This month marks the end of World War II (WWII)— it was on August 15, 1945 that Japan finally surrendered and the Pacific portion of the war came to an end after the European theatre had shuddered to a stop much earlier in April 1945. Japan surrendered after two atomic bombs were dropped on the cities of Hiroshima (August 6) and Nagasaki (August 9) in the only instances where atomic bombs have been used in war – both were civilian targets. Here I revisit the use of those bombs of 1945 and share with you some insights on the decisionmaking that delayed Japan’s imminent surrender and the delays that sent the wrong signals to a war-weary US eager to end the gruesome conflict.
The background
The WWII began in September 1939 with Hitler’s blitzkrieg of Western Europe where he overran seven countries — Poland, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg and France — in eight months.
It looked like nothing could stand in the way f the Nazi war machine. Only Britain and Sir Winston Churchill had other plans. Their allies would join in a carefully crafted counter-offensive via Operation Overlord on June 6, 1944.
The war moved to he Pacific when Japan surreptitiously bombed Pearl Harbour on December 7, 1941.
This provoked the US to join the war and much of the Pacific engagement involved the US and Japanese forces.
After numerous skirmishes and bloody battles that stretched through Asia (Philippines, Singapore, Burma, etc.) and the Pacific (PNG, Solomons, Kiribati, etc.), fighting moved towards the Japanese mainland.
The Battle of Okinawa (April 1, 1945), the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific, witnessed some of the bloodiest battles involving Japanese and US troops – remember the movie Letters from Iwo Jima? After heavy casualties, Oknawa was ready to be used as a S base to launch the final assault on mainland Japan.
Faced with an imminent attack by an overwhelmingly superior force at that juncture, the Japanese high command of 1945, often referred to as the Big Six, dithered and delayed on the issue of how to negotiate a settlement o end the war. On June 22, Emperor Hirohito directed the Big Six to negotiate a surrender that would end he war “speedily”.
It was hoped hat the Soviet Union, that had n existing neutrality pact with Japan, would play a key role in these negotiations.
In a deceptive strategic move, he Soviets played both sides and insisted that the allies only accept “unconditional surrender” From the Japanese.
This would ensure Soviet access to the Pacific after the war.
Covert Soviet military buildup or an imminent invasion of Manchukuo (Japanese Manchuia) and other northern territories continued through July as he Japanese waited for a breakthrough in negotiations with Soviet mediation and the Soviets Waited to usurp Manchukuo.
On July 26, President Truan (US), PM Churchill (UK) and chairman Chiang Kai Shek (China) signed the Potsdam Declaration with Soviet agreement.
This declaration spelt out the conditions of Japanese surrender and promised “utter destruction” if Japan delayed any longer.
When the declaration was discussed by the Japanese cabinet, an outnumbered PM Suzuki decided to adopt the stance of mokusatsu (silent non-response) with the hope that the Soviets would provide a breakthrough.
This gave the wrong signal to the Americans who had been working on the nuclear bomb since 1939 when Albert Einstein and Leó Szilárd wrote to President Roosevelt warning him that the Germans were working on an atomic bomb.
The historical Manhattan Project was then set up with US, UK and Canadian funding to develop the bomb. The first successful test was carried out on July 16, 1945. In the backdrop was the stalled Japanese surrender — something had to be done to prompt the Japanese to accept the Potsdam Declaration.
The bombs
At 8:15am Japan time, on August 6, 1945, the Enola Gay, a B-29 bomber dropped Little Boy on an unsuspecting Hiroshima.
Little Boy was the name ironically given to the first atomic bomb used by man on man.
The bomb exploded directly over a hospital, the Shima Surgical Clinic, missing its original target, the Aioi Bridge by some 240m.
Approximately 150,000, mostly civilians, were either killed or injured by the blast.
It needs to be noted that Little Boy was deployed merely three weeks after the first successful test was carried out. The Americans expected a quick surrender and a quick end to the prolonged war.
