Nagasaki marks 81st atomic bomb anniversary as mayor says nuclear
deterrence only increases risk
[August 10, 2026]
By MARI YAMAGUCHI
TOKYO (AP) — Nagasaki marked on Sunday the 81st anniversary of the U.S.
atomic bombing of the southwestern city, as the mayor called nuclear
weapons "absolute evil,” denounced growing support for nuclear
deterrence and called on the Japanese government to adhere to its three
postwar non-nuclear principles.
The anniversary coincided with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi ’s
government revising the country's defense policy to further bolster the
military's offensive capability. Speculation has risen about whether
Takaichi, who supports nuclear dissuasion, may allow nuclear weapons to
be brought into the country, going against the third non-nuclear
principle.
Mayor Shiro Suzuki said that while some countries argue the possession
of nuclear weapons helps deter potential attackers, the atomic bombings
of Hiroshima and Nagasaki had demonstrated that humans can cross the
line.
“The theory of nuclear deterrence is extremely dangerous and fragile.
Nuclear weapons are not a ‘necessary evil’ but an ‘absolute evil,’ and
can never coexist with humanity,” Suzuki said. “To all leaders of the
nuclear states and nations relying on nuclear deterrence, you must face
the reality that the more you rely on nuclear deterrence, the more you
increase the risk of a nuclear war."
The United States launched the Nagasaki attack on Aug. 9, 1945, killing
70,000 by the end of that year, three days after the bombing of
Hiroshima that killed 140,000. Japan surrendered on Aug. 15, 1945,
ending World War II and the nearly half-century of aggression across
Asia.
Representatives from more than 90 countries attended the ceremony at the
Peace Park on Sunday and observed a moment of silence at 11:02 a.m. when
a B-29 dropped a plutonium bomb, known as “Fat Man.”
Suzuki singled out the Japanese government, demanding it uphold Japan's
war-renouncing Constitution, attend the Treaty on the Prohibition of
Nuclear Weapons review conference later this year and stick to the three
non-nuclear principles.
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Doves are released over the Peace Statue during a ceremony to mark
the 81st anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing at the Peace Park in
Nagasaki, southern Japan Sunday, Aug. 9, 2026. (Taichi
Nagahisa/Kyodo News via AP)
Takaichi supports the first two principles of not possessing and
developing nuclear weapons.
The prime minister, who attended Sunday's ceremony, reiterated her
policy of taking “a realistic and pragmatic approach” toward
achieving a world without nuclear weapons. As she did in Hiroshima,
Takaichi remained ambiguous about the three non-nuclear principles
and only reiterated that Japan currently maintains the policy.
Takaichi, in her speech at the ceremony, did not mention the Treaty
on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which Tokyo has refused to
sign because Japan is under the protection of the U.S. nuclear
umbrella.
She later told reporters that Japan's policy is to work within the
Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, and that her government will decide
what to do with the treaty based on what's most effective to ensure
the country's national security and push forward nuclear
disarmament.
Survivors have expressed frustration and criticized the Japanese
government's support for nuclear deterrence for being insincere.
Growing concern about Takaichi's possible easing of the non-nuclear
principles has prompted protests by the survivors, or hibakusha, in
Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The number of survivors has fallen to 91,105, about a quarter of the
original number, with their average age exceeding 86. Survivors
worry about fading memories, as the youngest of the survivors were
too young to clearly recall the attack.
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