U.S. Ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy expressed hope on Thursday that U.S. President Barack Obama's visit to the atomic-bombed city of Hiroshima in late May will build momentum toward a world without nuclear weapons and encourage more people to visit there.
The visit as the first sitting U.S. leader "gave him a chance to rearticulate his commitment to pursuing a world without nuclear weapons. And I think it sent a very powerful message," Kennedy said in an interview with Kyodo News ahead of the anniversary of the Aug. 6, 1945, U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima.
Kennedy was hopeful that Obama's trip would spur more people to visit Hiroshima, the site of the world's first nuclear attack, as well as Nagasaki, where the United States dropped a second atomic bomb three days later.