Hiroshima mayor calls for dialogue at A-bomb ceremony

HIROSHIMA - Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui stressed the importance of dialogue for world leaders at a ceremony on the 79th anniversary of the atomic bombing of the city on Tuesday.

“It seems to me that there is a growing tendency to believe that we must rely on military force to solve international problems,” Matsui said at the annual peace ceremony, attended by atomic bomb survivors, representatives of bereaved families and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

The ceremony was held at the Peace Memorial Park in Naka Ward, Hiroshima, and attendees offered prayers for the victims, expressing hope for an end to nuclear weapons around the world.

Delegates from some nuclear-armed countries and from the European Union were in attendance, as well as the ambassador from Israel, which is at war in the Palestinian territory of Gaza. Russia, which continues its aggression against Ukraine, and Belarus, which supports Russia, were not invited to the event.

At 8:15 a.m., the time the atomic bomb was dropped, representatives of families of the deceased rang the Peace Bell, and attendees observed a minute’s silence.

In his Peace Declaration, Matsui emphasized the importance of dialogue amid growing tensions due to Russia’s protracted aggression against Ukraine and the worsening situation in the Middle East. He also made reference to former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, who brought the Cold War to an end through dialogue with former U.S. President Ronald Reagan.

“Let us be as determined as our forebears, and, united as one, with hope in our hearts, take collective action. Our unity will move leaders now relying on nuclear deterrence to shift their policies. We could make that happen,” Matsui said.

The Hiroshima mayor called on the Japanese government to sign the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons as soon as possible.

In his own address, Kishida stressed that Japan, the only country to have suffered a nuclear attack, is duty bound to work toward realizing a “world free of nuclear weapons” by firmly upholding the three non-nuclear principles.

“We will lead the international community in building momentum for nuclear disarmament,” Kishida said.

At the Cenotaph for the Atomic Bomb Victims, an updated register of deceased victims was presented. With the addition of 5,079 atomic bomb victims whose deaths were confirmed over the past year, 344,306 people are now listed in the register. As of the end of March, there were 106,825 people who had been affected by the bombs and were still alive, with an average age of 85.58 nationwide, according to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry. That was 6,824 fewer than the previous year.

Passing on memories of the war has become a pressing task given the age of atomic bomb survivors.