HIROSHIMA —

The mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki said Tuesday they ‘‘welcome from the heart’’ U.S. President Barack Obama’s willingness to visit the two Japanese cities the United States dropped atomic bombs on during World War II. ‘‘We’d like to welcome him. We hope (the visit) will be realized as early as possible,’’ Hiroshima Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba and Nagasaki Mayor Tomihisa Taue said in a statement jointly issued by them.
   
‘‘We are confident that the historic visit would be a big step toward creating a better future and the spirit of peace displayed by hibakusha (atomic bomb survivors) would light the road,’’ the two mayors said. In an interview with NHK in Washington on Monday, Obama expressed willingness to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki while he is in office, although he is unable to do so when he visits Japan later this week. The two mayors visited the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo on Oct 27 and submitted a letter requesting the U.S. leader to visit their cities.

© 2009 Kyodo News. All rights reserved. No reproduction or republication without written permission.

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7 Comments

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  inakaRob at 09:16 AM JST - 11th November

  Obama HAS to come visit Obama-shi. How many cities in the world has the same name as their leader, BUT the leader didnt name the city.

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  inakaRob at 09:16 AM JST - 11th November

  no their leader, but A leader

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  stirfry at 11:03 AM JST - 11th November

  zzzzzzzzzzzz

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  slizzzer at 02:00 PM JST - 11th November

  Sorry Mayor-sans, but not going to happen. Obama has more pressing issues to deal with.

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  Yelnats at 04:02 PM JST - 11th November

  Just a bullet train ride away, and some good ekiben. I think he should visit.

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  victimcrat at 05:39 PM JST - 11th November

  Hey maybe they can set up a teleconference with the regime in Iran, yammer about peace and unicorns.

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  ashika1009 at 01:01 AM JST - 12th November

  The use of nuclear bombs was justifiable and the general opinion among historians is that the bombs ended the war and actually saved lives. The other option was a full scale invasion of a hostile Japan with plenty of aircraft available for suicide missions. No apologies necessary for defeating an evil Japan (of that time) and ending the war. Time to speak more about WHY the bombs were dropped in the first place rather than the whining every summer from Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It grows most tiresome. However, Obama is our Apologizer in Chef--I mean Chief--maybe he can apologize for stuff from Tokyo during his meeting.

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