US ambassador joins Hiroshima memorial ceremony for first time

AN AMERICAN representative participated for the first time in Japan's annual commemoration of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima yesterday, in a 65th anniversary event that the organizers hope will bolster global efforts toward nuclear disarmament.

The site of the world's first nuclear bomb attack echoed with the choirs of schoolchildren and the solemn ringing of bells on Friday as Hiroshima marked its biggest memorial yet. At 8:15am - the time the bomb dropped - a moment of silence was observed in memory of the 140,000 people who died in the first of two nuclear bombings that prompted Japan's surrender in the Second World War.

Hiroshima's mayor, Tadatoshi Akiba, welcomed Washington's decision to send US Ambassador John Roos to the commemoration. He hopes President Barack Obama will visit Hiroshima. Mr Obama has said he would like to consider the idea but it would be highly controversial and unprecedented for a sitting US president.

"We need to communicate to every corner of the globe the intense yearning of the survivors for the abolition of nuclear weapons," Mr Akiba told the 55,000 people at the ceremony.

He called on the Japanese government to take a leading role in nuclear disarmament toward "turning a new page in human history".

Along with the US, nuclear powers Britain and France also made their first official appearance at the memorial, as did UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon. Altogether, 74 nations were represented.

Hiroshima was careful to ensure the memorial emphasised a forward-looking approach, focusing not on whether the bombing was justified, but on averting future nuclear attacks.

Mr Roos said the memorial was a chance to show resolve toward nuclear disarmament, which President Obama has emphasised as one of his administration's top objectives.

"For the sake of future generations, we must continue to work together to realise a world without nuclear weapons," Mr Roos said.

Mr Ban, who presented flowers at the Eternal Flame in Hiroshima's Peace Memorial Park, said this year's memorial would send a signal that nuclear weapons must be destroyed.

"Life is short, but memory is long," Mr Ban said. "For many of you, that day endures." He added it was time to move from "ground zero, to global zero" - a world without nuclear arms.

The Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty's 190 signatory countries in May adopted a plan to speed up arms reduction and take further steps toward banning nuclear arms in the Middle East.

The treaty recognizes five atomic-weapon states - the US, Russia, Britain, France and China. India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea have developed nuclear weapons but are not parties to the treaty.

Independent analysts estimate the world stockpile of nuclear warheads at more than 22,000, less than a third the number at the peak of the Cold War.

In May, Washington acknowledged a stockpile of 5,113 nuclear warheads as of September 2009, down 75 per cent from 1989. The US and Russia in April agreed to shrink the limit on a specific type of long-range warheads to 1,550 for each country.

Washington's decision to attend the anniversary was welcomed by Japan's government, but has generated complex feelings among Japanese who see the 1945 bombing as unjustified and want the US to apologize.

"I'm not sure if I would welcome President Obama here," said Katsuki Fujii, 20, a college student. "I don't think we have the same idea what peace is."

Three days after Hiroshima, Nagasaki was bombed, killing about 80,000. Japan surrendered on 15 August, ending the war.