Crisis in Ukraine and Calls for “No First Use” of Nuclear Weapons Policy
SGI President issues statement on the Ukraine crisis and No First Use of nuclear weapons
On January 11, 2023, SGI President Daisaku Ikeda issued a statement decrying the cruelty and misery of war, calling for action aimed at restoring peace in Ukraine and steps to lessen the risk of the use of nuclear weapons.
Mr. Ikeda, 95, calls for the urgent holding
of a meeting under UN auspices among the foreign ministers of Russia, Ukraine
and other key countries to reach agreement on a cessation of hostilities. With
the risk of nuclear weapons use at its highest since the Cold War, he also
urges states to pledge “No First Use” of nuclear weapons to avoid catastrophe,
defuse the climate of mutual fear and promote nuclear disarmament.
Throughout Ukraine’s history, the sunflower has served as a symbol of peace.
Mr. Ikeda observes that during the Cold War, “Having experienced first-hand the terror of teetering on the brink of nuclear war, the people of that time brought forth historic powers of imagination and creativity,” resulting in groundbreaking initiatives such as the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) between the US and the Soviet Union. He urges that all countries and peoples must come together to once again unleash such creative powers.
He calls for action that harnesses the synergistic effects of the NPT and the TPNW (Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons) toward the realization of a world free from nuclear weapons.
