A country in the continent of North America – The United States of America, is a nation which most of us have heard of, and is a hub of great diversity of ethnicity, culture and tradition comprising of fifty states- including New Jersey, Washington, Texas, California, Alabama, Arizona, Alaska, Virginia, etc. It is, at present, a major super power of the world in terms of military, finance, technology, etc.
An important event in its journey of becoming a super power has been its role during the World War II, during which it had detonated two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
To give the whole backdrop of this event, as to why did the USA do this and what was its significance and consequences, let’s recall the Second World War, which was a global war from 1939-1945 between the Allied powers ( Great Britain, USA, Soviet Union, France ) and the Axis powers ( Germany, Italy, Japan ).
So, before this incident, back in August 1939, the great physicist Albert Einstein along with others wrote a letter addressed to the then American President Franklin D. Roosevelt, wherein he warned that the Nazis of Germany might be in the process of developing nuclear weapons, and he urged the US to stockpile Uranium ore and begin work on its own atomic weapons, and then the US secretly started its Manhattan project, under which the atomic bombs were developed, with the scientific knowledge of the Americans and the Britishers.
As the World War II was approaching its final stages, in 1945, the relations between Japan and the US worsened as there enmity during the war continued. So, the US president at that time, Harry Truman, authorised the use of atomic bombs in order to make Japan surrender. Truman decided to choose the target cities to drop the bombs, keeping in mind the military status and cultural significance for Japan, as he only meant to destroy the ability of Japan to fight wars against them.
After seeking consent for the bombing from the United Kingdom under the Quebec Agreement, orders were issued by General Thomas Handy and the acting Chief of Staff of the US to use the atomic bombs against the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as these cities were large urban areas with military significant facilities.
So, in the final year of the war, as the Allied powered prepared for a costly invasion of Japan, a conventional firebombing campaign began.
The Manhattan project, as mentioned earlier, had produced two major bombs, code- named “Fat Man” and “Little Boy”. Fat Man was a nuclear weapon based on Plutonium implosion, while the Little Bomb was based on Uranium gun-type fission.
In the Potsdam Declaration of 26 July 1945, the Allies had called for the unconditional surrender of the Japanese forces, but Japan ignored this ultimatum.
Following this, on 6th of August 1945, Little Boy was dropped on the city of Hiroshima, but the Japanese government again ignored the Allies demands. Just three days later, on 9th of August, again the US dropped the Fat Man on the city of Nagasaki. The following next few months witnessed its effects due to which about 90000-145000 people in Hiroshima and 39000-80000 people in Nagasaki were killed, and people continued to die from the effects of burns, radiation exposure and injuries. These radiation poisonings became the atomic bomb disease which left the people in the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki with an increased risk of Cancer, birth defects, mental retardation and other effects.
As the bombings at Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the US marked the dawn of the usage of nuclear weapons, its effects on the people of these cities still gives goosebumps to everyone.
The next day, on 10th of August 1945, Japanese government issued a statement in which they agreed to surrender to the terms of the Potsdam Declaration, and Japan surrendered to the Allies on 15th of August. Following this, the Japanese government, on 2nd of September, signed the Instrument of Surrender, which effectively ender the war.
This event of atomic bombings changed international relations. The USA and the Soviet Union- the superpowers at that time, dropped the idea to wage a war as both had equally destructive nuclear weapon, which ultimately led to an era of ‘Cold War’, wherein the two sides did not actually wage a war against each other, but the two powers opposed each other.
The dropping of the Fat Man and Little Boy was useful for the US to ensure the reliability of the Western Europe on the United State for security instead of seeking an outside accommodation with the Soviet Union.
Thus, ultimately, the role of the USA in winning over the World War II and the atomic bombings of the two Japanese cities was a milestone in the history of not only the US, but of the whole world.
By GARGI
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