Despite this, the Japanese high command still vacillated on accepting unconditional surrender.
A lot of this is linked to ambivalence on the role of the Emperor and the imperial system — the Potsdam Declaration was silent on this.
A lot also had to do with the Japanese code of honour after acknowledgement of defeat — many military leaders were constrained by this.
The code of honour (Bushido) mandated that if they surrendered they would have to take responsibility and commit ritualised suicide (seppuku) to atone for the defeat.
President Truman was livid and promised a “rain of ruin from the air” in a statement released after Hiroshima.
On August 5, the Soviet Union, in what is regarded as an act of profound betrayal and treachery in Japan, informed Tokyo of its unilateral withdrawal from the Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact.
This spelt an imminent Soviet attack on Japanese territories in the north and east.
The Soviets were focused on the territorial spoils of war.
Their withdrawal from the Neutrality Pact also meant that the balance of power in the Big Six shifted towards military hardliners in Tokyo.
Suddenly the devastation of Hiroshima was clouded by the “more immediate” threat posed by the Soviets.
Some in Tokyo also mistakenly believed that the Americans could not possess a second bomb.
At 11:01am, on August 9, Bockscar, another B-29 bomber dropped Fat Man on an unsuspecting Nagasaki, a secondary target – Kokura was the initial target.
This time approximately 80,000, mostly civilians, were either killed or injured by the blast. This time, there was no room for doubts about capitulating.
This time, the Emperor directed that there was no alternative and that preparations should be made immediately for surrender.
Palace intrigue followed and a coup by some military officers was thwarted as Japan prepared to surrender.
Surrender
On August 15, 1945, Emperor Hirohito announced Japan’s surrender over a radio address called the Jewel Voice Broadcast.
This was the first time that the Japanese people actually heard the voice of their Emperor whom they considered to be divine.
The formal surrender was signed aboard the battleship USS Missouri at 9:08am on September 2. US General Douglas MacArthur accepted the surrender on behalf of the allied powers and signed in his capacity as Supreme Commander.
He then went on to preside over the US Occupation of Japan from 1945-1951.
It was at that juncture that he took over as UN Commander of anti-communist forces during the Korean War (1950-53).
The splitting of Korea into two via the 38th Parallel is thus also linked to WWII.
The aftermath
Japan reconstructed itself from the dust of 1945 through focus, sacrifice and hard work. Japanese reconstruction is directly linked to the military needs arising from the Korean war. The US had initially decided to manage Japan as an agrarian nation.
The Korean war mandated industrialisation of Japan as a supplier of weaponry as well as a first line of defence against the ever-growing “Red Peril”.
By 1979 Japan had emerged as the fastest growing economy in the world with Professor Ezra Vogel speculating about Japan as the number one economy. Japanese industrial success was held in awe by the world.
I was attracted to study there partly because of this.
By 1989, it had some of the biggest banks in the world. Japan, today plays a significant global role as a major aid donor, trade partner and foreign investor. Its aid in Fiji and the Pacific has continued to be well thought-out and nichefocused.
The Nuclear Club, on the other hand, has grown in size. It has the United States, China, France, Russia, and Britain as legally recognised members under the 1968 international Treaty on the NonProliferation of Nuclear Weapons. India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel (unconfirmed) are other countries who are known to possess nuclear weapons.
South Africa is said to have disassembled its arsenal while some of the Soviet Republics handed over their weapons to Russia when the USSR disbanded.One of these was the Ukraine who are now being threatened by Russia with the same.
Iran and a few other rogue states continue their efforts to build or acquire nuclear weapons.
It needs to be noted that whenever cross-border tensions mount, there is always the unspoken threat of nuclear weapons in the background.
What have we learnt from the bombs of 1945? Or have we?
- SUBHASH APPANNA is an academic and researcher who spent more than 5 years in Japan. He has been writing on issues of topical interest both here and abroad over a number of years. The opinions contained herein are his alone subhash.appana@usp.ac.fj
