The US Embassy in Japan informed NHK that Ambassador Rahm Emanuel sent a letter to Nagasaki’s Mayor Suzuki Shiro, stating he will not attend Friday’s ceremony marking the US atomic bombing of the city due to the decision not to invite the Israeli ambassador, which he deemed a political move.
The embassy’s public relations officer confirmed the letter was sent on Tuesday, conveying Emanuel’s stance.
They further stated that excluding Israel would hinder high-level participation in the event.
On July 19, ambassadors from the Group of Seven nations, excluding Japan, and the EU representative in Tokyo, sent a joint letter to the Nagasaki mayor, expressing that excluding Israel would equate it with countries like Russia and Belarus, which were also not invited, and such a decision would be “unfortunate and misleading.”
