A wave of anger has swept across Japan following US President Donald Trump’s announcement that his administration will resume nuclear weapons testing.
Survivors of the atomic bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, known as hibakusha, have condemned the move as completely unacceptable.
More than 200,000 people were killed when the United States dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II, the only time nuclear weapons have been used in conflict. Decades later, many survivors continue to suffer from the long-term physical and psychological effects of the bombings.
Trump announced on Thursday that he had instructed the Pentagon to conduct nuclear weapons tests in response to alleged Russian and Chinese experiments. In reaction, the Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization Nihon Hidankyo, which represents atomic bomb survivors, sent a formal letter of protest to the US Embassy in Tokyo.
The group stated that Trump’s order directly contradicts global efforts to achieve a peaceful world free of nuclear arms, describing it as “utterly unacceptable.”
Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki also condemned the decision, saying it tramples on the decades-long work of people worldwide who have dedicated themselves to nuclear disarmament.
Speaking to reporters, Suzuki questioned whether such actions make Trump undeserving of the Nobel Peace Prize nomination recently proposed by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
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