Special Sessions of the General Assembly Devoted to Disarmament

Throughout the 70s and 80s, peace and anti-nuclear movements gained force, pushing for nuclear disarmament and an end to the Cold War arms race. In this context, the UN General Assembly held three Special Sessions devoted to Disarmament (SSOD): SSOD I in 1978, SSOD II in 1982 and SSOD III in 1988. Daisaku Ikeda released proposals to coincide with SSOD I and SSOD II, before he started issuing his annual peace proposals in 1983, in which, based on Buddhist philosophy, he asserted his stance against nuclear deterrence. In his proposal to SSOD II, he called for the establishment of a “Council of World Citizens for the Protection of the UN,” in which ordinary people—and not only governments—would play a central role.