Plenary Session Towards the 2010 NPT Review Conference -Making Use of This Golden Opportunity- Coordinators Akira Kawasaki (Japan, Executive Committee member, Peace Boat) Jacqueline Cabasso (USA, Executive Director, Western States Legal Foundation)) Panelists Rebecca Johnson (UK, Executive Director, the Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy) Hideo Suzuki (Japan, Director, Arms Control and Disarmament Division, Disarmament, Non-Proliferation and Science Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs) Mitsuru Kurosawa (Japan, Professor, Osaka Jogakuin Graduate School) Terumi Tanaka (Japan, Secretary General, Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations) Toshiya Nakamura (Japan, Professor, University of Nagasaki) In the Plenary Session, co-chaired by Jacqueline Cabasso and Akira Kawasaki, speeches were delivered by panelists, such as Mitsuru Kurosawa, Rebecca Johnson, Hideo Suzuki, Toshiya Nakamura and Terumi Tanaka, and discussions among the panelists were held under the theme of "Towards the 2010 NPT Review Conference -Making Use of This Golden Opportunity-". Lively opinions and questions were raised from the audience. Toshiya Nakamura In their speeches and discussions, above all, talks by A-bomb survivors and the importance of peace education were emphasized anew. In relation to that, Toshiya Nakamura, professor of University of Nagasaki touched upon the "recognition gap" between the U.S. and Japan over the A-bombing, and, introducing Germany's efforts to "overcome the past," pointed out that it is indispensable for Japan to deal with its war responsibility in order to develop its foreign policy toward the abolition of nuclear weapons as an A-bombed country. Mitsuru Kurosawa As for the theme of the NPT Review Conference, Mitsuru Kurosawa, professor of Osaka Jogakuin Graduate School, mentioning that we had been "in a very desirable environment for nuclear disarmament" since the inauguration of President Obama, said that we should place importance on "measures toward the future," to say nothing of reviewing on the past application status of the conference. Rebecca Johnson Rebecca Johnson, executive director of the Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy brought up three problems: reduction of the role of nuclear weapons, with a view toward making the use of nuclear weapons a crime against humanity, a transparent and non-backtrackable nuclear disarmament process, and establishing conditions to maintain "a world free of nuclear weapons," such as a ban on nuclear testing and the management of nuclear materials. Terumi Tanaka Ter umi Tanaka, secretary general of the Japan Confederation of A-and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations, emphasized the importance of making the government take security policies that do not rely on nuclear weapons, saying that, "Nuclear deterrence is based on the use of nuclear weapons. If the use of nuclear weapons will never happen, then the meaning of the existence of nuclear weapons will be lost." Hideo Suzuki Hideo Suzuki, director of the Arms Control and Disarmament Division, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, mentioned that "nonproliferation", "nuclear disarmament" and "peaceful uses of nuclear power" are NPT's three mainstays, and explained that the balanced strengthening of these three mainstays is an important policy of the Japanese government. In addition, he promised that overcoming a conflicting structure, nuclear-weapon states versus non-nuclear states, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs will exert leadership in order to reach an agreement. Further, he mentioned that, on behalf of Japan, the ministry has advanced its efforts to establish "new policy recommendation" on nuclear disarmament & nonproliferation based on a report by the International Commission on Nuclear Non-proliferation & Disarmament (ICNND). Jacqueline Cabasso, executive director of the Western States Legal Foundation, mentioned that the U.S. and various NGOs around the world have prepared a number of activities for the NPT Review Conference in May, and that details of these activities can be viewed on the website (http://peaceandjusticenow.org/wordpress/), calling for support of people from Japan. This session has brought out in relief that governments, specialists, NGO's, citizens, and hibakusha (A-bomb survivors) must play their important respective roles in order to make progress in abolishing nuclear weapons through the NPT Review Conference. This was symbolized by the panelists who had come to Japan on behalf of their respective fields, exchanging views with citizens of Nagasaki who had gathered at the site.