Annual commemoration of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, 6th August

The annual commemoration for the victims of the Hiroshima atomic bomb took place on Saturday, 6th August 2022, the 77th anniversary of the bombing, at the memorial cherry tree in Merrion Square park, Dublin 2.

Opening the ceremony, Deputy Lord Mayor of Dublin Darcy Lonergan spoke of the need for hope in the face of a world once again threatened by the possibility of nuclear war. She praised the work of Irish diplomats over the years for their key role in bringing both the Non-Proliferation Treaty and, more recently, the treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons to reality. 

Deputy Lord Mayor Darcy Lonergan speaking at the 2022 Hiroshima commemoration ceremony.

Mr Mitsuru Kitano, the Japanese Ambassador to Ireland, noted that the current prime minister of Japan comes from Hiroshima, and cited Prime Minister Kishida's recent reiteration, at the Non-Proliferation Treaty review conference at the United Nations, of Japan's commitment to working for a world without nuclear weapons. 

The Japanese ambassador to Ireland, Mr Mitsuru Kitano, addressing the annual Hiroshima commemoration in Merrion Square. 

The President of Irish CND, Canon Patrick Comerford, was unable to attend, and Irish CND chairperson, Dr David Hutchinson Edgar, read out a short reflection by Canon Comerford in his absence. 

Traditional musician Máire Ní Bheaglaíoch contributed several pieces of reflective music on the accordion, and poet Eriko Tsugawa read her poem, "Lull in the rain", the title poem from her collection which received the Hideo Oguma Japanese Poetry Award this year. 

Irish CND Chairperson, Dr David Hutchinson Edgar, spoke of the importance of meeting the threat of nuclear weapons and the reality of violence in the world today with a strong voice for peace and hope, quoting the closing words of the Vienna Declaration, agreed at the first Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in June 2022:

"We have no illusions about the challenges and obstacles that lie before us in realizing the aims of this Treaty. But we move ahead with optimism and resolve. In the face of the catastrophic risks posed by nuclear weapons and in the interest of the very survival of humanity, we cannot do otherwise. We will take every path that is open to us, and work persistently to open those that are still closed. We will not rest until the last state has joined the Treaty, the last warhead has been dismantled and destroyed and nuclear weapons have been totally eliminated from the Earth."

At the close of the ceremony, the Deputy Lord Mayor laid a wreath at the base of the cherry tree, followed by the observation of a minute's silence in memory of all victims of atomic and nuclear bombing and testing. 

First Meeting of TPNW Member States takes place in Vienna

After entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) in January 2021, the first meeting of states parties to the treaty took place in Vienna from 21st - 23 June 2022. 

The meeting formed the climax of Nuclear Ban Week, co-ordinated by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). Events kicked off with a two-day civil society Nuclear Ban Forum, and also included meetings of Youth for TPNW, the inaugural Parliamentarians for TPNW Conference, and a conference on the humanitarian impacts of nuclear weapons organised by the Austrian government. 

Ireland's initial statement in the opening debate of the Meeting of States Parties offered a reminder of how the continued existence of nuclear weapons undermines international security: "It is our fundamental belief that nuclear weapons offer no security. And we know that no amount of resources could provide an adequate humanitarian response to nuclear weapons use. We know that nuclear rhetoric serves to heighten risks and drive escalation in conventional conflict."

As part of the meeting proceedings, Ireland co-sponsored working papers on the complementarity between the TPNW and existing disarmament and non-proliferation frameworks , and on the gender provisions of the TPNW , which highlights the disproportionate impact of nuclear detonations on women and children. Ireland also co-hosted a side event on Gender-Responsive Disarmament, along with WILPF and several other organisations. 

Addressing the Meeting on behalf of the 635 civil society organisations worldwide who are part of ICAN, Beatrice Fihn, ICAN's Executive Director, stressed the urgency of moving forward with nuclear disarmament: "the need for the treaty is clearer and more urgent than ever. Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine and its threats to use nuclear weapons have increased the already unacceptable risks of use, and brought the terrible prospect of nuclear war and the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of the use of nuclear weapons to the forefront of public consciousness. The TPNW community must act decisively against such threats, and do everything possible to prevent the use of nuclear weapons"

Irish CND welcomes the agreement and publication of an ambitious Declaration and a 50-point Action Plan on the further implementation of the TPNW as key outcomes of the Vienna meeting. 

