Japan’s call as it seeks to build momentum for the discussions on nuclear disarmament from the A-bombed city of Hiroshima.
Mr. Kishida, expected to serve as chair for the meeting, welcomed the development, saying that the participation of the United States is helpful, adding that a visit to Japan by U.S. President Barack Obama, who has spoken of realizing a world without nuclear weapons, is approaching.
Mr. Kishida expressed eagerness to “produce positive results” in anticipation of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference to be held in 2015.
Ms. Gottemoeller will join a working lunch following the foreign ministers’ meeting on the morning of April 12. After outlining the position and thoughts of President Obama, she will exchange views on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation in realistic and practical terms with the participants from the NPDI member nations.
Marty Natalegawa, the foreign minister from Indonesia and co-president of the Conference on Facilitating Entry into Force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test- Ban Treaty (CTBT), and Enrique Roman-Morey, chairman of the third session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2015 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference, scheduled for April in New York, will also join the working lunch as guests.
Mr. Kishida also announced that a “Youth Exchange Program for a World without Nuclear Weapons” will be held in conjunction with the foreign ministers’ meeting. In addition to Hiroshima teens who serve as “Youth Communicators for a World without Nuclear Weapons,” young people from NPDI member nations will have the opportunity to listen to accounts from A-bomb survivors and discuss nuclear issues. There will also be a session where they can voice their thoughts directly to the foreign ministers of the participating countries.
On March 14, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan launched a special site for the NPDI Ministerial Meeting. The site can be accessed via the ministry’s homepage.
(Originally published on March 15, 2014)
At a press conference held on March 14, Fumio Kishida, the Japanese foreign minister and a lawmaker from Hiroshima’s first district, announced that Rose Gottemoeller, Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security for the U.S. State Department, will take part as a guest in the Non-Proliferation and Disarmament Initiative (NPDI) Ministerial Meeting, to be held on April 11 and 12 in Hiroshima. The NPDI is comprised of 12 non-nuclear states.
The next foreign ministers’ meeting will be the eighth such gathering and the first time that a representative from a nuclear weapon state will attend. The United States responded to Japan’s call as it seeks to build momentum for the discussions on nuclear disarmament from the A-bombed city of Hiroshima.
Mr. Kishida, expected to serve as chair for the meeting, welcomed the development, saying that the participation of the United States is helpful, adding that a visit to Japan by U.S. President Barack Obama, who has spoken of realizing a world without nuclear weapons, is approaching.
Mr. Kishida expressed eagerness to “produce positive results” in anticipation of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference to be held in 2015.
Ms. Gottemoeller will join a working lunch following the foreign ministers’ meeting on the morning of April 12. After outlining the position and thoughts of President Obama, she will exchange views on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation in realistic and practical terms with the participants from the NPDI member nations.
Marty Natalegawa, the foreign minister from Indonesia and co-president of the Conference on Facilitating Entry into Force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test- Ban Treaty (CTBT), and Enrique Roman-Morey, chairman of the third session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2015 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference, scheduled for April in New York, will also join the working lunch as guests.
Mr. Kishida also announced that a “Youth Exchange Program for a World without Nuclear Weapons” will be held in conjunction with the foreign ministers’ meeting. In addition to Hiroshima teens who serve as “Youth Communicators for a World without Nuclear Weapons,” young people from NPDI member nations will have the opportunity to listen to accounts from A-bomb survivors and discuss nuclear issues. There will also be a session where they can voice their thoughts directly to the foreign ministers of the participating countries.
On March 14, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan launched a special site for the NPDI Ministerial Meeting. The site can be accessed via the ministry’s homepage.
(Originally published on March 15, 2014)
