Survivors of the 1945 atomic bombings in Japan say they will continue collecting signatures for a campaign calling on all countries to join the United Nations treaty banning nuclear weapons.
Officials of Nihon Hidankyo, or the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, held a news conference in Tokyo on Monday.
The head of the atomic bomb survivors' group in Hiroshima, Tsuboi Sunao, says the news that the treaty will take effect is a big step forward.
Tsuboi said the treaty will not lead to the immediate abolition of nuclear weapons, but it will still be a major step towards achieving that goal.
Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo pledged to stand by aging atomic bomb survivors in his speech during a ceremony marking 75 years since the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.
Abe gave the address at the Peace Park in the southwestern Japanese city on Sunday. Japan also marked the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima on Thursday.
Many public events marking the 1945 atomic bombings in Japan have been cancelled, due to the coronavirus pandemic.
But some survivors of the attacks have found a new way to share their stories with young people. They are reaching out to kids online.
The record-breaking heavy rain in Japan has left 69 people dead, one without vital signs, and 13 unaccounted for. Most of the casualties were recorded in Kumamoto Prefecture on the southwestern main island of Kyushu.
Search and rescue operations are continuing on Sunday in Kyushu.
Japan's health and welfare ministry says the average age of survivors of the 1945 atomic bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki has topped 83.
The ministry every year surveys the holders of certificates for "hibakusha," or victims of atomic bombings.
This year marks 75 years since the fierce Battle of Okinawa in the closing stages of World War Two, which claimed more than 200,000 lives. The coronavirus outbreak has given some the survivors no choice but to share their experiences online rather than face-to-face.
The event was organized by the Japan Veterans Video Archive Project that records the testimonies of survivors.