Former international leaders appeal to G7 on nuclear issue

A letter signed by over 250 former heads of state, cabinet ministers, diplomats, and scientists urged the G7 to not allow nuclear arms control talks to fall victim to the current great power confrontation. The letter, jointly organized by two nonprofits, called on the five nuclear powers on the UN Security Council to “ensure that nuclear arms control will not be made yet another victim of geopolitical competition.” The collapse of the New START, the only surviving nuclear arms control treaty between the US and Russia, would “threaten a destabilizing arms race” and make it more difficult to bring China, France, and the UK into a multilateral arrangement. The letter called on Russia and the US to “compartmentalize” the issue from their conflict over Ukraine, resume their full obligations under the treaty, and commit to “good faith negotiations” on replacing New START before it expires in 2026. It had 256 signatures from 50 different countries, including six former heads of state, 26 former foreign and defense ministers, 30 former ambassadors, and many scientists, experts, and anti-nuclear campaigners. The letter was published ahead of the G7 summit in Japan, scheduled to start on Friday. PM Fumio Kishida reportedly plans to have his guests visit his hometown of Hiroshima, which was destroyed in 1945 by a US atomic bomb.