文章基本信息

标题：Can the Atomic Bombings on Japan Be Justified? A Conversation with Dr. Tsuyoshi Hasegawa
本地全文：下载
作者：Hibiki Yamaguchi ; Fumihiko Yoshida ; Radomir Compel 等
期刊名称：Journal for Peace and Nuclear Disarmament
电子版ISSN：2575-1654
出版年度：2019
卷号：2
期号：1
页码：19-33
DOI：10.1080/25751654.2019.1625112
语种：English
出版社：Taylor & Francis Ltd.
摘要：Tsuyoshi Hasegawa, a US citizen who was born in Japan, has taught in both countries. Applying his specialized knowledge of Russian history to an analysis of the US decision to drop atomic bombs on Japan, he challenges the prevailing American view that the US decision to drop the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki was justified. The prevailing view is based on two premises: first, the use of the atomic bombs was the only option available to the US government without launching a costly homeland invasion; and second, the atomic bombings had an immediate and direct impact on Japan’s decision to surrender. Dr. Hasegawa rebuts both assumptions. He also sets out the third – and often hidden – justification for dropping the bombs, namely, America’s sense of revenge. He argues that, even before the atomic bombings, the United States had already crossed the moral high ground that it had held. He views the US use of atomic bombs to be a war crime. But he asserts that this action must be understood in the context of Japan’s responsibility for starting the war of aggression and committing atrocities in the Asia–Pacific War.
关键词：Atomic bomb;World War II;Japan’s surrender;Harry Truman;Joseph Stalin;war crimes