UN chief Ban Ki-moon calls for total nuclear weapon ban during visit to Japan. Bringing with him a message of support for nuclear disarmament, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visited the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which had been devastated in 1945 nuclear attacks, and he toured the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum where he spoke with survivors of that time. He also became the first UN secretary-general to attend the annual Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony held this year on Friday, August 6, commemorating those who lost their lives 65 years ago. Other first-time representation at the internationally attended ceremony included the United States, France and the United Kingdom. With more than 400,000 lives lost to the 1945 nuclear attack, Secretary-General Ban urged for all nations to be rid of nuclear weapons as he addressed the Peace Memorial Ceremony and stated, "Together, we are on a journey from ground zero to Global Zero -- a world free of weapons of mass destruction. That is the only path to a safer world."
We share and respectfully commend your peaceful vision, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. May all nations awaken to the unnecessary devastations of war and step toward the expansion of peace and companionship to all corners of the world.
