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Hiroshima forum: Business’ role for international peacecal intervention.
It also is basically
impossible forJapan to provide
all of its own
energy and food,and although it
is necessary to increase self-sufficiency, it
is also important to increase resilience so
as not to be unduly affected by external
influences. He said that while risks cannot
be reduced to zero, it is important to consider measures to deal with them.

ESG/SGDs
EMI MAEDA
CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The 2023 Hiroshima Business Forum for
Global Peace was a multifaceted event for
discussing the contribution of business topeace, held ahead of the Group of Seven’s
summit in Hiroshima. Economic experts
exchanged their views on world peace
under the theme of contributing to peace
through the international society and economy in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of
Ukraine.
The April 20 conference, organized by
the Hiroshima Organization for Global
Peace (HOPe) and held at the Hilton Hiroshima, was also livestreamed for a remoteaudience. The conference began with
opening addresses by Hiroshima prefectural Gov. Hidehiko Yuzaki and Takeshi
Niinami, the chief executive officer at
Suntory Holdings Ltd.
The keynote speaker was Serhii Plokhy,
the Mykhailo Hrushevsky professor of
Ukrainian history and director of Ukrainian research at Harvard University, who
discussed historical aspects of the conflictand its impact on the world. Two sessions
took place, focused on the themes “Theimportance of information for peace andthe role of information companies” and“How to tackle the weaponization of theeconomics (energy, food, etc.).”Two years from now will mark the 80th
anniversaries of the Hiroshima atomic
bombing and the end of World War II. As
we approach the 100th anniversary of theend of the war, the power of business tocreate a sustainable world will grow evenmore important. “For this purpose, it isessential for the business community towork together,” said Yuzaki.
Niinami said that nearly 30 years havepassed since the end of the Cold War, andwe have benefited greatly from the optimism of globalism. However, the Russian
invasion of Ukraine has set off a chain
reaction of conflicts between nations that
we thought were in the past. He said: “Weare by no means helpless. We hope tolearn what we can do at conferences likethis and that our business colleagues will
work together in taking action.”

Challenges for the 21st century
In the keynote speech, the internationallyrenowned Plokhy unraveled the historicalperspective of what is happening in theworld today, and what could happen. He
said history provides not only insight into
the past, but also a way to understandwhat is happening now, think about possible future scenarios, and act accordingly.
The world is now in a very difficult
situation. Although nuclear weapons
remained an important element in international relations after the Cold War, Russian’s invasion of Ukraine has reminded
us anew of the threat they pose.
Plokhy visited the Hiroshima Peace
Memorial Park before the meeting, andsaid that seeing the beauty of the park
and the collapsed buildings from thebombing, he felt strongly that such a tragedy should never be repeated.
Dubbed “Putin’s War,” the invasion of
Ukraine is the largest military conflict inEurope since World War II. For the firsttime in history, war has reached nuclear
sites and the vicinity of nuclear power
plants, from Chernobyl to Zaporizhzhia,‘Peace is like the North Star’

The speakers of the first panel session “The importance of information for peace and the role ofinformation companies,” where they discuss about the roles that various types of informationcompanies should play to contribute to peace HOPE

Opening remarks were given by Hiroshima prefecture governor, Hidehiko Yuzaki . “It is essential
for the business community to work together,” said Yuzaki HOPE

Serhii Plokhy, professor of history, director at the Ukranian reaserch insitute, Harvard University
gave the keynote speech. HOPE

John V. Roos, a founding partner of Geodesic Capital Inc. and former U.S. ambassador to Japan,
spoke about the role of American companies and the importance of transparency. HOPE

the largest nuclear power plant in Europe.
The war’s origins precede 2022, unfolding
dramatically and tragically over a decade,with Russian President Vladimir Putin at
the center, Plokhy said.
Putin said the reason for the invasion of
Ukraine was the expansion of the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization into Eastern
Europe, but according to Plokhy, that is
not the main objective.
The most important point, he said, is tobe found in the long history of the region.
Putin has long insisted that Ukrainians
and Russians are “historically one” anddoes not recognize Ukraine as an independent country. His view of history led
to this war. Plokhy said it will leave Russia weaker militarily, economically andpolitically.
“To ensure that nuclear wars and conflicts are not repeated in the world tocome, now is the time to look back at
history and consider not only what we
did wrong, but also what we did right.
Business leaders have a role to play. And
I am confident that in the new era, thatrole will be as positive as it was during theCold War,” he concluded.

accountability, leading to the promotion
and building of trust. “Today’s information technology is in uncharted territory.
The public and private sectors must cometogether to address the incredible challenges facing the world, and to work on
events that will be catalysts for making
them happen,” he said.
Roos also said that like-minded countries need to come up with guidelines
to promote transparency. When likeminded countries work together to create rules for consensus, Nishida said, thepower of each country plays an important role. That power refers to economic,
demographic, and security forces. In
response to Nishida’s question about
whether Japan has that power, Roos said,“I believe Japan does. Japan is the third
biggest economy in the world. In terms ofdoes Japan have that level of respect andpower to influence the outcome on someof these matters, I believe absolutely
Japan should exercise that power.”

