Nagasaki mayor to address Obama speech on A-bomb anniversary

NAGASAKI, Japan, July 31 Kyodo -
The mayor of Nagasaki said Friday he will seek support for U.S. President
Barack Obama's appeal for a world free of nuclear weapons on the anniversary of
the atomic bombing of the southwestern Japanese city.
Mayor Tomihisa Taue will also address a threat from North Korea's nuclear
program, while calling on the international community to step up efforts to
eradiate nuclear weapons in the Nagasaki Peace Declaration to be issued on Aug.
9.
''We normally mention how we suffered an atomic bombing and what it brought to
our city at the outset of a declaration, but this year I will touch on how we
view his (Obama) speech in Prague (in April),'' Taue said after his city
government revealed the gist of the declaration.
''The U.S. president showed a resolve to root out nuclear weapons and it has
been attracting attention from the victims of the atomic bombings,'' Taue said.
''Hopefully, this year's declaration will be impressive enough for people to
remember Nagasaki's wish.''
Taue also plans to urge the Japanese government to play a leading role in
international society on nuclear issues and call on leaders of the nuclear
powers to visit Nagasaki.
Nagasaki will mark the 64th anniversary of the wartime U.S. atomic bombing of
the city on Aug. 9, 1945, which killed an estimated 74,000 people. Three days
earlier, the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, where about 140,000
people were killed.
This year's ceremony in Nagasaki will be attended by ambassadors or other
representatives from a record 27 countries. U.N. General Assembly President
Miguel d'Escoto is scheduled to deliver a speech.
==Kyodo