Photo/Illutration Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, foreground, addresses the U.N. General Assembly in New York on Sept. 19. (AP Photo)

NEW YORK--Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stressed the need to focus on human dignity to promote “human-centered international cooperation” in a speech on Sept. 19 at the U.N. General Assembly.

“We will not be able to address such issues if we are divided by ideology and our sense of values," Kishida said, pointing to various issues humanity faces such as climate change and infectious diseases.

"By shining a light on ‘human dignity,’ the international community will be able to push forward a ‘human-centered international cooperation’ that overcomes differences in government structures and sense of values,” he said. 

With Japan serving this year as host of the Group of Seven summit and as a nonpermanent member of the U.N. Security Council, Kishida said, “We have tried to listen to the voices of those pleading for peace and the calls for help from the most fragile peoples. My message to the world is that rather than division and confrontation, I seek a world that moves toward cooperation.”

The prime minister said it would be possible to overcome differences in political structures and senses of value by creating a common language that can speak to all.

Saying that as a lawmaker representing Hiroshima, the first city to be hit by an atomic bomb, working toward nuclear disarmament was his life’s work and that Japan would continue to work to bridge differences between the nuclear powers and non-nuclear states.

He pledged to contribute 3 billion yen ($20 million) for a foreign research institute or think tank to create a venue to discuss nuclear disarmament.

Referring to the continued Russian invasion of Ukraine, Kishida said, “(Moscow) tramples on international law and the rule of law. We cannot accept the use of force or threats to unilaterally change the status quo anywhere in the world.”

He called for U.N. Security Council reforms by expanding the number of both permanent and nonpermanent members, as well as limiting the use of the veto by permanent members, such as Russia, which prevents the Security Council from carrying out its role.

Kishida reiterated that he was prepared to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for talks to help resolve the issue of Japanese nationals abducted by Pyongyang.

Kishida said there was no change in Japan’s willingness to make a final account of the bitter history between the two nations to normalize relations. He said he wanted to conduct high-level bureaucratic talks with North Korea to bring about a summit with Kim as soon as possible.

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