Were the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki an absolute necessity? The two bombs dropped during the three day span would be the only use of nuclear weapons during war to date. Although the end result had the Japanese forces waving the white flag, was there no alternative? Could bombing an already crippled nation and wiping out tens of thousands of
innocent civilians be justified? If so, can bombing Japan a second time before they formulated a response just 3 days after the first be justified as well? Many claim at this point in the war the Japanese was already defeated, and dropping the bomb would just speed up the victory for the Allies. Much controversy surrounds the questionable decision to drop not one, but two nuclear bombs the week of August 1945.

Towards the summer of 1945 in what would be the end of World War II, Japan’s military forces were significantly weakened and essentially defeated. Yet, the Japanese military refused to sign the dotted line. The Allies demanded an unconditional surrender, in which they refused. There were no warnings in advanced that the United States would use new and devastating weapons of mass destruction. Although there were some indications of a possible surrender by Japan in the near-future, they were ignored.

Roughly three months before the bombings, focus shifts to USSR (abbreviated Union of Soviet Socialist Republics). Neutral at this point in the war, U.S. intelligence advised that if the USSR joined the Allies in order to combat the Axis, Japan would realize that defeat is inevitable. Although Japan still had roughly 2 million solders ready for war at their home islands, it would be no match against the additional forces of the USSR. The U.S. did everything in her power to urge USSR to join the Allies and put an end to the war, which they did. President Truman was now in another dilemma, and was short on time. If the Allies were to win and U.S. were to fall into another great depression, would leaving much of Asia and Europe in the hands of Stalin be a smart idea?  Truman was determined to put an end to this before the Allies would suffer further causalities, which led to the testing of the Atomic bombs. In a personal letter to his wife, he wrote “I’ve gotten what I came for—Stalin goes to war August 15 with no strings on it…I’ll say that we’ll end the war a year sooner now”

On August 6, 1945, bomber jet “Enola Gay” dropped nuclear Atomic bomb “Little Boy” directly on Hiroshima. The bomb, equivalent to roughly 20,000 of TNT, instantly obliterated the city and set fire to surrounding areas for many miles. 70,000 civilians died instantly, with almost the same number dying in the coming years due to radiation. 3 days after the Hiroshima bombing, Nagasaki was targeted for the second bombing. On August 9, 1945, “Bock’s Car” would drop another nuclear bomb named “Fat Man” on Nagasaki. 70,000 civilians were either injured or killed.

Many considerable issues played into the decision to drop the bombs on Japan. The U.S. already suffered major casualties due to war, and more were being lost due to Japanese Kamikaze pilots. Territorial issues in Europe and Asia also played a major role in the decision to annihilate cities using nuclear weapons. However, treaties and laws of war and made for reasons such as this. Justifying the harsh and compulsive actions of the U.S. at that point in time are quite difficult. Furthermore, Admiral William D. Leahy, Chief of Staff to President Truman stated “The use of [the atomic bombs] at Hiroshima and Nagasaki was of no material assistance in our war against Japan. The Japanese were already defeated and ready to surrender.” However, the ethical debate of whether the atomic bombs should have been dropped or not will never come to a close.

To this day, Japan is still seeing the effects of radiation of the bombings back in 1945.