As the concluding paragraph of the Vienna Declaration states: "We have no illusions about the challenges and obstacles that lie before us in realizing the aims of this Treaty. But we move ahead with optimism and resolve. In the face of the catastrophic risks posed by nuclear weapons and in the interest of the very survival of humanity, we cannot do otherwise. We will take every path that is open to us, and work persistently to open those that are still closed. We will not rest until the last state has joined the Treaty, the last warhead has been dismantled and destroyed and nuclear weapons have been totally eliminated from the Earth."

Irish CND statement on Russian invasion of Ukraine

Many people across not just Europe but the entire world will have reacted with shock, fear, horror and even despair at the news that Russian armed forces have launched a multi-pronged attack on Ukraine. A major act of military aggression by a nuclear-armed power raises the prospect of huge civilian casualties and a humanitarian disaster for the population of Ukraine, even without the use of nuclear weapons. The real possibility that nuclear weapons could be engaged in any ongoing conflict risks damage to human life and the environment on an unprecedented, terrifying and utterly catastrophic level.  

War represents not just an immediate failure of diplomacy, but a long-term failure of decency, imagination, maturity and civilisation on the part of the aggressors, and on the part of those who have stoked fear, suspicion, hostility and confrontation on all fronts. Violence is not an acceptable last resort in any circumstance; it is an expression of basic, de-humanised depravity that devalues and destroys human life, human rights and the fragile balance that sustains our wider environment.  

The immediate outfall of war in death and injury to both soldiers and civilians in the Ukraine is already apparent. Further impacts, as refugees flee from conflict, and infrastructure, including food supplies and health services, is destroyed, inevitably follow rapidly. The medical and humanitarian consequences of a prolonged conflict can only grow larger and more frightening by the day and by the hour.  

News of fighting in the area around the crippled and still-dangerous Chernobyl nuclear power plant is chilling. Today, Ukraine has four nuclear power plants with 15 reactors, which together generate up to 50% of the country's electricity supply. An accidental or deliberate strike on any of these facilities could release radioactive materials on a scale far larger than that of the Chernobyl disaster in 1986. Damage to the electricity grid itself, or failure of back-up systems, could likewise result in a devastating nuclear meltdown at any of these locations. Any such nuclear catastrophe, whether accidental or through deliberate weaponisation of nuclear infrastructure, would have far-reaching effects well beyond the borders of Ukraine or Russia.  

Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated in recent days, "No matter who tries to stand in our way… Russia will respond immediately, and the consequences will be such as you have never seen in your entire history." While his statement does not directly reference nuclear weapons, it is hard to avoid the conclusion that this is an implicit threat to launch a nuclear attack, either against Ukraine or other countries which he perceives as an obstacle to his ambitions. President Putin was joined by Belarussian President Lukashenko to oversee military exercises involving nuclear missiles in the past week. In the coming days, Belarus, which facilitated the Russian invasion from its territory to the north-west of Ukraine, will hold a referendum which would allow Russian nuclear weapons to be based in the country. Such statements and actions reinforce the sense of foreboding that an impending nuclear escalation of the conflict is all-too-possible. The consequences for all life on earth as we know it would be unthinkable.  

Irish CND joins with our colleagues in the International Campaign for the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) in condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine and veiled threats to use nuclear weapons: "We urge the international community to strongly pressure Russia to engage in dialogue and diplomacy, to return to compliance with the UN Charter, respect international humanitarian and human rights law and join relevant treaties to reduce nuclear weapons risks, including the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons." 

Irish CND calls on the Irish government to use Ireland's influence as a neutral country and as a member of the United Nations Security Council, to take a courageous, self-determined stance to promote peace through all available and appropriate international fora.  

In June 2021, President Putin and American President Joe Biden issued a joint statement reaffirming that a "nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought." Less than a year later, the world finds itself facing a real and terrifying threat that a nuclear war could indeed be close at hand. We urge nuclear-armed states, whatever their role in the present conflict, to renounce their horrific potential for mass destruction and abolish their nuclear arsenals. We urge European states hosting American nuclear weapons to cease these arrangements immediately. We urge all states, nuclear-armed and non-nuclear-armed, to sign and ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which entered into force just over a year ago, and provides a clear pathway for a nuclear-weapons-free world.  

Irish CND acknowledges with gratitude the use of briefing materials provided by our colleagues in the International Campaign for the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons, International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and Beyond Nuclear International in the preparation of this statement.