Hayashi Avoids Dissecting Trump’s Hiroshima, Nagasaki Comments; ‘Evaluation of History Should Be Left to Experts’

The Yomiuri Shimbun

17:11 JST, June 27, 2025

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi avoided dissecting U.S. President Donald Trump’s comparison of the recent U.S. strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities with the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which he said, “ended that war.”

“I am aware of [Trump’s] comments,” Hayashi said at a press conference on Thursday.

“The atomic bombings took many lives. The use of nuclear weapons is not in the spirit of humanitarianism,” said Hayashi. “In general, the evaluation of historical events should be discussed by experts.”

Asked whether he would protest to the United States, he said, “Our country’s view on the matter has been conveyed to the United States on a series of occasions.”