Japan marked the 81st anniversary of the Hiroshima atomic bombing with a solemn peace ceremony, reaffirming its commitment to its long-standing non-nuclear principles. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba emphasized that the devastation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki must never be repeated. The commemoration comes as Japan simultaneously undertakes its largest defense buildup since World War II in response to growing security concerns posed by China and North Korea, highlighting the country's delicate balance between peace and national security.

August 6, 1945: Around 140,000 People Perished in Hiroshima Bombing

Japan has marked the 81st anniversary of the Hiroshima atomic bombing, with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba reaffirming the country's commitment to its long-standing non-nuclear principles.

Thousands gathered at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park to honor the victims of the world's first atomic bombing on August 6, 1945. During the ceremony, Japan pledged to continue supporting global nuclear disarmament while maintaining its commitment to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

The commemoration comes as Japan undertakes its largest military buildup since World War II, citing growing regional security challenges from China, North Korea, and closer Russia-China-North Korea cooperation. The country recently conducted its first live-fire test of a U.S.-made Tomahawk cruise missile, highlighting its expanding conventional defense capabilities.

Japan Honors Hiroshima Victims While Expanding Military Capabilities | Hiroshima Anniversary

The first committee of the United Nations General Assembly has adopted two India sponsored resolutions on nuclear disarmament which aim to reduce risk of nuclear accidents and call for a prohibition on the use of nuclear weapons.&nbsp;

The UNGA first committee deals with the issue of disarmament and works in close cooperation with the United Nations Disarmament Commission and the Geneva-based Conference on Disarmament, the other two bodies to deal with the nuclear issue.

The two resolutions adopted are: ‘Convention on the Prohibition of the Use of Nuclear Weapons’ and ‘Reducing Nuclear Danger’ under the ‘Nuclear weapons’ cluster. The adoption of resolutions, sources say shows "India’s commitment towards the goal of nuclear disarmament."

The resolution on “Convention on the Prohibition of the Use of Nuclear Weapons” was backed by a majority of UN Members and was tabled by India since 1982. It calls for Conference on Disarmament to start negotiations on an international convention prohibiting the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons under any circumstances.&nbsp;

The aim is that a universal and legally binding agreement would generate the necessary global "political will" that can lead to the total elimination of nuclear weapons.

One such treaty which has been proposed in the past is Nuclear Weapons Convention that outlaws nuclear weapons but negotiations on it are inactive at the Conference on Disarmament. Conference on Disarmament, while not a UN body, is linked with it in various ways and formed to negotiate arms control and disarmament agreements

The resolution on “Reducing Nuclear Danger” which was tabled since 1998 puts focus on "unintentional or accidental use" of nuclear weapons and underscore the need for a review of nuclear doctrines. The resolution asks for "concrete steps" to reduce such risks, including through "de-alerting and de-targeting of nuclear weapons."

The first committee of the United Nations General Assembly has adopted two India sponsored resolutions on nuclear disarmament which aim to reduce risk of nuclear accidents and call for a prohibition on the use of nuclear weapons.

The first committee of the United Nations General Assembly has adopted two India sponsored resolutions on nuclear disarmament which aim to reduce risk of nuclear accidents and call for a prohibition on the use of nuclear weapons. The UNGA first committee deals with the issue of disarmament and works in close cooperation with the United Nations Disarmament Commission and the Geneva-based Conference on Disarmament, the other two bodies to deal with the nuclear issue. The two resolutions adopted are: ‘Convention on the Prohibition of the Use of Nuclear Weapons’ and ‘Reducing Nuclear Danger’ under the ‘Nuclear weapons’ cluster. The adoption of resolutions, sources say shows "India’s commitment towards the goal of nuclear disarmament." The resolution on “Convention on the Prohibition of the Use of Nuclear Weapons” was backed by a majority of UN Members and was tabled by India since 1982. It calls for Conference on Disarmament to start negotiations on an international convention prohibiting the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons under any circumstances. The aim is that a universal and legally binding agreement would generate the necessary global "political will" that can lead to the total elimination of nuclear weapons. One such treaty which has been proposed in the past is Nuclear Weapons Convention that outlaws nuclear weapons but negotiations on it are inactive at the Conference on Disarmament. Conference on Disarmament, while not a UN body, is linked with it in various ways and formed to negotiate arms control and disarmament agreements The resolution on “Reducing Nuclear Danger” which was tabled since 1998 puts focus on "unintentional or accidental use" of nuclear weapons and underscore the need for a review of nuclear doctrines. The resolution asks for "concrete steps" to reduce such risks, including through "de-alerting and de-targeting of nuclear weapons."

