Sombre Zelensky Lays Flowers At Hiroshima Memorial

Hiroshima, Japan, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 21st May, 2023 ) :Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky laid flowers on Sunday at a memorial in Hiroshima to victims of the 1945 US atomic bomb attack, in a sombre and highly symbolic moment.

Curious crowds lined the streets as the wartime leader's motorcade weaved its way towards the park complex that houses several memorials commemorating the approximately 140,000 people killed by the bomb.

Zelensky, who has stolen the spotlight with a surprise appearance at the G7 summit, stopped first at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, which houses evidence of the horrors wrought by the bomb.

He was then joined by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who comes from Hiroshima, and the pair placed bouquets of white flowers before the graceful concrete arch of the Cenotaph, through which an eternal flame is visible.

Zelensky wore a solemn expression as he laid the flowers, tied with ribbons in the blue and yellow of Ukraine's flag.

Hiroshima's mayor joined the leaders to explain elements of the memorial park and monument, adorned with a plaque reading: "Let all the souls here rest in peace, for we shall not repeat the evil.

" The visit has particular significance for Zelensky, who has faced thinly veiled threats by Russian leader Vladimir Putin to deploy nuclear weapons as he prosecutes his devastating war.

But it is also deeply meaningful for Kishida, who has declared achieving a "world free of nuclear weapons" his life's work.

The trip also brings Kishida full circle after his trip to Ukraine in March, where he made a surprise stop in the town of Bucha, site of an alleged massacre by Russian troops.

A visibly shaken Kishida spoke then of his "indignation" at the "brutality" witnessed by the town.

Kishida broke with Japan's traditionally cautious approach on foreign policy to take a strong early position alongside Western allies against Moscow's invasion.

His government has offered aid and diplomatic support in the form of sanctions against Russia, though it is constitutionally limited in its ability to offer weaponry.

Zelensky made his surprise arrival at the G7 summit on Saturday, and he is due to make a speech later in the evening after talks with Kishida.