The Hiroshima Appeal
Commemorating the 40th Anniversary of the Establishment of Mayors for Peace
On the occasion of its 10th General Conference on October 19-20, 2022, we, representatives ofMayors for Peace member cities, engaged in dynamic discussions on the theme “Creating a
Peaceful, Nuclear-Weapon-Free World: Cultivating a Culture of Peace in Civil Society,” an eventthat also commemorated the 40th anniversary of the establishment of Mayors for Peace.
In August 1945, atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the lives of over
210,000 people were ruthlessly stolen by the end of that year. Those who barely managed tosurvive were left with deep psychological and physical wounds that have yet to heal even today,
77 years later.
In June 1982, during the 2nd UN Special Session on Disarmament, then-Mayor Araki ofHiroshima established Mayors for Peace, calling on the cities of the world to transcend national
borders and join in solidarity to forge a path toward the abolition of nuclear weapons. Since thenwe have made steady progress on our path, and in our 40th year, membership in our non-partisaninternational NGO has now grown to 8,213 member cities in 166 countries and regions around theworld.
In addition to our long-standing objectives to forge a path toward our goal of realizing lastingworld peace, namely, Realize a world without nuclear weapons and Realize safe and resilient cities,
in July 2021, we added a third objective, Promote the culture of peace, when we adopted the Vision
for Peaceful Transformation to a Sustainable World (PX Vision for short).
The first objective, Realize a world without nuclear weapons, has been set forth with the intentionof striving for the total global abolition and elimination of nuclear weapons as cities and theircitizens remain their targets and taking into consideration the catastrophic environmental andeconomic consequences on a global scale of the use of those weapons.
The second objective, Realize safe and resilient cities, means that we recognize that certain global
trends in international security, the environment, development, poverty, and the economy haveprofound effects upon cities everywhere and, if unaddressed, threaten the peaceful coexistence—
if not the very existence—of the human race. To meet these challenges, we resolve to advancebasic human needs and sustainable development.
To accomplish these objectives, it is imperative to cultivate peace consciousness and cause theculture of peace to take root in civil society. To that end, we have newly included Promote theculture of peace as our third objective.

1

Since the Russian attack against Ukraine, this armed conflict has led to a deterioration ofinternational peace and security, jeopardizing the shared values of international society. The world
has witnessed new threats to use nuclear weapons in this armed conflict, raising the risk of nuclear
war to the highest level. In addition, the dangerous theory of nuclear deterrence, which attempts
to justify the existence of such weapons, has gained further momentum. Moreover, possessor states
continue to modernize their nuclear forces, diverting vast economic and technical resources awayfrom meeting the pressing needs of sustainable development everywhere.
Amid such circumstances, at the First Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition ofNuclear Weapons (TPNW) held in June, the Vienna Declaration and Vienna Action Plan wereadopted. These documents reaffirm the inhumanity of nuclear weapons, unequivocally condemn
any threat of use of such weapons, and call for an increase in the number of ratifying states, as wellas improvement and enrichment of victim assistance provision. Above all else, we heartily
welcome that these documents reaffirm the compatibility and complementarity of the TPNW with
the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
In contrast, at the 10th NPT Review Conference held in August, negotiations broke down, withmany non-nuclear-weapon states taking note of the failure of the nuclear-weapon states to meettheir disarmament obligations. The Conference came to an end, failing to reach an agreement toadopt the draft of the Final Document, which stated that a recognition of the inhumaneconsequences of the use of nuclear weapons must be the foundation for nuclear disarmament. This
negative outcome only serves to further hinder progress toward nuclear disarmament and rejects
the hibakusha’s wish for the abolition of nuclear weapons.
Despite 40 years of persistent appeal by Mayors for Peace to pave the way toward the totalelimination of nuclear weapons, we have still yet to see the formation of a solid international public
opinion that will lead to realizing a peaceful world free of nuclear weapons. It is our unshakableconviction that the only absolute viable measure for humanity to take against repeated threats ofnuclear weapons is their total elimination. Given this, Mayors for Peace will prompt the UN andnational governments, especially nuclear-armed states and their allies, to take immediate action
and urge policymakers to effect policy changes for the abolition of nuclear weapons.
In doing so, however, while making efforts to lead the will of the public is one possible approach,
we believe it is of the utmost importance rather to engage members of civil society, especially theyounger generation—the driving force of the future. We will strive to create an environment inwhich they, in deep recognition of the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of the use of
nuclear weapons, raise peace awareness and prompt leaders to correct their policies in order toabolish nuclear weapons. To that end, we will work even harder to promote a deep-rooted cultureof peace in civil society by means such as fostering youth leadership for future peace activities.
2

In response to the unfolding international situation, we hereby strongly appeal to the UN and allnational governments to take the following actions at present to lower rising international tension
and reduce the risk of the use of nuclear weapons: Share in the hibakusha’s earnest wish for peace and work for nuclear disarmament that willencompass the swift global abolition and elimination of all nuclear weapons. We especiallyappeal to nuclear-weapon states to take immediate action to fulfill and complete their NPT
obligations, as well as agreements in the past Review Conferences.
 Break away from the theory of nuclear deterrence, ratify the TPNW, and increase efforts topursue the total elimination of nuclear weapons, and progress on general and complete
disarmament.
 Bring “Disarmament and Cities” forward as a topic for discussion at the UN General
Assembly, since cities and their citizens must never again be targets of nuclear weapons.
 Visit the atomic-bombed cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and promote initiatives to convey
to the world the realities of atomic bombings to make the experience of the atomic bombingsa shared global experience as we approach the time when there will no longer be any
hibakusha.
 Work to solve the diverse range of issues that threaten the peaceful coexistence between thewhole of humanity to ensure the safety and security of our fellow citizens.
 Support all measures through education, advocacy, and international cooperation that
contribute to the promotion of the culture of peace, including youth education on
disarmament and non-proliferation.
With this Appeal, we reaffirm and strengthen our common commitment to achieve our agreed
goals in the service of world peace and the security and prosperity of future generations.
In commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of Mayors for Peace, we hereby
pledge to further strengthen our solidarity and continue our utmost efforts to promote
peacebuilding by cities under three objectives in the PX Vision, following our Action Plan for up
until the year 2025.
October 20, 2022
Hiroshima, Japan
10th General Conferenceof Mayors for Peace3