UN adopts India sponsored resolutions on nuclear disarmament

Russia has confirmed that it will open talks with the US this month on extending a major nuclear disarmament treaty but warned that Washington’s&nbsp;insistence on including China&nbsp;could scuttle efforts.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov will meet in Vienna on June 22 with US envoy Marshall Billingslea to start negotiations on New START, which expires in February.

President Donald Trump has walked out on a number of international agreements but voiced a general interest in preserving New START, which obliged the United States and Russia to halve their inventories of strategic nuclear missile launchers.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/new-york-governor-andrew-cuomo-slams-trumps-claim-that-protester-fell-harder-than-was-pushed-304648" hreflang="en">New York Governor Andrew Cuomo slams Trump for his remarks on protester</a>

But the Trump administration says that a successor to New START, a Cold War legacy negotiated under Barack Obama, should bring in China -- whose nuclear arsenal is growing but remains significantly smaller than those of Russia and the United States.

Addressing the Council on Foreign Relations by videoconference, Ryabkov described the US willingness to start negotiations as "good news" but said: "The ball is on the American part of the court."

"We need to hear loudly and clearly what this administration wants, how it believes it would be possible to do something positive and not just to dismantle one arms control treaty or arrangement after another."

In Beijing, foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said China had "no intention of participating" in the talks and accused the United States of trying to "deflect responsibilities to others."

Ryabkov indicated that Russia did not oppose the US invitation to China -- an international ally of Moscow despite a complicated historical relationship -- but doubted Beijing would agree.

"My answer to a direct question on whether or not we think it would be possible to bring China to the table would be a flat and straightforward no," Ryabkov said.

"Now it depends on the US -- if the US believes it's worth continuing this dialogue with Russia or, for the US point of view, the Chinese participation is an absolute imperative that precludes (the) US from continuing a meaningful and forward-looking dialogue with Russia on arms control," he said.

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Russia has confirmed that it will open talks with the US this month on extending a major nuclear disarmament treaty but warned that Washington’s insistence on including China could scuttle efforts.

Russia has confirmed that it will open talks with the US this month on extending a major nuclear disarmament treaty but warned that Washington’s insistence on including China could scuttle efforts. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov will meet in Vienna on June 22 with US envoy Marshall Billingslea to start negotiations on New START, which expires in February. President Donald Trump has walked out on a number of international agreements but voiced a general interest in preserving New START, which obliged the United States and Russia to halve their inventories of strategic nuclear missile launchers. Also read: New York Governor Andrew Cuomo slams Trump for his remarks on protester But the Trump administration says that a successor to New START, a Cold War legacy negotiated under Barack Obama, should bring in China -- whose nuclear arsenal is growing but remains significantly smaller than those of Russia and the United States. Addressing the Council on Foreign Relations by videoconference, Ryabkov described the US willingness to start negotiations as "good news" but said: "The ball is on the American part of the court." "We need to hear loudly and clearly what this administration wants, how it believes it would be possible to do something positive and not just to dismantle one arms control treaty or arrangement after another." In Beijing, foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said China had "no intention of participating" in the talks and accused the United States of trying to "deflect responsibilities to others." Ryabkov indicated that Russia did not oppose the US invitation to China -- an international ally of Moscow despite a complicated historical relationship -- but doubted Beijing would agree. "My answer to a direct question on whether or not we think it would be possible to bring China to the table would be a flat and straightforward no," Ryabkov said. "Now it depends on the US -- if the US believes it's worth continuing this dialogue with Russia or, for the US point of view, the Chinese participation is an absolute imperative that precludes (the) US from continuing a meaningful and forward-looking dialogue with Russia on arms control," he said.

