• Japan condemns Trump's remarks likening Iran strikes to WWII atomic bombings.
• Survivors and officials express outrage over comments seen as justifying nuclear attacks.
• Nagasaki Mayor calls the remarks "unacceptable" and historically insensitive.
• Hiroshima assembly adopted a resolution against justifying nuclear weapon use.
• Foreign Minister emphasizes the importance of avoiding past nuclear horrors.

Japan has vocally criticized US President Donald Trump for equating the recent American military strikes on Iran with the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, stating that such comparisons are "deeply inappropriate" and "historically insensitive." Trump's comments followed air strikes conducted on Iranian nuclear sites earlier this month, during which he remarked, "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," implying the strike was decisive in resolving conflicts, according to BBC, India Times, TRT Global, and South China Morning Post.

Officials and survivors from the atomic bombings are voicing their discontent, with Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki stating that any implication that justifies the use of nuclear weapons is "extremely regrettable." He emphasized the irrevocable damage caused during the atomic bombings, where about 80,000 people died in Nagasaki alone due to the initial explosion and subsequent radiation exposure. Suzuki's sentiments reflect broader concerns that Trump's comments could normalize acceptance of nuclear warfare, according to BBC, India Times, and TRT Global.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi acknowledged the suffering caused by the atomic bombings and stated that the use of nuclear weapons contradicts humanitarian principles. Furthermore, he indicated that Japan has consistently communicated its stance to the United States regarding nuclear warfare. The Japanese government, through various statements, refrained from directly protesting Trump's comments but conveyed its historical perspective and humanitarian appeal, as noted by BBC and South China Morning Post.

On the ground, protests erupted in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, with survivors demanding that Trump retract his statements. Many survivors and local officials argue that any justification for nuclear weapon use ignores the enduring scars left by the bombings. Survivors like Toshiyuki Mimaki, co-chair of a prominent atomic bomb advocacy group, expressed anger and disbelief over Trump's comments, stressing that the atomic bomb should never have been used, according to India Times, TRT Global, and South China Morning Post.