Peace Action Statement – Obama Must Not Go to Hiroshima Empty Handed

For Immediate Release:  May 10, 2016

Contacts: Paul Kawika Martin, Peace Action, 951-217-7285 cell, pmartin@peace-action.org

Kevin Martin, Peace Action, 301-537-8244 cell, kmartin@peace-action.org

Washington, DC — May 10, 2016 — After the announcement that President Obama plans to be the first sitting President to visit Hiroshima, Japan during next months’ G7 Summit, Kevin Martin, the president of Peace Action (the largest peace group in the U.S. founded on abolishing nuclear weapons) who has been to the city three times, made the following statement:

“It’s time for a U.S. President to visit Hiroshima’s Peace Park in Japan to honor those who died during the atomic bombing and to affirm the goal of a nuclear weapons free world.  At this point, it’s not enough to repeat the words Obama has said several times since his historic Prague speech calling for the abolishment of nuclear weapons.  Obama must announce actions he will take in the his remaining months as President that will actually bring the world closer to being free of nuclear weapons.”

“There are distinct steps the President could announce in Hiroshima that will show the world that his words of a nuclear weapons free world aren’t hollow.  Reduce the number of nuclear warheads in reserve, or strategic warheads, or both.  Remove nuclear weapons from ‘hair-trigger alert,’ which allows weapons to be launched within minutes and increasing the chances of error.  Cancel the Long Range Stand Off nuclear cruise missile (LRSO) or other parts of the one trillion dollars the U.S. plans to spend to overhaul nuclear weapons and their delivery systems.”

“Obama will look insincere if his words espouse ridding the world of nuclear weapons while at the same time his administration continues its plan to spend a trillion dollars over thirty years to upgrade nuclear weapons.”

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