President Donald Trump has been invited to visit the Hiroshima site by its mayor, Kazumi Matsui, to "see the reality of the atomic bombing and feel the spirit of Hiroshima" after Trump likened the U.S. attack on Iranian nuclear sites as "essentially the same thing" as the attacks on Japan nearly 80 years ago that ended World War II.
"It seems to me that he does not fully understand the reality of the atomic bombings, which, if used, take the lives of many innocent citizens, regardless of whether they were friend or foe, and threaten the survival of the human race," Matsui told reporters Wednesday, according to The Japan Times.
"I wish that President Trump would visit the bombed area to see the reality of the atomic bombing and feel the spirit of Hiroshima, and then make statements," he added.
About 140,000 people died when the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. Trump last week said those attacks "ended the war."
"I don't want to use an example of Hiroshima, I don't want to use an example of Nagasaki, but that was essentially the same thing," he added.
Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki called Trump's comments "unacceptable."
If Trump's comment "justifies the dropping of the atomic bomb, it is extremely regrettable for us as a city that was bombed," he said.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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