Time Is Running Out: Nobel Peace Laureates Urge U.S. and Russia to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons
In a striking and heartfelt letter issued this April, Nobel Peace Prize Laureates from across generations and continents called on Presidents Donald J. Trump and Vladimir V. Putin to take urgent steps toward the total elimination of nuclear weapons. With global tensions rising and nuclear rhetoric intensifying, their message is clear: the threat of nuclear catastrophe is not abstract—it is imminent, and it must be stopped.
A Moment of Dangerous Drift
Signed by leaders of Nobel Peace Prize–winning organizations including Nihon Hidankyo (2024), the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN, 2017), and International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW, 1985), the letter appeals to the moral conscience of the two most powerful nuclear states. These leaders urge both presidents to meet and negotiate a real path to disarmament—before it’s too late.
The world stands at the edge of a new nuclear arms race. The letter warns that arms control treaties are being dismantled, military postures are hardening, and dialogue between nuclear-armed states has broken down. As the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) states, we face “a tense and increasingly polarized international security environment… [and] a return to nuclear brinkmanship with catastrophic consequences for all humankind.”
Despite rhetorical support for denuclearization from both U.S. and Russian leaders, military spending continues to rise and nuclear arsenals remain on high alert. While nuclear weapons were once seen as a regrettable legacy of the Cold War, they are again being promoted as tools of power and legitimacy. The letter pushes back against this ideology, reminding us that true security cannot be built on the threat of annihilation.
Remembering the Cost: Voices of the Hibakusha
Among the signatories are hibakusha, survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Their inclusion brings moral weight and human testimony to the appeal. The hibakusha will visit Reykjavík this June aboard the Peace Boat to stand once again at Höfði House—the site of the 1986 summit between Presidents Reagan and Gorbachev. That meeting nearly resulted in an agreement to eliminate all nuclear weapons. The laureates call on Trump and Putin to “recapture that spirit—and go further.”
As survivors of nuclear devastation, the hibakusha embody a truth that should never be forgotten: nuclear weapons are not abstract geopolitical tools; they are machines of unimaginable suffering. No one who has experienced their effects would ever advocate for their continued existence.
An Urgent Call for Leadership
In the words of Jørgen Watne Frydnes, Chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, “Disarmament requires courageous and visionary political leaders.” This is not a time for caution or political calculation—it is a time for moral clarity. The laureates argue that Trump and Putin, as leaders of the two largest nuclear powers, have both the power and the responsibility to take action.
“Nuclear weapons are not an inevitable force of nature,” they write. “They were built by human hands, and they can be dismantled by human hands. All that’s required is political will.”
What This Means for the Peace Economy
At the Peace Economy Project, we believe that a true peace economy begins by divesting from war and reinvesting in human needs. The vast sums allocated to nuclear weapons could instead be used to combat climate change, build housing, improve education, expand healthcare, and secure a sustainable future. But we must first dismantle the tools of our own destruction.
This letter is more than a plea—it’s a blueprint for global survival. And we must echo it with all our voices.
Call to Action
We urge our supporters to:
- Share this message widely to amplify the call for nuclear disarmament.
- Contact your elected officials and urge them to support the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
- Join our ongoing campaigns to redirect military spending toward community well-being and peace.
Time is running out—but we still have a choice. Meet. Talk. Eliminate nuclear weapons for good.