Information for peace

In the first session, Jun Murai, a distinguished professor at Keio University, John
V. Roos, a founding partner of Geodesic
Capital Inc. and former U.S. ambassador
to Japan, and Masaru Seo, the president

Top left: Yoshimitsu Kaji, the chairman and chief sustainable development officer of Cinnamon AI,
Takeshi Niinami, the chief executive officer at Suntory Holdings Ltd., and Hiroshima Governor
Hidehiko Yuzaki. Top right: Jun Murai, distinguished professor at Keio University. Bottom left:
Kohey Takashima from Oisix ra Daichi Inc. Bottom right: Ryosuke Nishida, associate professor at
the institute of liberal arts, TokyoTech. HOPE

of SlowNews Inc., discussed disinformation and its countermeasures, and the roleof business in contributing to peace byaddressing global challenges.
Correct information is critical in bothpeacetime — business, government, daily
life — and emergencies. “The issue of cognitive warfare and hybrid warfare, which
has been recognized as a major challenge around the world, including Japan,
in the context of Russia’s military beliefs
in Ukraine, is proving to be extremely
difficult to address,” said moderator Ryosuke Nishida, an associate professor in
the Institute for Liberal Arts at the Tokyo
Institute of Technology.
Seo spoke about the media and social
media. When the invasion of Ukraine
began, fake information about Russian
fighter jets flying over Kyiv was spread by
Russia on Twitter and Facebook.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy responded immediately, using
Facebook and YouTube to show that he
was in Kyiv and say that he would defend
Ukraine. Social networks have helped toencourage Ukrainians and shape the current situation, with a great impact on thewar, Seo said.
Elsewhere, even without the divisive
effects of the conflict in Ukraine, wewould still be suffering from a progressively ailing information space due to anumber of factors: disinformation andrestrictions on free speech in totalitarian states, echo chambers and fake newsarising from excessive reliance on giant IT
platforms, and the weakening of journalism due to the decline of the mass media’s
business model. Seo said the media andgovernments need to be more transparent, and the public needs to increase its
media literacy.
Murai spoke about technical aspects
and policy issues related to information
technology. He said the internet both
has a disinformation problem and has
become essential infrastructure. Distinguishing between content and how technology promotes or inhibits it will help
clarify problems and solutions with theinternet, and help to change the infrastructure so that reliable opinions gain
more trust and support. He said such discussions should be encouraged among
the G7 nations and at the Internet Governance Forum.
Roos spoke about the role of American companies and the importance oftransparency. He praised the incredible
potential of technology for the information society, but noted that there arealso downsides and risks, including misinformation and disinformation about
Ukraine, nativism, cyberattacks and internet vulnerabilities. He suggested that it isimportant to promote transparency andWeaponization of economics

In the second session, discussions were
held on the theme of how to face theweaponization of economics in areas
such as energy and food. Nobu Koshiba,
the chairman emeritus of JSR Corp. andvice chairman of the Japan Association of
Corporate Executives, Kazuto Suzuki, aprofessor in the Graduate School of Public
Policy at University of Tokyo and directorof the Institute of Geoeconomics at theInternational House of Japan, and Sumiko
Takeuchi, member of the board of directors of the International Environment andEconomy Institute and co-president of U3
Innovations LLC, participated as panelists,
with Kohey Takashima, president of Oisix
ra Daichi Co. Ltd. and vice chairman of theJapan Association of Corporate Executives, serving as moderator.
Up until about five years ago, it was
believed that economic interdependenceis necessary to maintain peace, but theweaponization of such interdependence
is now increasing as conflicts and competition among nations intensify. Takashima
said the entire world is at a tipping point.
Koshiba explained the weaponizationof advanced information technology.
Using the Taiwan Strait issue as an example, he said there is a possibility of Taiwan
being annexed by China, militarily or nonmilitarily. If this happened, companies inJapan, the U.S. and the Netherlands wouldstop supplying Taiwan Semiconductor
Manufacturing Co., which produces morethan 90% of the world’s advanced logic
semiconductors, in accordance with U.S.
export regulations. TSMC’s production
would stop in about two months; without TSMC’s chips, one-third of the world’s
manufacturing industry would come to a

