Question

K12 ~ 5.09: War's End

Answer 1

While there is a widespread belief that using nuclear weapons against Japan during the end of WWII precipitated the Empire's surrender, saving thousands of soldiers' lives from both armies, an ongoing debate is still taking place on the real effects that the bombs had on the Japanese decision to surrender.

After the surrender of the Germans and Italians, the Empire of Japan faced an overwhelming enemy force and its defeat was practically inevitable. However, they seemed to be willing to fight until they were completely defeated. That is why some believe that the use of the nuclear weapons persuaded the Japanese authorities to surrender or face total destruction.

In spite of that, some authors (such as Robert Pape) believe that it was the invation of Manchuria by the Soviets the decisive factor in the end of the war not the use of atomic bombs.

Ultimately, one could reach the conclusion that the use of nuclear weapons by Truman was not the correct decision since 1) it caused the death of tens of thousands of civilians 2) The Empire of Japan was outnumbered by the allies and the Soviet Union and its defeat was almost inevitable 3) the use of nuclear weapons on entire cities can not be justified with the attack on Pearl Harbour since one war crime cannot justify another one.