Hiroshima: The worlds first city to be struck by a nuclear bomb and venue of the G7 2023 Summit
Hiroshima, a city at the southern tip of Japans main island Honshu, is the venue of this years Group of Seven (G7) Summit, the annual meeting of the leaders of worlds richest and most industrialised democracies. Japans Prime Minister Fumio Kishida welcomed President Joe Biden of the United States, Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany, President Emmanuel Macron of France, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada, and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy, along with two representatives of the European Union, President of the European Council Charles Michel, and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, in his home city on Friday (May 19). Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the Summit at the invitation of Prime Minister Kishida and as president of the G20 this year. The choice of Hiroshima as host city of the G7 Summit underlines Prime Minister Kishidas commitment to put nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation prominently on the agenda of the meeting. Hiroshima was the first city in the world that was hit by a nuclear weapon on August 6, 1945. A second Japanese city, Nagasaki, was hit three days later, on August 9. The nuclear bombings of Japan by the US brought World War II to an immediate end. Estimates of the dead at Hiroshima and Nagasaki vary from 110,000 (70,000 at Hiroshima and 40,000 at Nagasaki) to 210,000 (140,000 and 70,000 respectively). The fate of the two cities remains the most compelling argument against the use of nuclear weapons and for nuclear disarmament. No nuclear weapon has ever been used again, even though the nuclear powers have continued to build up their arsenals, and the world has seen several close shaves with nuclear crises. Most recently, assertions from Russia that it will not hesitate to go to any extent in pursuing its war goals in Ukraine have been seen as threats to use nuclear weapons. Hiroshima is a flat city surrounded by hills and was, for the makers of the atomic bomb, an ideal target to test out their devastating new weapon which, if exploded at the right height above the ground, could destroy almost the entire city. The aim of the bombing was spectacular destruction, and to demonstrate to the Japanese as well as to the Soviet Union the strength and potential of the US war machine. The bomb, nicknamed Little Boy, was released at 8.15 am local time by the US Air Force pilot Paul Tibbets flying Enola Gay, a Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber aircraft. About 70% of Hiroshimas buildings were flattened, and the deaths from the effects of radiation exposure continued for decades after the bombing. The Americans announced it was an atomic bomb only some 16 hours later. Little Boy exploded above Hiroshima with an energy of about 15 kilotons of TNT, far less than the potential of the most destructive modern nuclear weapons. Fat Man, the bomb that was dropped above Nagasaki on August 9, was a little more powerful, but caused less damage because of the uneven terrain of the city. Both Hiroshima and Nagasaki were subsequently rebuilt. The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, which the G7 leaders visited, stands testimony to the citys tragedy and in memory of those killed in the worlds first nuclear attack.
Friday, May 19, 2023 at 6:35 am