Russia to open nuclear disarmament talks with US amid China cloud

India abstained from voting as a UN General Assembly committee on Thursday adopted a resolution to launch negotiations next year on a new treaty outlawing nuclear weapons, Indian news agency PTI reported.&nbsp;

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Permanent representative of India to the Conference on Disarmament, DB Venkatesh Varma, was quoted as saying by PTI that India has been &quot;constrained&quot; to abstain on the resolution and it is &quot;not convinced&quot; that the proposed conference in 2017 &quot;can address the longstanding expectation of the international community for a comprehensive instrument on nuclear disarmament&quot;. &nbsp;

&nbsp;

&quot;India attaches the highest priority to nuclear disarmament and shares with the co-sponsors the widely felt frustration that the international community has not been able to take forward multilateral nuclear disarmament negotiations. We also share the deep concern about the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons,&quot; Varma said in the explanation of vote.

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The First Committee deals with disarmament and international security.

&nbsp;

Meanwhile, Varma said India did not participate in the open-ended working group which met in Geneva in 2016, so it reserves its position on its report and the recommendations.

&nbsp;

&quot;India has supported the commencement of negotiations in the Conference on Disarmament on a Comprehensive Nuclear Weapons Convention, which in addition to prohibition and elimination also includes verification. International verification would be essential to the global elimination of nuclear weapons, just as it has been in the case of the Chemical Weapons Convention. Progress on nuclear disarmament in the CD should remain an international priority,&quot; he was quoted as saying.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

There is no question of New Delhi joining the Non-Proliferation Treaty as a non-nuclear weapon&nbsp;state, India has asserted.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The resolution emphasises the importance of addressing issues related to nuclear weapons in a comprehensive, inclusive, interactive and constructive manner, PTI reported. &nbsp;It also decided to convene in 2017 a United Nations conference to negotiate a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons, leading towards their total elimination.

&nbsp;

&quot;This treaty won&#39;t eliminate nuclear weapons overnight. But it will establish a powerful, new international legal standard, stigmatizing nuclear weapons and compelling nations to take urgent action on disarmament,&rdquo; Beatriz Fihn, executive director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, was quoted as saying by Voice of America,&nbsp;the official external broadcasting institution of the United States.&nbsp;

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The resolution was adopted with 123 votes in favour, 38 against and 16 abstentions.

&nbsp;

Nuclear powers the United States, Russia, Israel,&nbsp;<a data-component="auto-linked-tag" data-link-name="auto-linked-tag" href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/france">France</a>&nbsp;and the United Kingdom were among those that opposed the measure, British daily, The Guardian reported.&nbsp;

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(WION with inputs from PTI)&nbsp;

The resolution was adopted with 123 votes in favour, 38 against and 16 abstentions

India abstained from voting as a UN General Assembly committee on Thursday adopted a resolution to launch negotiations next year on a new treaty outlawing nuclear weapons, Indian news agency PTI reported. Permanent representative of India to the Conference on Disarmament, DB Venkatesh Varma, was quoted as saying by PTI that India has been "constrained" to abstain on the resolution and it is "not convinced" that the proposed conference in 2017 "can address the longstanding expectation of the international community for a comprehensive instrument on nuclear disarmament". "India attaches the highest priority to nuclear disarmament and shares with the co-sponsors the widely felt frustration that the international community has not been able to take forward multilateral nuclear disarmament negotiations. We also share the deep concern about the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons," Varma said in the explanation of vote. The First Committee deals with disarmament and international security. Meanwhile, Varma said India did not participate in the open-ended working group which met in Geneva in 2016, so it reserves its position on its report and the recommendations. "India has supported the commencement of negotiations in the Conference on Disarmament on a Comprehensive Nuclear Weapons Convention, which in addition to prohibition and elimination also includes verification. International verification would be essential to the global elimination of nuclear weapons, just as it has been in the case of the Chemical Weapons Convention. Progress on nuclear disarmament in the CD should remain an international priority," he was quoted as saying. There is no question of New Delhi joining the Non-Proliferation Treaty as a non-nuclear weapon state, India has asserted. The resolution emphasises the importance of addressing issues related to nuclear weapons in a comprehensive, inclusive, interactive and constructive manner, PTI reported. It also decided to convene in 2017 a United Nations conference to negotiate a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons, leading towards their total elimination. "This treaty won't eliminate nuclear weapons overnight. But it will establish a powerful, new international legal standard, stigmatizing nuclear weapons and compelling nations to take urgent action on disarmament,” Beatriz Fihn, executive director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, was quoted as saying by Voice of America, the official external broadcasting institution of the United States. The resolution was adopted with 123 votes in favour, 38 against and 16 abstentions. Nuclear powers the United States, Russia, Israel, France and the United Kingdom were among those that opposed the measure, British daily, The Guardian reported. (WION with inputs from PTI)

