TOKYO — Nagasaki marked on Sunday the 81st anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing of the southwestern city, as the mayor called nuclear weapons “absolute evil,” denounced growing support for nuclear “deterrence” and called on the Japanese government to adhere to its three postwar nonnuclear principles.
The anniversary coincided with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government revising the country’s defense policy to bolster the military’s offensive capability. Speculation has risen about whether Takaichi, who supports nuclear buildup efforts aimed at deterrence, may allow atomic weapons to be brought into the country, going against the third nonnuclear principle.
Mayor Shiro Suzuki said that while some countries argue the possession of nuclear weapons helps deter potential attackers, the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki had demonstrated that humans making the decisions can cross the line.
“The theory of nuclear deterrence is extremely dangerous and fragile. Nuclear weapons are not a ‘necessary evil’ but an ‘absolute evil,’ and can never coexist with humanity,” Suzuki said. “To all leaders of the nuclear states and nations relying on nuclear deterrence, you must face the reality that the more you rely on nuclear deterrence, the more you increase the risk of a nuclear war.”
The United States detonated a nuclear bomb over Nagasaki attack on Aug. 9, 1945, three days after its atomic bombing of Hiroshima. The Hiroshima bombing killed at least 60,000 people instantly and an estimated 140,000 overall. In Nagasaki, about 40,000 died in the blast, with the toll reaching at least 70,000 by the end of 1945.
Japan surrendered on Aug. 15, 1945, ending World War II and nearly half a century of Japanese aggression across Asia — reasons often cited in defense of the U.S. atomic bombings.
Representatives from more than 90 countries attended the ceremony at the Peace Park on Sunday and observed a moment of silence at 11:02 a.m., when an American B-29 dropped a plutonium bomb known as Fat Man. It detonated about 1,800 feet over the city.
Suzuki singled out the Japanese government, demanding it uphold Japan’s war-renouncing Constitution, attend the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons review conference later this year and stick to the three nonnuclear principles.
Takaichi supports the first two principles of not possessing and developing nuclear weapons.
The prime minister, who attended Sunday’s ceremony, reiterated her policy of taking “a realistic and pragmatic approach” toward achieving a world without nuclear weapons. As she did three days earlier at the anniversary commemoration at Hiroshima, Takaichi remained ambiguous in referencing nonnuclear principles, saying only that Japan currently maintains the policy.
In her speech at the ceremony, Takaichi did not mention the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which Tokyo has refused to sign because Japan is under the protection of the U.S. nuclear umbrella.
She later told reporters that Japan’s policy is to work within the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and that her government will decide what to do with the treaty based on what’s most effective to ensure the country’s national security and advance nuclear disarmament.
Survivors have expressed frustration and criticized the Japanese government’s support for nuclear deterrence. Growing concern about Takaichi’s possible easing of the nonnuclear principles has prompted protests by the survivors, known as hibakusha, in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The number of survivors has fallen to 91,105, about a quarter of the original number, with their average age exceeding 86. Survivors worry about fading memories, as the youngest among them were too young to clearly recall the attack.
Yamaguchi writes for the Associated Press.
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