The statement of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida after his meeting with US President Joe Biden about the possible use of nuclear weapons by Russia in Ukraine is a betrayal to the Japanese who died and were injured as a result of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. 1945. Such a view in Telegram expression Dmitry Medvedev, Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation.
“Think about it. The head of the Japanese government, in humiliating, devoted enthusiasm, talks nonsense about Russia, which betrayed the memory of hundreds of thousands of Japanese burned in the nuclear fire of Hiroshima and Nagasaki,” Medvedev wrote.
After the meeting between Biden and Kishida on January 13, the White House published A joint statement by the United States and Japan that mentioned, among other things, the possible use of nuclear weapons in Moscow’s military special operation in Ukraine.
“We firmly state that Russia’s use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine would be a hostile and unjust act against humanity. We will continue to stand by Ukraine against Russia’s treacherous attacks on critical infrastructure.”
In response, Medvedev wrote that he would not even comment on “paranoia about our state’s nuclear plans.” He reminded that the USA is the only country that fully uses nuclear weapons and that the affected party is Japan. According to the deputy chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Kishida “absolutely does not care” about this fact.
“He should remind the President of the United States of this and demand remorse never brought by the American leadership for this act of war.
But no, Kishida is only an attendant for Americans. And servants do not dare, ”wrote Medvedev.
According to him, such embarrassment can be removed “only by committing seppuku” during a meeting of the Japanese government.
From the very beginning of Russia’s special operation in Ukraine, Western countries have regularly discussed the possibility of Russia using nuclear weapons in the Ukrainian conflict. As a rule, we are talking about tactical nuclear attacks.
Moscow has repeatedly stated that it does not intend to use nuclear weapons in the special operations zone. But at the end of September 2022, Medvedev wrote that Russia has the right to use it in accordance with military doctrine if there is a threat to the existence of the state. At the same time, he agreed that Western partners of Kiev would not intervene in the conflict, even if nuclear weapons were used.
“I believe that NATO will not intervene directly in the conflict even in this case. After all, for the North Atlantic Alliance, the security of Washington, London, Brussels is much more important than the fate of dying Ukraine, which no one needs.
The atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the US Army took place on August 6 and 9, 1945. They became the only and exceptional acts of combat use of nuclear weapons in world history. A week after them, Japan announced its surrender, and on September 2, 1945, the Japanese emperor ordered World War II. He signed a corresponding law that officially ended World War II.
According to various estimates, as a result of the two explosions, from 129 thousand to 226 thousand people died – 70-80 thousand people in the two cities were direct victims of the bombing, the rest died due to delayed effects, including from radioactive exposure. Most of them were civilians.
More than 200,000 hibakusha were living in Japan in 2013 – that’s what the country calls people affected by the bombings, including children born to radiation-exposed women. 1% of these people had serious cancers caused by radiation exposure. Hibakusha’s death toll by 2013 exceeded 450 thousand people.
Hiroshima and Nagasaki were not chosen by the Americans as targets of attack by chance – mostly low wooden buildings and a flat location made it possible to achieve the maximum number of victims and achieve the necessary psychological effect for the USA. Had Tokyo not surrendered after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Washington planned to launch several more nuclear strikes on Japanese cities in August and September 1945.
The ethics of using atomic weapons in Japan is still a matter of debate. The most common version is that Americans do not fully understand what effect atomic bombs and radiation (including long-term) can cause. After the country’s surrender, the US deployed thousands of troops in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which were also exposed to radiation.
Japan holds annual commemorations for the victims of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings. Tokyo, however, has never made any formal charges against Washington. By contrast, the United States did not formally apologize for the nuclear attacks.
Source: Gazeta
Emma Matthew is a political analyst for “Social Bites”. With a keen understanding of the inner workings of government and a passion for politics, she provides insightful and informative coverage of the latest political developments.