Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

US President Barack Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited Hiroshima, site of the world's first atomic bomb attack, on Friday - a trip that Japanese media is lauding as "historic." 

Japan has eagerly awaited this long hoped-for first visit. In the autumn of 2009, then US ambassador to Japan John Victor Roos paid a private visit to Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park soon after he assumed the post. Roos became the first US ambassador to attend the peace memorial ceremony in Hiroshima on August 6, 2010 and the commemoration ceremony of the atomic bombing in Nagasaki on August 9, 2012. These visits paved the way for the Hiroshima trips by US Secretary of State John Kerry as well as Obama.

Did Japan anticipate a US apology for dropping the nuclear bombs? If so, they must be disappointed that Obama didn't offer an apology in his speech at Hiroshima. However, according to a poll conducted by Japan's Kyodo News Agency, 98 percent of those surveyed saw the visit as a positive move.

In an opinion poll conducted by Japanese public broadcaster NHK last year, 44 percent of Hiroshima residents considered the use of the atomic bombs during WWII as "something that was inevitable."

Since an apology was not included in Obama's Hiroshima speech, why on Earth was it so well received?

Obama called to "ultimately eliminate the existence of nuclear weapons," a lofty ideal that deserves respect. However, just as the president himself wrote in March, the elimination of all nuclear weapons may not happen in his lifetime. It's unlikely that Congress would pass a bill demanding the US abandon its nuclear weapons.

Obama's ambitions recall those of former Japanese prime minister Junichiro Koizumi, who has devoted his retirement to nuclear-free advocacy. Their statuses as outgoing and retired politicians have enabled them to loudly appeal for their ideals, even if such ideals may run counter to national interests.

Of course, the legacy of Obama's Hiroshima visit is not merely a noble ideal. The Sankei Shimbun on Saturday published an article saying that the visit has eliminated WWII hostilities between Japan and the US. Instead of holding both China and the US as equal enemies, Japan and the US can now further cement their alliance to contain China, read the article.

But can Obama's visit to Hiroshima really help consolidate the US-Japan relationship?

The reason why Japan suffered nuclear attacks was that it waged a series of invasive wars, which the Americans believe began with the attack on Pearl Harbor. "Does President Obama ever discuss the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor while he's in Japan? Thousands of American lives lost. #MDW" US presidential frontrunner Donald Trump tweeted on Saturday.

If Japan really hopes to consolidate its alliance with the US by commemorating history, it should squarely face that history. More importantly, it should deeply reflect on the atrocities it committed in countries such as China and South Korea during WWII. 

The author is an assistant research fellow at the Institute of Japanese Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.opinion@globaltimes.com.cn Follow us on Twitter @GTopinion