Hiroshima governor says nuclear disarmament must be tackled as pressing issue

Doves fly over the cenotaph dedicated to the victims of the atomic bombing during an annual ceremony marking the 79th anniversary of the world’s first atomic bombing in Hiroshima, western Japan (Yu Nakajima/AP)

Hiroshima officials have urged world leaders to stop relying on nuclear weapons as deterrence and take immediate action toward abolishment to remove the risk of atomic war amid conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East and rising tensions in East Asia.

They commented on Tuesday as Hiroshima remembered its atomic bombing 79 years ago at the end of World War Two.