Japan Will Continue Sanctioning Russia While Stressing the Need for Abandoning Nuclear Weapons
Jose Nino
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Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced on January 23, 2023 that Japan will strengthen its activities with partners in the Group of Seven (G7) and countries of the Global South to continue sanctioning Russia.
“In order to make sure that the international community cooperates in response to various challenges facing the world, the G7 will unite and strengthen its interaction with the so-called Global South. To that end, we will work together to overcome the energy and food crisis in the global economy. In addition, we will actively promote sanctions against Russia and support for Ukraine,” he said during an address to the lower house of the Japanese Diet (parliament).
While giving a speech about Japan’s G7 chairmanship, Kishida highlighted at the Hiroshima summit slated for May, Japan plans to demonstrate its commitment to spearhead international efforts to rid the world of nuclear weapons.
Japan is the current chair of the G7. By hosting the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan is invoking major historical symbolism. Hiroshima was previously nuked by the United States on August 9, 1945. In holding the G7 summit in this Japanese city, Japan is sending a strong message worldwide — abandon nuclear weapons.
While a nuke free world is admirable, the cat is out of the bag as far as nuclear technology is concerned. There’s no way nuclear weapons get phased out. What the world really needs is sober leadership that is able to navigate the harsh waters of multipolarity deftly and not fall for the siren song of neoliberal/neoconservative crusading.
Realism and restraint is the only way to promote world peace in these troubling times.
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