August 4, 2025

Japanese Communist Party Central Committee Chair Shii Kazuo on August 2 held talks in Tokyo with Jeremy Corbyn, Member of Parliament and former British Labour Party leader, who is visiting Japan to attend the 2025 World Conference against A and H Bombs.

The two agreed to establish relations of friendship and solidarity between the JCP and a new left party which Corbyn is working to launch. The two also confirmed that they will further work together to: promote the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) and efforts to abolish nuclear weapons; put a stop to the genocide in Gaza and build a UN Charter-based peace, which includes a just peace in Ukraine; oppose the huge military buildup in both eastern and western Eurasia and create peace through diplomacy; and stand against xenophobia.

Shii said to Corbyn, who also serves as vice-chair of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), that the participation in the antinuke world conference in Hiroshima and Nagasaki will offer a positive experience. The British politician in response expressed his intent to learn from Japan’s peace movement.

When the situation in Gaza came up in the conversation, Shii said that what is essential is for the Japanese government to recognize Palestine as a state. He went on to say that in addition, in order to stop the genocide in Gaza, it is necessary for the international community to take effective measures, such as imposing sanctions on Israel. Corbyn agreed with Shii.

Stressing that the world is at a tipping point, Corbyn said that while U.S. hegemony is under challenge, emerging and developing countries have increased their presence in the world. Shii in response said that under the Trump administration the decline of the U.S. empire has begun, and that the nuclear-free, neutral, and non-aligned trend centered on emerging and developing countries has gained momentum, which represents the majority of the world.