The inaugural meeting of a forum launched by Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio to discuss nuclear disarmament takes place this weekend in Hiroshima.

Delegates at the International Group of Eminent Persons for a World without Nuclear Weapons, or IGEP, are from both nuclear and non-nuclear states.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and former US President Barack Obama are scheduled to send video messages on Saturday.

Kishida is set to deliver a speech at the closing session on Sunday. He is expected to reaffirm his commitment to realizing the abolition of nuclear arms.

Denuclearization initiatives have stalled recently. In August, delegates at the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty review failed to find broad consensus or adopt a joint document.

Kishida wants to use IGEP to revive global momentum ahead of the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima next May.