Nagasaki marks atomic bombing anniversary

TOKYO: Japan paid tribute on Thursday to the victims of the nuclear bomb that was dropped by the United States on the city of Nagasaki in the closing days of World War II.

About 5,800 people, including survivors, bereaved families, UN Secretary-general Antonio Guterres and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, attended the annual ceremony.

A minute’s silence was observed at 11:02 am (0202 GMT), the exact moment 73 years ago when an atomic bomb code-named Fat Man was released from a B-29 bomber and detonated over the south-western port city.

Around 74,000 people died from the effects of the bomb by the end of 1945. “Sadly, 73 years on, fears of nuclear war are still with us,” said Guterres, who became the first sitting UN secretary-general to attend the annual Nagasaki event.

“States in possession of nuclear weapons are spending vast sums tomodernise their arsenals. More than 1.7 trillion US dollars were spent in 2017 on arms and armies — the highest level since the end of the Cold War,” the UN chief said.

“Meanwhile, disarmament processes have slowed and even come to a halt. Many states demonstrated their frustration by adopting the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons last year,” he said. The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), which played a key role in campaigning for the treaty, received the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize in December.