Taiwan delegation attends annual Hiroshima bombing memorial

Tokyo, Aug. 6 (CNA) A Taiwanese delegation led by Taiwan's representative to Japan, Lee Yi-yang (李逸洋), joined representatives from 121 countries and regions at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony on Thursday.

In a news release, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan quoted Lee as saying that after the world's first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima 81 years ago, killing about 140,000 people, many survivors suffered the lifelong effects of radiation exposure.

Lee said humanity must learn from the devastating consequences of war to prevent such tragedies from happening again and turn the collective memory of those disasters into a driving force for peace, stability and development.

Lee said he joined representatives from around the world in calling for a world free of nuclear weapons and the pursuit of lasting peace.

Lee also expressed condolences to those killed in the atomic bombing, noting that many Taiwanese who had been living, studying or serving in the Japanese military in Hiroshima were among the victims. He said he was paying tribute on behalf of Taiwan to those who died and their families.

Turning to regional security, Lee said China was rapidly expanding its nuclear arsenal and posed a serious threat to peace in the Taiwan Strait and the broader Indo-Pacific region.

Citing studies by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, the Federation of American Scientists and the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, he said China was the fastest-growing nuclear power and urged like-minded democracies to work together to safeguard global peace and stability.

According to the office, the Taiwanese delegation was seated in the diplomatic corps section alongside representatives from Paraguay, the Holy See, Israel, India and Armenia.

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony is held annually on Aug. 6 to honor those who died when the United States dropped an atomic bomb on the city in 1945 in the closing stages of World War II.