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halt and at least ¥800 trillion ($6 trillion)
of GDP would be lost.
The most affected would be advanced
societies that rely heavily on advanced
semiconductors. Those countries therefore are all scrambling to achieve a securesupply of semiconductors, Koshiba
explained. “As we can see from the war
in Ukraine, the international community
will not help us if we do not have the will
and the actions to protect our own countries,” Koshiba said.
“We are in the midst of a transition froma traditional efficiency-oriented society
to one in which national policies are created and implemented by weighing thesacrifices of today against the risks of the
future. For businesspeople, both large andsmall companies will certainly be affected.
At this time of transition, I would like totell businesspeople that it is better to postpone major decisions as long as possible.”In the field of energy, the need torespond to the climate crisis is further
complicated by security concerns, exacerbated by the war in Ukraine. A country like Russia that is sanctioned can use
its energy supplies as a weapon, and acountry whose energy sources are cut
off suffers a lot. Therefore, it is necessary
to increase self-sufficiency, but Japan’s
self-sufficiency rate is extremely low. In
addition, countries that have been dependent on Russian natural gas will begin tocompete for liquefied natural gas fromother countries, and LNG is also likely to
become an important economic weapon,
Takeuchi explained.
Takeuchi also said that the Ukraine crisis has brought great attention to energy
conservation in the world. With words
like “carbon neutral” in the spotlight, people tend to think that energy conservation is a technology that reduces CO2, butdoes not reduce CO2 to zero. However, it
can be implemented immediately, evenin a difficult time like now, and can reduce
CO2, fuel, and consumption. The fact thatJapanese air conditioners and heat-pumpwater heaters are selling well in Europe
and other regions indicates that there arehigh expectations for Japan’s energy conservation technology, Takeuchi said.
Russia’s blocking of Ukraine’s grain
exports has resulted in skyrocketing
prices. What is happening now in thefield of food is not a shortage problem
as such but a price problem, Takashima
said. Suzuki spoke about the effects offree trade in the food sector and the side
effects of protectionist measures. Geographically, we are inevitably interdependent, and free trade has been a tool forpeace.
But free trade also has side effects. It canwiden the gap between rich and poor, andthis gap cannot be closed without politi-

The forum concluded with a closing
review by Suntory Holdings’ Niinami, Gov.
Yuzaki and Yoshimitsu Kaji, the chairman
and chief sustainable development officerof Cinnamon AI, a senior principal at Hitachi Ltd.’s Lumada Innovation Hub and a
Kamakura smart city architect.
The world now faces various complex
issues and problems, such as the threat
to peace posed by Russia’s invasion of
Ukraine and the increasingly serious U.S.China issues. Niinami said global inflation
is likely to continue, and he asked theHiroshima audience to think about what
Japan can do and what kind of world weshould strive for.
The era of leadership by one country, the United States, to push the worldstrongly in the same direction is over. In
such an environment, he said, it is important for countries that share the same values, such as democracy, to come together
and work toward the realization of apeaceful, economically viable and prosperous society.
Touching on technology and media, hesaid, “As technology develops, it is important that democracy, which we havealways felt is important, is not driven into
populism by fake news.” He also spoke
about the importance of relations withneighboring countries, saying that even if
we don’t share the same aspirations, it isimportant for the business community to
be connected.
The post-Cold War world order has
been in place for a long time, but now theworld is changing, and Yuzaki said we arein a period of transformation in terms ofwhat kind of society we will become. He
spoke of Hiroshima as being in a phase ofdevelopment changing society as a whole,with the advance of digitalization and its
further acceleration through generative
artificial intelligence. He spoke of the needto seriously consider how to secure thefuture, both technologically and in theareas of food and energy, in a society thathas been stable until now.
Niinami said there are three axes in theworld today. The first is a group of democracies, led by the U.S. The second is the
Global South, which must first achieve its
own growth. The third is countries suchas Iran and North Korea, led by China andRussia. The primary power linking theseaxes since the end of the Cold War is theUnited States. “We must not change theAmerican values that we all share,” hesaid. In this context, he said, Japan should
strengthen its relations with the Global
South in order to achieve a peaceful society, continuing its long efforts to deepen
its relations and build trust with themwith the flexibility that is unique to Japan.
This is where the role of the business
community comes into play. He said it ismeant to deliver this message from Hiroshima, where the most tragic event in history took place.
Yuzaki also spoke about the significance of the G7 meeting being held in
Hiroshima at a time when peace is being
challenged. “Human power can be used
for destruction, and Hiroshima is a placethat represents that threat,” he said.
“Peace brings prosperity. It is the power ofthe economy that creates this prosperity,and I would like to send such a message
from Hiroshima to the world.”
Wrapping up the 2023 Hiroshima Business Forum for Global Peace, Kaji said:“One of our participants in the previous
forum said: ‘Peace is like the North Star. It
exists out there in the cosmos, but no one
knows how to get there.
And we don’t know if we will be able toreach it in our lifetime. But when we go
there, we can be sure that we are on theright path.’ I know it will be a long journeywith all of you, but as we move toward
2025, we will do our best to make thisconference even more impactful and tosend a message of peace from Hiroshima.”
Aiming to highlight issues
related to a sustainable society, The Japan Times gave
its support to this event by
becoming a media sponsor.