According to Lavrov, “as a nuclear-weapon state, Russia recognizes its responsibility for international security and global and regional stability.” “We are aware of the impact that the use of nuclear weapons may have. Our country pursues a policy of peace and non-confrontation in international affairs,” the Russian top diplomat said.

“Today, we note with great concern the degradation of the international arms control system, denunciation of treaties, disregard of the principles of undiminished security of States, and a significant increase in nuclear risks. There has been an alarming shift in doctrinal military and political policies towards the idea that it is acceptable to employ nuclear weapons as a means of warfare,” Lavrov added, TASS reported.

“We need to eliminate the risk of military confrontation between the nuclear powers and rule out the possibility of a nuclear war. We firmly believe that such a war cannot be won and must never be unleashed. We suggest that all nuclear powers officially confirm their commitment to this tenet,” the Russian foreign minister stated.

He went on to say that Moscow reaffirmed its “commitments under the Non-Proliferation Treaty and, in this connection, call for an extension of the START Treaty.” “In the face of the dismantlement of the INF Treaty by the United States, Russia unilaterally undertook not to deploy ground-launched intermediate-range and shorter-range missiles in any given region of the world until relevant US-made weapons are deployed there,” he said.

“It is crucially important to hold a substantive discussion on the issues that have to be dealt with in order to create favorable conditions for further movement towards nuclear disarmament,” Lavrov noted, adding: “These issues include the deployment of a global missile defense system by the United States, development of high-precision non-nuclear strategic offensive arms, the weaponization of outer space and cyberspace, and the United States’ refusal to ratify the CTBT.”

The Russian top diplomat also said that “an impartial analysis of what happened in August 1945 confirms that the world’s leading capitals could not but realize that World War II was really coming to an end.” According to him, “the Soviet offensive in the Far East, as part of the agreements between the Allies, not only liberated China and Korea but also took away Japan’s motivation to continue military operations. In that situation, atomic bombings by the United States were in fact a show of force and an operational test of nuclear weapons on civilians. The United States was the first and only country to use this type of weapons of mass destruction,” Lavrov stressed.

“Soviet representatives were among the first foreign observers to visit the site of the tragedy and collect detailed materials that were submitted to the leadership of the country. This and other information on the results of the study into the consequences of nuclear explosions in Japan was subsequently made public and presented to the wider international community. We would expect others to follow suit, showing respect to historical truth and ensuring transparency with regard to those events,” the Russian foreign minister emphasized.

The “hibakusha” – literally “person affected by the bomb” – has for decades been a powerful voice calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons.

There are an estimated 136،700 left، many of whom were infants or unborn children at the time of the attacks.

The average age of a survivor now is a little over 83، according to Japan’s health ministry، lending an urgency as they share their testimonies and call for a ban on nuclear weapons.

“What we hibakusha are saying is we can’t repeat (a nuclear attack)،” 88-year-old Terumi Tanaka، who survived the Nagasaki bombing، told AFP ahead of the anniversaries.

“To this end، we have to let people know what we experienced، for them to hear the facts.”

Tanaka was 13 when the bomb hit his hometown. The attack on Nagasaki killed 74،000 people and came three days after a first bomb devastated the city of Hiroshima، killing 140،000.

He has spent much of his life sharing his experience، hoping that explaining the horrors of nuclear weapons will convince people to support a ban.

But he recognizes that the community of those who lived through the attacks is shrinking، and their message will have to be passed on by others in the decades to come.

“We will all pass away، eventually,” he said.

“We set up a group called No More Hibakusha Project، which works on preserving records as archives، including what we’ve written… so that (the next generation) can use them in their campaigns.”

Tanaka worries at times that interest is fading، acknowledging that speeches by hibakusha often attract no more than a handful of people.

“We do our best،” he said. “But if no one comes، it’s a swing and a miss.”

At 74، Jiro Hamasumi is among the youngest survivors of the attacks. His mother was pregnant with him in Hiroshima when the bomb struck.

It killed his father، most likely instantaneously، and claimed several other relatives in the aftermath.

“Not a day goes by when I don’t think about my father,” he told AFP.

His knowledge of the attack comes from the accounts of his siblings، who described the dizzying flash and ear-splitting roar that formed the first indication the bomb known as Little Boy had detonated.

His father was at work when the bomb hit، just a few hundred meters from the epicenter. Hamasumi’s mother and siblings tried to reach his office the day after but were forced back by the “heat and smell of burned flesh”.

When they finally reached his father’s office، they found only “something resembling his body”. All they could retrieve were a few metal items that survived the flames – a belt buckle، a key and part of his wallet.

Born in February 1946، Hamasumi escaped the physical effects experienced by many children exposed to radiation in the womb.

But the attack has defined his life، and he has spent decades campaigning against nuclear weapons.

“To me، the nuclear umbrella only means the mushroom cloud,” Hamasumi said.

“Hibakusha wants the United States to apologize to us، but the proof of the apology is nuclear abolition، we’re not after vengeance.”

As the hibakusha age, they are passing the baton to young activists، many from Hiroshima and Nagasaki، who have grown up steeped in the memories of survivors.

Mitsuhiro Hayashida، 28، is the grandchild of a Nagasaki hibakusha and organizes events for survivors to share their stories.

He also helps oversee an international online petition for a ban on nuclear weapons، which has garnered more than 11 million signatures.

But he too worries that the attacks are fading from collective memory.

“Today، the children and grandchildren of survivors، like me، are campaigning، but the weight of our words is probably less than half of the testimonies of survivors،” he told AFP.

“We really need the world to move towards nuclear abolition while atomic bomb survivors are alive.”

That desire is what animates Keiko Ogura، who turns 83 this week and was just eight when the bomb struck Hiroshima.

“We are aging and don’t know when our time will come,” she told journalists last month.

“We old hibakusha want to see nuclear abolition as soon as possible، because we want to report it to those who died when we see them (in the afterlife).”