Reference News Network, December 20 report. According to Kyodo News, on December 19, the opposition parties demanded the government and ruling party to immediately remove a person in the Prime Minister's Office responsible for security policy after he made remarks advocating the possession of nuclear weapons. Former Defense Minister Nakayama Motohisa of the Liberal Democratic Party also mentioned the necessity of dismissing him. Chief Cabinet Secretary Kiwada Toshinori stated at a press conference that "the government adheres to the three non-nuclear principles and considers them as policy guidelines," trying to calm the situation. When asked about the fate of the person who made the remarks, Kiwada avoided answering.

This person in the Prime Minister's Office is someone who provides advice on security policy to Prime Minister Takahashi Sanae. At a press conference, the leader of the Constitutional Democratic Party, Hashimoto Katsuhiko, pointed out that "it is not good for such a person to be around the Prime Minister" and said it would be appropriate to have him resign as soon as possible.

The leader of the Komeito Party, Saito Hideo, told the media: "This is a serious statement that should lead to his dismissal." The chairman of the Communist Party, Tamura Tomoko, also said "it is absolutely unacceptable" and demanded that the speaker be dismissed and the government abide by the three non-nuclear principles.

Nakayama told the media in the Diet: "The Prime Minister should choose a more reliable person to avoid being called a 'Friend Cabinet.'" Former Foreign Minister Iwasa Tokuji also criticized the remarks, saying that they were "a cold shower during Japan's efforts to promote nuclear disarmament," noting that this year marks the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Japan.

The Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, which won the Nobel Peace Prize last year, issued a protest statement on December 19 regarding the remarks of the person in the Prime Minister's Office about possessing nuclear weapons. The statement by the director general, Hamaizumi Haruo, pointed out: "This is an unforgivable act of ignoring the existence of the victims of the atomic explosion and allowing nuclear war."

The statement pointed out that the atomic bomb was a "crazy weapon" solely aimed at extermination, and quoted words from the speech given when receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, stating "abandoning the nuclear deterrence theory that assumes the possession and use of nuclear weapons, and having even one nuclear weapon is unacceptable, this is the wish of the victims of the atomic explosion," and called on "Japan to take the lead in the world in abolishing nuclear weapons."

Original: toutiao.com/article/7585823805306667546/

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