India abstains from voting on nuclear weapons ban at UN

Amid escalating tensions between the two South Asian neighbours, India stressed that the nuclear proliferation linkages active today have clear &quot;Pakistan fingerprints&quot;.

The statement comes as part of India&#39;s Right of Reply to Pakistan during the UN debate on international security and disarmament.

Counsellor Siddhartha Nath representing India at the conference in Geneva said the biggest threat to peace and stability comes from active promotion of terrorism and an &quot;unbridled&quot; expansion of fissile material under the nexus between state and non-state actors.&nbsp;Islamabad had raised the Kashmir issue yet again at an October 10 session of UN First Committee, which deals with disarmament and international security.

&quot;Nuclear proliferation linkages which are today active have clear Pakistan fingerprints,&quot; he said.

Pakistan permanent representative to the conference, ambassador Tehmina Janjua asked why India had not yet responded to his government&#39;s proposal for a bilateral nuclear test ban arrangement.&nbsp;

Last month, Nawaz Sharif in his UNGA address had expressed readiness to agree on a bilateral arrangement between India and Pakistan on a nuclear test ban.&nbsp;

In a strongly worded response, India said, &quot;it is ironic that a country whose non-proliferation track record is marked by obstructionism seeks to convince the international community of its self-serving proposals.&quot;

&quot;It is a matter of record that Pakistan is singularly responsible for blocking the international disarmament agenda and the Conference on Disarmament,&quot; he said.

Nath urged the international community to stand united &quot;against those whose persistent violations increase nuclear threat and proliferation risks&quot;.

Pakistan had alleged that India conducted its first test in 1974 by &quot;diverting&quot; resources from a reactor that had been supplied for peaceful use and continued development of such weapons Pakistan&#39;s opposition.&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from agencies) 
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India said Pakistan's proposal of a nuclear test ban was ironic given its track record of blocking disarmament

Amid escalating tensions between the two South Asian neighbours, India stressed that the nuclear proliferation linkages active today have clear "Pakistan fingerprints". The statement comes as part of India's Right of Reply to Pakistan during the UN debate on international security and disarmament. Counsellor Siddhartha Nath representing India at the conference in Geneva said the biggest threat to peace and stability comes from active promotion of terrorism and an "unbridled" expansion of fissile material under the nexus between state and non-state actors. Islamabad had raised the Kashmir issue yet again at an October 10 session of UN First Committee, which deals with disarmament and international security. "Nuclear proliferation linkages which are today active have clear Pakistan fingerprints," he said. Pakistan permanent representative to the conference, ambassador Tehmina Janjua asked why India had not yet responded to his government's proposal for a bilateral nuclear test ban arrangement. Last month, Nawaz Sharif in his UNGA address had expressed readiness to agree on a bilateral arrangement between India and Pakistan on a nuclear test ban. In a strongly worded response, India said, "it is ironic that a country whose non-proliferation track record is marked by obstructionism seeks to convince the international community of its self-serving proposals." "It is a matter of record that Pakistan is singularly responsible for blocking the international disarmament agenda and the Conference on Disarmament," he said. Nath urged the international community to stand united "against those whose persistent violations increase nuclear threat and proliferation risks". Pakistan had alleged that India conducted its first test in 1974 by "diverting" resources from a reactor that had been supplied for peaceful use and continued development of such weapons Pakistan's opposition. (WION with inputs from agencies)

Pakistan's fingerprints on N-proliferation linkages, India tells UN panel

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