With Pope Francis expressing his intention to visit Japan next year, hopes are high among Hiroshima and Nagasaki residents and A-bomb survivors' groups that he may come to their cities.
The Vatican has already ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, and the pope's visit to the A-bombed cities could provide a lift to the campaign for nuclear weapon states and Japan to ratify the treaty and help speed the abolition of nuclear arms.
To get the pope to visit, some people are saying louder pleas from citizens are needed.