China calls on Japan to stay true to nuclear disarmament commitment
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Beijing expresses doubts over Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's pledge to commit to building a world free of nuclear weapons.
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China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Wang Wenbin speaks during a daily briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing, Friday, July 24, 2020 (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
China urged Japan on Monday to remain true to its commitment related to building a world free of nuclear weapons, as Beijing had doubts about Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's pledge to do so on the 77th anniversary of Hiroshima's atomic bombing.
Read: Nuclear weapons number continues to increase globally: SIPRI
Beijing said that despite its pledge, the only country in the world that suffered nuclear attacks in war has been sheltered under the US nuclear umbrella and is opposed to Washington relinquishing the no-first-use policy regarding its nuclear weapons.
"Some (Japanese) politicians even claim to have nuclear sharing with the U.S. side, claiming that the U.S. deployment of nuclear weapons (in Japan) should not be a taboo," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said in a press conference held in Beijing.
He maintained that the Japanese government "connived at such discussions" by politicians, casting doubt on Kishida's newest vow to nuclear disarmament made on Saturday.
Wang also pointed out Japan is "talking about the (atomic) bombing without any deep reflection about the history of aggression," referring to the damage inflicted by Japan's militarism on neighboring countries.
A few days ago, the division director of the Arms Control Department of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Ding Tongbing, said that China is urging the United States to take responsibility as a nuclear power by drastically reducing its nuclear arsenal.
At the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) Review Conference, Ding emphasized that the United States possessed a massive arsenal of nuclear weapons, which posed a threat to international peace and security.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said last Monday that there could never be any winners in a nuclear war and it should never be "unleashed".
The comment was issued in a letter to participants of a conference on the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) in which Putin insisted that Russia remained faithful to the treaty's "letter and spirit."
World leaders are gathering in New York for the first review of the UN Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) since nuclear weapons became illegal under international law in 2021. All 191 NPT member states are under intense pressure to condemn recent threats to use nuclear weapons, the expansion, and modernization of nuclear arsenals by all nuclear-armed states, and the increased role of nuclear weapons in security doctrines.
The Tenth Review Conference (RevCon) of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) is being held in New York from August 1 to 26, 2022.
