Hiroshima marks 81st anniversary; Mayor urges world to end nuclear deterrence

Hiroshima on Thursday marked the 81st anniversary of the atomic bombing that devastated the city in 1945, with its mayor urging global leaders to abandon the pursuit of nuclear weapons and the reliance on nuclear deterrence.

Speaking at the annual peace ceremony at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, Mayor Kazumi Matsui said that accepting the use of force and downplaying the inhumanity of nuclear weapons could lead to another Hiroshima or Nagasaki. “Too many political leaders still consider nuclear deterrence a realistic approach and legitimise violence, which simply pushes a world without nuclear weapons further into the distance,” he said in his peace declaration.

The ceremony was attended by about 50,000 people, including representatives from around 120 countries and regions, among them the United States and Iran. A minute of silence was observed at 8:15 a.m., the exact time when a U.S. B-29 bomber dropped the atomic bomb on the city.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attended the ceremony for the first time as Prime Minister. In her address, she said Japan would take a “realistic approach” toward achieving a world where nuclear weapons are never used, within the framework of the United Nations Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

Takaichi has previously called for a review of Japan's postwar three non-nuclear principles, which state that Japan will not possess, produce, or permit the introduction of nuclear weapons into its territory. She has advocated dropping the third principle, which forbids the entry of nuclear weapons into Japanese territory. While she said Japan has maintained these principles, she did not explicitly commit to upholding them in the future.

Japan remains under the protection of the U.S. nuclear umbrella and has repeatedly sought assurance from Washington about its commitment. Successive Japanese governments have declined to sign the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which entered into force in 2021, and have not attended its meetings as observers. The treaty prohibits the development, testing, production, acquisition, possession, and use of nuclear weapons, but none of the nine nuclear-armed countries have signed it.

The atomic bombing of Hiroshima killed an estimated 140,000 people, and the bombing of Nagasaki three days later killed another 70,000. The two bombings remain the only use of nuclear weapons in armed conflict. Japan surrendered on August 15, 1945, ending World War II and its nearly half-century of aggression in Asia.

The number of survivors, known as hibakusha, has fallen to 91,105, with their average age now exceeding 86. Many survivors have expressed frustration and worry over the growing international support for nuclear weapons as a means of deterrence, including in Japan. They also fear that their first-hand accounts will be lost as memories fade.

This year's commemoration comes amid debate over Japan's security and defence policies, with the government expected to compile new security and defence documents later this year. The proposed review of the non-nuclear principles has drawn attention from peace groups and survivor organisations.

Mayor Matsui called on each citizen to learn lessons from the past and take action to ensure that the tragedies of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are never repeated. He urged leaders to stop justifying the possession of nuclear weapons as a method of deterrence, warning that such logic could result in "another Hiroshima or Nagasaki."