Peace Boat initiatives at the second Nuclear Ban Treaty Meeting of States Parties, 2023

The Second Meeting of States Parties took place place the week of November 27 - December 1, 2023 in the Trusteeship Council at United Nations Headquarters in New York, with Mexico serving as President. Peace Boat attended the Meeting, together with other partners from the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), with a particular focus on amplifying the voices of people and communities impacted by nuclear weapons, and linking activities of Japanese campaigners and experts to global movements. With 92 countries participating as states parties or observers, the Meeting successfully concluded on December 1. Results included the agreement that nuclear deterrence is a significant security problem requiring urgent attention by the international community, that more research on the impacts of nuclear weapons is needed, and that the harms caused by nuclear weapons use and testing require ongoing attention.

For further information about the Meeting click here.

A full listing of relevant events, both in New York and online, can be seen on ICAN's homepage here.

Peace Boat Working Paper and Statement

Peace Boat submitted a Working Paper to the 2MSP, on the topic of a victim-centered approach for international cooperation on Articles 6 and 7.
The text can be viewed online here (PDF). A statement was also made to the 2MSP on the same theme, presented by Watanabe Rika, and available online here.

Peace Boat organized events

Disarmament and Peacebuilding in Northeast Asia: Opportunities and Recommendations for the TPNW
November 29, 2023 at 3:00pm - 4:30pm Eastern Time (US & Canada)
Conference Room A, UN Headquarters

Materials from this event will be uploaded online shortly and linked to from this page.

As military tensions in Northeast Asia remain high, confrontations between nuclear-weapon-states are intensifying, and the Korean Peninsula, which marked the 70th anniversary of the armistice agreement of the Korean War this year, remains in a severe stalemate, with all channels of communication cut and hostilities continuing. The danger of nuclear war is deepening. Meanwhile, Mongolia - the only TPNW state party in the region - continues to play a vital role for peace and security, with its decades long nuclear-weapon-free status and support for regional confidence-building measures.

This event was co-hosted by Japanese, Korean and Mongolian civil society organisations to examine opportunities and implications for the TPNW in Northeast Asia. These perspectives included the issue of denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, the TPNW’s connections to Mongolia’s single-state nuclear weapon free status, and voices of Korean and Japanese Hibakusha in relation to victim assistance.

Hosted by Peace Boat and co-organised with Blue Banner (Mongolia), People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy (PSPD, Korea), and the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC) Northeast Asia.

Nuclear Survivors Forum
November 30, 2023 at 2:00pm - 4pm Eastern Time (US & Canada)
Church Center for the United Nations, 777 United Nations Plz, 2nd Floor

The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) is the first comprehensive international treaty that focuses on the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons and provides for the human rights of those affected by the use and testing of nuclear weapons.

The Nuclear Survivors Forum provided a space for those people affected by nuclear weapons to gather, bond, learn, and exchange voices in order to strengthen their regional campaigns, widen their global network, and deliver their strong calls for the total elimination of nuclear weapons as well as the full recognition of their human rights and dignity.

The agenda included sharing the experiences of affected communities worldwide, Protocols for Seeking Nuclear Truth with Integrity, and the expected 2MSP outcomes and follow-up on victim assistance and environmental remediation.

The event was primarily attended by representatives of those communities affected by nuclear weapons, while also welcoming their allies and friends on the understanding that the event is primarily for the affected people.

This event was convened by ICAN in coordination with partnering organizations, including Peace Boat, the Nuclear Truth Project, ICAN Australia, PANG, Youth4TPNW, Reverse the Trend, and Nuclear Age Peace Foundation.

Linking to Japan - Online Events

In cooperation with the Japan NGO Network for Nuclear Weapons Abolition, Peace Boat co-organised daily livestream events to connect the community in Japan with discussions and actions around the 2MSP in New York. Full details and video archives of the events can be viewed in Japanese language here.

A video message on behalf of second generation Hibakusha, survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, can be viewed below.