JAPAN: Mayor of Hiroshima meets President Obama in D.C.

January 21, 10:45 PM

By Joshua Williams

President Obama at the US Conference of Mayors. Hiroshima Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba was a guest speaker. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

Japanese Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba of Hiroshima City met U.S. President Barack Obama at the U.S. Conference of Mayors on Jan. 21st. During their brief exchange President Obama expressed to Mayor Akiba an interest in visiting the Mayor’s city in Japan.

Mayor Akiba attended the opening of the 78th winter meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors as a special guest speaker, along side First Lady Michelle Obama. The same day Mayor Akiba had a chance to greet President Obama face to face, the first time an acting Mayor of Hiroshima has met a U.S. president on U.S. soil since the city was bombed in WWII, the Asahi reported.

Upon shaking hands, Mayor Akiba invited the President to his city, to which Obama replied, “I would like to come,” Mayor Akiba told Japanese reporters.

However, how likely the President will visit Hiroshima is questionable. Obama had previously mentioned having an interest in visiting the city, but did not during his short first visit to Japan last November. Mayor Akiba and his staff delivered to the White House a formal written request for a Presidential visit to Hiroshima, but no specific timeframe was mentioned in it, according to the Asahi.

Sankei News was also quick to point out that such a visit by a sitting U.S. President could result in a severe backlash among veterans and other Americans who see the use of the atomic bombs as the main reason for the end of WWII and Japanese aggressions. 

Mayor Akiba showed an understanding of this by mentioning, “I want to create an environment where the President’s visit could be appreciated by all,” Sankei News reported.

Mayor Akiba has been hopeful since last year to work directly the President Obama on ridding the world of nuclear weapons. He has previously coined the term “Obamajority” in relationship to this subject, and spoke on the topic in his speech in D.C.

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