Armaments

Press, 17 March 1982, Page 26

Armaments

Sir,—l do not see how A. Delhanty (March 16) can believe that the brutal destruction of two Japanese cities shortened the war in Europe. The two nuclear devices were dropped three months after Germany had surrendered. Nor could this destruction have stopped an invasion of Australia and New Zealand. At the time of the bombs being dropped Japan was in no position to launch an invasion, Okinawa had fallen to the United States and Allied troops were right on its doorstep. All the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki did was kill hundreds of thousands of civilians.—Yours, etc.. CHRIS O’DONOGHUE. March 16, 1982. Sir,—A. Delhanty's knowledge of history is as faulty as the conclusions he draws from it (March 16). How could America’s "prompt action” (atomic bombing Japan. August, 1945) have "prevented a planned Japanese invasion of Australia and New Zealand arid shortened the war in Europe?”

Japan was well beaten before these bombs were dropped, and in no position to invade anyone. The war in Europe was all over three months earlier (May. 1945). How could. the Western news media have, known what was going on in Russia, during and after the war, when their combined Associated Press then had only a tiny handful of correspondents —’ in Moscow only eight — according to. Phillip Knightley's Overseas Press Club award-winning book “The First Casualty" (1975) — an outstandingly authoritative account of the myth-making, censorship, and manipulation of war reporting, from the Crimean to Vietnam wars. — Yours, etc., M. T. MOORE. March 16, 1982.