Kerry pays landmark visit to Hiroshima atomic bomb memorial

HIROSHIMA, April 11: John Kerry on Monday became the first US secretary of state to visit Hiroshima’s atomic bomb memorial, calling it a “stark, harsh, compelling reminder” of the need to rid the world of nuclear weapons.
Kerry, who was accompanied by other G7 foreign ministers, is the highest-ranking US administration official to pay his respects at the spot in Japan where American planes launched the first ever nuclear attack, more than 70 years ago.
His trip comes as White House officials say President Barack Obama is considering a stop in the now-bustling Japanese city late next month around the time of a Group of Seven summit, which is being held in another part of the country.
Kerry’s visit, and speculation that Obama may also go to Hiroshima, prompted some suggestion that Washington might make an official apology over the August 1945 bombing, which killed 140,000 people.
But America’s top diplomat was quick to douse that speculation, and a State Department official flatly ruled out an apology.
“We will revisit the past and honour those who perished, (but) this trip is not about the past,” Kerry told Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida earlier Monday. “It’s about the present and the future.”
Arriving under tight security, the G7 ministers and the foreign policy chief of the European Union started their visit Monday at a museum that shows the devastating impact of the bombing — such as survivors’ burned clothing and other personal effects.
“Everyone in the world should see and feel the power of this memorial,” Kerry wrote in the museum’s guest book.
“It is a stark, harsh, compelling reminder not only of our obligation to end the threat of nuclear weapons, but to rededicate all our effort to avoid war itself.
“War must be the last resort — never the first choice.”
The G7 later issued its Hiroshima Declaration that called for a “world without nuclear weapons”, as it noted the “immense devastation and human suffering” caused by the wartime atom bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Hundreds of schoolchildren waved G7 nation and EU flags as the group walked to a cenotaph in the leafy park next to the museum.Kerry and his counterparts laid wreaths at the site, with the ruins of a domed building gutted by the blast in the background.Later children presented them with necklaces made of paper cranes — a symbol of peace — woven in the bright colours of their national flags.
Hiroshima businessman Jun Miura said he hoped Obama would make a trip to the city of 1.2 million next month. For US tourist Jeremy Griffiths, visiting the memorial is a stark reminder of the scale of the damage.Many were killed instantly when the bomb was dropped, creating a firestorm that flattened swathes of the city. Thousands of others died later from radiation exposure.-AFP