TOKYO: Nagasaki's mayor said on Thursday (Aug 8) it was "unfortunate" that the United States' and United Kingdom's ambassadors to Japan have refused to attend a ceremony marking the 1945
Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki speaks to the media at Nagasaki 's city hall on Aug 8, 2024. TOKYO: Nagasaki 's mayor said on Thursday it was"unfortunate" that the United States' and United Kingdom's ambassadors to Japan haveBut he defended the decision not to invite Israel to Friday's annual event, repeating that it was"not political" but to avoid possible protests related to the Gaza conflict.
"We made a comprehensive decision not for political reasons. We want to conduct a smooth ceremony in a peaceful and solemn environment." This came three days after the first nuclear bomb on Hiroshima that killed 140,000 people. Japan announced its surrender in World War II on Aug 15, 1945.The US, Britain, France, Italy and the European Union - plus reportedly Canada and Australia - are all sending diplomats below ambassador level to the ceremony.
The British embassy said leaving out Israel created"an unfortunate and misleading equivalency with Russia and Belarus - the only other countries not invited to this year's ceremony".
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