Japan reaffirms anti-nuclear commitment at Stockholm Initiative meeting

Tokyo, Dec 15 (EFE).- Japan expressed “deep concern” for North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons and pledged to “continuously contribute” to the Stockholm Initiative for Nuclear Disarmament on Wednesday, hours after a meeting to reinforce the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Kiyoshi Odawara virtually attended the fifth ministerial meeting of the Initiative with representatives of 16 countries, and which was co-chaired by the foreign ministers of Sweden and Germany, Ann Linde and Annalena Baerbock, respectively.

When explaining the security environment in East Asia during the meeting, Odawara reiterated Japan’s “deep concern on North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons and missiles and emphasized the importance of full implementation of relevant UN Security Council resolutions,” the Japanese foreign ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

Japan also “emphasized the importance of seeking concrete measures which can serve as a common ground to work together, while addressing both real security threats and humanitarian consequences of the use of nuclear weapons,” according to the ministry.

Participants shared their views on cooperating further in their efforts leading up to the 10th NPT Review Conference, which will take place over Jan. 4-28.

“The upcoming NPT Review Conference – two years after the Treaty’s 50th anniversary – is a moment to demonstrate political leadership, honor commitments and achievements made under the Treaty, and set ourselves on a decisive path towards a world free of nuclear weapons, in the interest of preserving humanity,” the group said in a joint statement.

Present at the meeting were ministers from Argentina, Canada, Ethiopia, Finland, Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the Republic of Korea, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

Odawara also expressed the need to “strengthen” the NPT as a “cornerstone” of global disarmament and non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.

The Stockholm Initiative was launched in 2019 and aims to establish measures to achieve full compliance with the NPT. EFE

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