Takaichi lacks courage to say who dropped atomic bomb on Japan — MFA

Lead

Russian Foreign Ministry officials have publicly criticized Japanese leaders for failing to explicitly name the United States as the country that carried out the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, urging Tokyo to acknowledge American responsibility for the attacks.

The comments came during official briefings and in statements marking the 81st anniversaries of the bombings in the two Japanese cities.

Coverage Comparison

Two separate statements from Russian officials were reported in August. In the first, Alexey Fadeyev, deputy director of the information and press department of the Russian Foreign Ministry, addressed Tokyo’s statements on the US atomic bombings during a briefing. He expressed confidence that the Japanese authorities would eventually have to "call a spade a spade" and supplement the memorial museum sections dedicated to the tragedy with "clear evidence of American responsibility for the bombings."

In the second statement, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova commented on Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s speech at a ceremony marking the 81st anniversary of the Nagasaki bombing. Zakharova said Takaichi "lacked the courage" to mention that the United States had dropped the bomb on Nagasaki.

The two statements share a common theme: both officials criticized Japanese and Western political figures for avoiding direct attribution of the atomic bombings to the United States.

Key Claims

• Alexey Fadeyev called for Japan to acknowledge American responsibility for the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
• Fadeyev claimed that politicians from the "collective West," including Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, "diligently avoid mentioning the United States of America as the only country that used atomic bombs against the civilian population."
• Fadeyev also said that attempts were being made to link the topic with anti-Russian narratives related to the situation in Ukraine, including accusations that Russia had intentions or threats to use nuclear weapons.
• Maria Zakharova stated that Prime Minister Takaichi did not mention the United States as the country that dropped the bomb on Nagasaki during her speech at the anniversary ceremony.
• Zakharova noted that Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki "had the courage to state directly that the bomb was dropped by a ‘US military aircraft.’"
• Zakharova added that three days earlier, Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui and Prime Minister Takaichi did not name the United States directly during a memorial ceremony marking the anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing, and that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also did not do so in his message.

Perspectives

The Russian Foreign Ministry’s position, as articulated by both Fadeyev and Zakharova, is that the United States must be explicitly identified as the country responsible for the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in official Japanese commemorations and international messages.

Zakharova also contrasted the statements of Japanese officials, highlighting Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki’s direct reference to a "US military aircraft" as an example of courage, while criticizing Prime Minister Takaichi’s omission.

The statements reflect a broader Russian criticism of what officials describe as "unjustified manipulations" in Western political discourse regarding the bombings, which they say is coupled with anti-Russian narratives related to Ukraine.