Pope Francis, speaking in one of the only two cities hit by atomic bombs in history, has appealed for the abolition of nuclear weapons, saying their mere possession is perverse and indefensible.
"The possession of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction is not the answer (to longings for peace)," Francis said on Sunday in a message delivered at Nagasaki's Atomic Bomb Hypocenter Park - ground zero of the bomb the United States dropped on August 9, 1945, instantly killing 27,000 people.
"Our world is marked by a perverse dichotomy that tries to defend and ensure stability and peace through a false sense of security sustained by a mentality of fear and mistrust," the Pope said, speaking in a driving rain.
The faithful wait for Pope Francis at the Atomic Bomb Hypocenter Park. Source: AP
"Peace and international stability are incompatible with attempts to build upon the fear of mutual destruction or the threat of total annihilation."
The Pontiff also decried what he said was a dismantling of non-proliferation treaties.
Nagasaki was the second city to be hit by an atomic bomb during World War II.
Later on Sunday, the Pope is due to visit Hiroshima, site of the first blast, which instantly killed about 78,000 people.
Pope Francis at the Atomic Bomb Hypocenter Park. Source: AP
About 400,000 others eventually died of radiation illness and injuries caused by the two bombs, which the US dropped in an effort to end the war.
