John Kerry on Monday, April 11 became the first U.S. secretary of state to visit Hiroshima's revered atomic bomb memorial, calling it a "stark, harsh, compelling reminder" to end the threat of nuclear weapons, AFP reports.
Kerry, who was accompanied by other G7 foreign ministers, is the highest-ranking U.S. administration official to pay his respects at the site of the World War II bombing — the world's first nuclear attack.
His trip comes as White House officials say President Barack Obama is considering a stop in the now-bustling Japanese city late next month around the time of a Group of Seven summit, which is being held in another part of the country.
Kerry's visit, and speculation that Obama may also go to Hiroshima, prompted suggestions that Washington might make an official apology over the August 1945 bombing, which killed 140,000 people.
America's top diplomat, however, played down that expectation, while a State Department official flatly ruled out an apology.
"My visit to Hiroshima has very special meaning about the strength of our relationship and the journey we have travelled together since the difficult time of the war," Kerry told Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida earlier Monday.
"We will revisit the past and honor those who perished, (but) this trip is not about the past; it's about the present and the future."
Many were killed instantly when the bomb was dropped, creating a firestorm that flattened swathes of the city. Thousands of others died later from radiation exposure.
Three days later, on August 9, 1945, another US atomic bomb exploded over the city of Nagasaki, killing some 74,000 people. Less than a week later, on August 15, Emperor Hirohito announced Japan's surrender, ending World War II.
