Pope recalls horror of atomic bombs 70 years ago

A message from UN secretary general Ban Ki Moon echoed the calls of Mr Taue and others to abolish nuclear weapons.

Kerry said the anniversary also emphasised the importance of work by the US with other countries, particularly Russian Federation, to reduce the number of existing nuclear weapons.

Abe’s coalition last month approved controversial legislations in the lower house of parliament that would lift a ban on sending troops to fight overseas, despite much opposition from lawmakers and thousands protesting against it outside the parliament building.

While many energy experts applaud the Abe government’s reactor restart policy, the Japanese public remains deeply wary, coming out nearly 2-to-1 against the return of nuclear energy.

The remarks – expected on Friday – will be carefully scrutinised by Japan’s neighbours, who are waiting to see if Abe repeats earlier Japanese apologies for its 20th century militarism.

We can not be sure that they never will be used in war again, of course, but 70 years is already an impressive accomplishment.

They observed a moment of silence at 11:02am local time, which is when the United States dropped the atomic bomb, killing more than 70,000 people and prompting Japan’s Second World World War surrender.

Survivors have expressed concerns and doubts over the government’s commitment to Japan’s postwar pacifism and non-nuclear principles.

The sea of people who attended the ceremony this year also included U.S. Ambassador Caroline Kennedy and representatives from more than 100 countries, including Britain, France and Russian Federation. As a patient in the military hospital in Rangoon (Yangon), awaiting evacuation by hospital ship to Dacca (Dhaka), I heard the news of the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

It is certainly true that Truman fired MacArthur and did not use nuclear weapons even though thousands of American troops were being killed or captured.

A memorial service was held at 10:35 a.m. Sunday to remember the victims of Nagasaki atomic bombing. The statue is wreathed with garlands of the colourful birds made by schoolchildren from Japan and across the world in memory of the courageous 11-year-old.

The Pope during his traditional Sunday blessing recalled the US detonation of atomic weapons as “a tragic event that still arouses horror and revulsion”. He said the bombings of the Japanese cities had become a symbol of mankind’s destructive power when science and technology are put to “distorted use”.

He told The Associated Press, “I want this to be the end”.