As we approach the 65th anniversary of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Daisaku Ikeda, president of Soka Gakkai International (SGI) has called for an early start to negotiations to abolish nuclear weapons. In an interview with IDN-InDepthNews, Ikeda responded to a question about whether the UN’s conference on the nuclear nonproliferation treaty in May offered real hope or just more platitudes:

I am very fond of the words of the Chinese literary giant Lu Xun (1881-1936), who said that hope is like a path in the countryside: originally there was no path – yet, as people continue walking over the same spot, a way appears. I think this very much applies to the process going forward. The key will be for all governments to come together, making the final document the basis for their endeavors, forging ahead, one step at a time, on this untrodden path. At the same time, it is crucial to build international opinion calling for the prompt implementation of all agreements. One key here will be to secure ongoing venues for dialogue between civil society and policymakers.

Ikeda hopes a final treaty will be reached by 2015, the 70th anniversary of the bombings. Daisaku Ikeda was interviewed for the first time by an American magazine when contributing editor Clark Strand interviewed him for Tricycle. You can read the “Faith in Revolution” here.