TOKYO (AP) – Japan, the only country to have suffered atomic bomb attacks, has repeatedly called for a global ban on nuclear weapons. Yet it sided with the nuclear powers and NATO in refusing to sign a treaty to ban such weapons during the U.N. General Assembly meeting in New York.
The treaty, the first of its kind, was signed Wednesday by 50 countries and would take effect if the same number of countries ratify it. So far three have done so, Guyana, Thailand and the Vatican. Once it takes effect, the signatories would be barred from developing, testing, producing, acquiring, possessing or stockpiling nuclear weapons.
Here’s a look at what’s behind Japan’s reasoning:
___
TOKYO UNDER U.S. NUCLEAR UMBRELLA