Bombs for Peace
As we approach the anniversary of one of the most catastrophic events in modern human history, there are a lot of questions that need to be addressed-the most crucial being that of our maturity to handle such crisis in future.
The Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki which arguably drew the curtains on the Second World War stand out as the greatest instances of immense fear infusion in the world population and still remain a cause for an emotional debate. Initially, few voices were raised against President Truman's rationale to drop two atomic bombs on Japan but with time feeble voices questioning this decision gained strength on grounds of morality and ethics. Although the bombs did force an immediate end to the war, it is believed that Japan's leaders had wanted to surrender anyway and likely would have done so before the planned American invasion. This rules their use to be unnecessary.
There are a lot of evidences which bat against the idea of Nuclear Bombs triggering off surrender from Japan, by the time the first bomb was dropped on Hiroshima there had already been 65 air-raids on different cities of Japan. The destruction was already of such great magnitude that Hiroshima was touted to be just another bomb site for the Japanese authorities up until the reports of the bomb being a nuclear one was verified.
The Japanese were optimistic that a five year neutral policy with Russia would help them bargain at the end of the war leaving them with a few captured territories, with more than three fourth of their country in ashes a surrender was inevitable. So when Stalin marched his troops towards Japan, the bubble burst for the island nation.
There was no way that it could have handled two giants in the form of Russia and US simultaneously, and it crumbled at last. The pertinent question that survives is whether the US could have done away with the two bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The answer is most definitely a ‘Yes’, though the outcome of this nobility from America would've shaped out a different future. Though that by no means make it a compelling move strategically.
What the bomb droppings on the 6th and 9th of August essentially did was helped Japan and the Emperor sweep a lot of misjudgments under the rug without anyone managing a sneak peek. There was a convenient story worth accepting after a devastating war, the country was reeling under starvation, the economy had almost perished, the army and navy were cornered, there was hardly a square block on land which was unaffected by the war.
It was much better to attribute the defeat to a scientific marvel than acceptance of miscalculation on the authorities’ part. Also it helped paint Japan in a state of misery and sympathy internationally, when it should have been condemned for its brutality.
And apart from all this, it elevated US to a superpower status ahead of the Soviet Union which was equally and competitively placed back then.
America had harnessed the most potent power in universe; the Japanese surrender spread the trepidation throughout the world. Now America was looked at in awe and terror world over.
All this brings us down to the question of how the nuclear weapons are perceived currently- the panic, the threat, all so because the evidence of Hiroshima and Nagasaki is at the heart of everything when we think about nuclear weapons. The event forms the holy grail of our understanding about these unknowns.
The Japanese submission is the reason these weapons are associated with inordinate power and thus make them of such value in international politics. But what if this long told story of Japanese surrender to Nuclear power turns out to be a myth, who are we then to make conclusions ?
Sources: Foreign Policy
The Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki which arguably drew the curtains on the Second World War stand out as the greatest instances of immense fear infusion in the world population and still remain a cause for an emotional debate. Initially, few voices were raised against President Truman's rationale to drop two atomic bombs on Japan but with time feeble voices questioning this decision gained strength on grounds of morality and ethics. Although the bombs did force an immediate end to the war, it is believed that Japan's leaders had wanted to surrender anyway and likely would have done so before the planned American invasion. This rules their use to be unnecessary.
There are a lot of evidences which bat against the idea of Nuclear Bombs triggering off surrender from Japan, by the time the first bomb was dropped on Hiroshima there had already been 65 air-raids on different cities of Japan. The destruction was already of such great magnitude that Hiroshima was touted to be just another bomb site for the Japanese authorities up until the reports of the bomb being a nuclear one was verified.
The Japanese were optimistic that a five year neutral policy with Russia would help them bargain at the end of the war leaving them with a few captured territories, with more than three fourth of their country in ashes a surrender was inevitable. So when Stalin marched his troops towards Japan, the bubble burst for the island nation.
There was no way that it could have handled two giants in the form of Russia and US simultaneously, and it crumbled at last. The pertinent question that survives is whether the US could have done away with the two bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The answer is most definitely a ‘Yes’, though the outcome of this nobility from America would've shaped out a different future. Though that by no means make it a compelling move strategically.
What the bomb droppings on the 6th and 9th of August essentially did was helped Japan and the Emperor sweep a lot of misjudgments under the rug without anyone managing a sneak peek. There was a convenient story worth accepting after a devastating war, the country was reeling under starvation, the economy had almost perished, the army and navy were cornered, there was hardly a square block on land which was unaffected by the war.
It was much better to attribute the defeat to a scientific marvel than acceptance of miscalculation on the authorities’ part. Also it helped paint Japan in a state of misery and sympathy internationally, when it should have been condemned for its brutality.
And apart from all this, it elevated US to a superpower status ahead of the Soviet Union which was equally and competitively placed back then.
America had harnessed the most potent power in universe; the Japanese surrender spread the trepidation throughout the world. Now America was looked at in awe and terror world over.
All this brings us down to the question of how the nuclear weapons are perceived currently- the panic, the threat, all so because the evidence of Hiroshima and Nagasaki is at the heart of everything when we think about nuclear weapons. The event forms the holy grail of our understanding about these unknowns.
The Japanese submission is the reason these weapons are associated with inordinate power and thus make them of such value in international politics. But what if this long told story of Japanese surrender to Nuclear power turns out to be a myth, who are we then to make conclusions ?
Sources: Foreign Policy
Comments
Post a Comment