Mayors for Peace Joint Appeal

January 20, 2026, https://www.mayorsforpeace.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/file-2601-MfP_Joint-Appeal_January-2026_E.pdf
The milestone year of 2025—marking 80 years since the end of World War II and the atomic
bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the first use of nuclear weapons in human history—has come
to a close, and a new year, 2026, has begun. Over the past year, Mayors for Peace undertook a wide
range of peace initiatives. In particular, in August, the 11th General Conference of Mayors for Peace
was convened in Nagasaki City, where member cities from around the world engaged in extensive
discussions and renewed their shared determination to achieve a world without nuclear weapons.

Yet today, as power struggles over territory and economic influence initiated by nuclear-armed major
powers intensify, the global situation is growing ever more precarious. Distrust among states is
deepening, regional tensions are worsening in Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, and Asia, and
armed conflicts continue to spread, claiming the lives of countless innocent civilians. Moreover, as
the long-standing taboo against the use of nuclear weapons is being seriously eroded, momentum
toward nuclear disarmament and the abolition of nuclear weapons has stagnated.

Under these circumstances, the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START Treaty)—the
only remaining nuclear disarmament and arms control treaty in force between the United States and
the Russian Federation—is set to expire in February 2026. We strongly urge both governments, which
together possess approximately 90 percent of the world’s nuclear warheads, to continue to honor the
limits of the treaty on an agreed basis and to demonstrate commendable leadership by advancing
nuclear disarmament. At the same time, we are gravely concerned that the collapse of this significant
arms control framework between the world’s nuclear superpowers could trigger an intensified global
arms race, including in nuclear weapons.

January 22 of this year marks five years since the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons
entered into force in 2021. This treaty, a powerful international norm that prohibits the development,
testing, use, and threat of use of nuclear weapons, is a ray of hope amid the present depressing
situation. It was born from the heartfelt appeal of the hibakusha— “No one else should suffer as we
have.” We call upon all states to acknowledge the catastrophic and inhumane consequences of nuclear
weapons and to sign and ratify the treaty without delay.

Comprising local government leaders responsible for protecting the safety and security of their
citizens, Mayors for Peace now includes approximately 8,600 member cities in 166 countries and
regions worldwide and has worked for over 40 years toward the abolition of nuclear weapons. We
urge all policymakers to make every possible diplomatic effort to pursue the peaceful resolution of
conflicts through dialogue and to take concrete steps toward the realization of a peaceful world free from nuclear weapons.

MATSUI Kazumi , Mayor of Hiroshima , President of Mayors for Peace

SUZUKI Shiro
Vice President of Mayors for Peace
Mayor of Nagasaki