In a long-awaited development, the White House has announced Barack Obama will visit Hiroshima. He'll be the first sitting U.S. president to visit the city that was devastated by an American atomic bomb in 1945. The visit will happen while Obama is in Japan for the Group of Seven summit later this month.
(Josh Earnest / White House Press Secretary)
"The president intends to visit to send a much more forward-looking signal about his ambition for realizing the goals of a planet without nuclear weapons."
The spokesperson stressed that the visit is not an apology for America dropping the nuclear bomb.
In an opinion poll last year, just over half of Americans said the use of atomic bombs was justified. Some Americans argue that it saved the lives of many U.S. troops by bringing an end to World War II. Analysts say a visit by a president to Hiroshima could be perceived as an apology by some people.
◆long-awaited 長く待ち望まれた
◆sitting 在職中の、現職の
◆forward-looking 前向きの、積極的な
◆long-awaited 世論調査
◆opinion poll （複数形で）兵士たち
◆bringing an end to ～に終わりをもたらす、終結させる
