9 August 2024
This week the Australian Government has participated in a week of events to respect those that died in World War Two, and to promote reconciliation, solidarity and friendship with Japan.
On 4 August, Prime Minister Albanese attended the 80th anniversary of the Cowra Breakout where he laid a wreath to remember and honour the 238 people who lost their lives in the largest prisoner of war escape of the Second World War.
The town of Cowra is a symbol of reconciliation between Australia and Japan where, for 80 years, the Cowra community has tended to the graves of the fallen Japanese prisoners of war.
The Australian Ambassador to Japan, HE Justin Hayhurst, was honoured to attend the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony on 6 August to express Australia’s condolences for the victims.
Today, the Australian Embassy participated in the Nagasaki Peace Ceremony also to pay our respects to those who perished as a result of the atomic bomb.
Australia works closely with Japan to achieve a world without nuclear weapons.
Speaking on the 80th anniversary of the Cowra Breakout, Prime Minister Albanese rededicated Australia to peace and to the Japan-Australia relationship saying “it is important to remember that out of those very dark days of World War Two, has grown a friendship between our two nations. A friendship based upon mutual respect and admiration and cooperation…that interaction has enriched both of our countries and it is a reminder of how we must strive for peace.”
Photo 1. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese laying wreath in Cowra 4 August 2024.
Photo 2. Official program of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony 6 August 2024.
Photo 3. Australian Embassy in Tokyo attends the Nagasaki Peace Ceremony 9 August 2024.