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Pope Francis at the zero point of the explosion of the atomic bomb in Nagasaki, November 24, 2019. REUTERS / Remo Casilli

This Sunday, in the second Japanese city destroyed by an atomic bomb in 1945, Pope Francis called for the abolition of nuclear weapons, arguing against the perverse and indefensible principle of nuclear deterrence.

In a pouring rain, at the zero point of the explosion of the American hydrogen bomb at Nagasaki on August 9, 1945, Francis became the first pope on Sunday to vote against the moral illegitimacy of the possession of nuclear weapons , our analysis correspondent in Tokyo, Frédéric Charles . Until now, the Vatican was content to rise up against the destructive power of the atomic weapon and considered nuclear deterrence as the least evil.

" False security "

International peace and stability are incompatible with any attempt to count on the fear of mutual destruction or the threat of total annihilation, added the pontiff. " The possession of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction is not the most appropriate response, " the pope said, citing a " false security " that he believes exacerbates tensions in the world.

► Also read: Who owns the atomic bomb in the world?

Then the Argentinian Jesuit denounced the whole armaments industry: " In today's world, where millions of children and families live in inhuman conditions, the money spent and the fortunes engaged in manufacturing , the modernization, maintenance and sale of ever more destructive weapons, are a continual outrage that cries out to the sky, "he said.

The visit of the pope is of little interest to the Japanese, only 3% are Christians. But in pronouncing itself against the possession of the atomic weapon, it is a sensation in Japan. He welcomes those who oppose Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's intention to revise the pacifist constitution. And it embarrasses the Japanese government, which has still not ratified the treaty on the prohibition of atomic weapons , as two-thirds of the UN member states have done.

Japanese divided

The editorials of the conservative and nationalist Japanese press are besides severe with the fight of the pope that they consider unrealistic, reports our correspondent in Tokyo, Bruno Duval . This is also the opinion of this retiree. " These pacifist theses are very worrying," he says. Japan lives under the threat of two dictatorships: China and North Korea. So, whatever the pope thinks, the US nuclear umbrella that protects us is indispensable. Japan should even rearm itself by revising its pacifist constitution of 1947, which prevents it from defending itself against its enemies. "

But not everyone agrees. Like this Japanese Buddhist confession, very attached to pacifism. " The Pope's speech impressed me. In addition, he said it in a place as symbolic as Nagasaki, it affects me a lot, he says. I share his point of view on nuclear disarmament. I am also sorry that Japan, the only country victim of atomic weapons, refuses to sign the UN treaty. "

Nuclear umbrella

More than 10 million Japanese have signed a petition calling for a ban on nuclear weapons around the world. But the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe does not want to hear anything. He believes that, for its security, Japan can not do without the nuclear umbrella of its powerful American ally.

This Sunday, the pope must also go to Hiroshima , the city victim of the first atomic bombing of history, three days before Nagasaki, which killed 78,000 people instantly.