A total of 124 countries and regions, as well as the European Union, are currently scheduled to attend the Aug. 6 peace memorial ceremony in Hiroshima this year, the city has said.
The number of attending countries and regions is set to surpass the record high set in 2023 of 111, the city said Friday. The annual ceremony marks the anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945.
Among the nuclear powers, Britain, France, India and Israel will send representatives, while the United States is making arrangements. China, Russia, Pakistan and North Korea have not responded.
The Palestinian Authority, Taiwan and two others will attend for the first time.
Hiroshima had been sending out invitations for the ceremony until last year, but this year, the city sent notices to a total of 196 countries and regions, including Russia and Belarus. It did not send invitations to either country over the past three years due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
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