New START Treaty ends: Hiroshima survivors warn of nuclear war
As the world enters a new phase of strategic uncertainty following the expiration of the New START Treaty, the last major nuclear arms control agreement between the United States and Russia, the voices of atomic bomb survivors in Japan have grown louder, warning of humanity's slide toward an uncontrollable catastrophe. These survivors, known in Japan as "hibakusha," have expressed deep concern that the absence of international controls could lead to a new arms race, bringing the specter of nuclear war back to the forefront.
Historical context: The collapse of the last bastions of nuclear control
The New START Treaty, originally signed in 2010, was a cornerstone of global security, binding both Washington and Moscow to strict limits on the number of deployed strategic nuclear warheads. With the treaty's expiration and the lack of a new agreement, particularly amid escalating geopolitical tensions and the Trump administration's rejection of Russian President Vladimir Putin's offer to extend the restrictions for a year, the world is now, for the first time in decades, without a legal framework to regulate the nuclear arsenals of the world's two largest powers.
The survivors' cry: "We are heading towards destruction."
In this tense context, the voice of Terumi Tanaka, co-chair of the Nihon Hidankyō organization, which represents survivors of the two atomic bombings and whose efforts culminated in winning the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize, stood out. At a moving press conference, Tanaka said, "Given the current situation, I have a feeling that in the not-too-distant future we will witness a nuclear war and we will be headed for destruction." The 93-year-old activist pointed out that the danger lies not only in the weapons themselves, but also in the military doctrine of major powers that might see these weapons as a symbol of power and influence, describing this as a "grave mistake.".
Memory of Pain: Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Tanaka and his colleagues' concerns are rooted in the harrowing reality of August 1945, when the United States dropped two atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, killing approximately 140,000 people in the former and 74,000 in the latter, not to mention the radioactive effects that persisted for decades. This bombing, the only use of nuclear weapons in the history of warfare, forced Japan to surrender and end World War II, but it left a deep scar on human memory and a stark lesson about the devastating cost of unconventional warfare.
Fears of a three-way arms race
Current concerns extend beyond US-Russian relations to include China as a rising player in the nuclear equation. Observers and activists believe that the expiration of New START could open the door to a three-way arms race. Washington insists that any future agreement must include Beijing, while Japanese activists, such as Hideo Asano, argue that diplomatic efforts to integrate China into arms control talks remain insufficient, criticizing the lack of effective dialogue.
For its part, the Japanese government, situated in a sensitive geopolitical location in East Asia, affirmed its commitment to continuing close cooperation with the United States to establish a new arms control framework. Kei Sato, Assistant Chief Cabinet Secretary to the Japanese government, stated that Tokyo would continue its efforts to promote disarmament with the participation of major powers, including Russia and China, in an attempt to avert catastrophic scenarios for the region and the world.
