The head of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, or ICAN, has welcomed the Group of Seven leaders' visit to sites related to the 1945 atomic bombing of Hiroshima.
Daniel Hogsta, who was visiting the G7 summit media center in Hiroshima, watched footage of the leaders laying flowers at a cenotaph for the victims of the bombing on Friday.
In an interview with NHK, Hogsta said it was good that the leaders visited the sites, including the cenotaph and a memorial museum.
He stressed that he hopes their visit to the facilities and what they heard from hibakusha, or atomic bomb survivors, will be reflected in the outcome of the summit.
He added that he also hopes they will show their leadership against Russia's invasion of Ukraine and its threat to use nuclear weapons.
Hogsta pointed out that hibakusha do not want to hear just words, and that there must be a concrete action plan for eliminating nuclear weapons.
ICAN received the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize for its contribution to the adoption of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.