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ByNancyBenac and Foster Klug The Associated Press HIROSHIMA, JAPAN With an unflinching look back at a painful history, Pres- ident Barack Obama stood on the hallowed ground of Hiroshima on Friday and declared it a fitting place to summon people every- where to embrace the vi- sion of a world without nu- clear weapons. As the first American president to visit the city where the U.S. dropped the first atomic bomb, Obama came to acknowledge — but not apologize for — an act many Americans see as a justified end to a bru- tal war that Japan started with a sneak attack at Pearl Harbor. Some 140,000 people died after a U.S. warplane targeted wartime Hiro- shima on Aug. 6, 1945, and 70,000 more perished in Nagasaki, where a second bomb was dropped three days later. Japan soon sur- rendered. "Their souls speak to us," Obama said of the dead. "They ask us to look in- ward, to take stock of who we are and who we might become." With a lofty speech and a warm embrace for an el- derly survivor, Obama re- newed the call for a nu- clear-free future that he had first laid out in a 2009 speech in Prague. This time, Obama spoke as a far more experienced president than the one who had employed his upbeat "Yes, we can" campaign slo- gan on the first go-round. The president, who has made uneven progress on his nuclear agenda over the past seven years, spoke of "the courage to escape the logic of fear" as he held out hope for diligent, in- cremental steps to reduce nuclear stockpiles. "We may not realize this goal in my lifetime, but per- sistent effort can roll back the possibility of catastro- phe," he said. Obama spent less than two hours in Hiroshima but seemed to accomplish what he came for. It was a cho- reographed performance meant to close old wounds without inflaming new passions on a subject still fraught after all these years. In a solemn ceremony on a sunwashed after- noon, Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe placed wreaths before the cenotaph, a simple arched stone monument at Hiro- shima's Peace Memorial Park. Only the clicking of camera shutters intruded on the moment as Obama closed his eyes and briefly bowed his head. Then, after each leader gave brief remark, Obama approached two aging sur- vivors of the bombing who were seated in the front row, standing in for the thousands still seared by memories of that day. Ninety-one-year-old Su- nao Tsuboi, the head of a survivors group, energet- ically engaged the presi- dent in conversation, tell- ing Obama he would be re- membered as someone who listened to the voice of a few survivors. He urged him to come back and meet more. Obama stepped over to meet historian Shigeaki Mori. Just 8 when the bomb hit, Mori had to hold back tears at the emotion of the moment. Obama patted him on the back and wrapped him in a warm embrace. From there, Obama and Abe walked along a tree- lined path toward a river that flows by the iconic A- bomb dome, the skeletal re- mains of an exhibition hall that stands as silent testi- mony to the awful power of the bomb blast 71 years ago and as a symbol for inter- national peace. Obama received a No- bel Peace Prize early in his presidency for his anti-nu- clear agenda but has seen uneven progress. The presi- dent can point to last year's Iran nuclear deal and a weapons treaty with Rus- sia. But North Korea's nu- clear program still looms as a threat, and hopes for a pact for further weap- ons reductions with Rus- sia have stalled. Critics also fault the administration for planning a big and costly program to upgrade U.S. nuclear stockpiles. JAPAN ObamausesHiroshimavisitas opportunity to urge no nukes THEASSOCIATEDPRESS U.S. President Barack Obama hugs Shigeaki Mori, an atomic bomb survivor and creator of the memorial for American WWII POWs killed at Hiroshima, during a ceremony at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima, western Japan, on Friday. By Derek Gatopoulos and Nicholas Paphitis The Associated Press ATHENS, GREECE On his first trip to a European Union country this year, Russian President Vladi- mir Putin on Friday sharply criticized western policy to- ward Moscow, describing a newly-expanded U.S. mis- sile defense system as a threat to his country's se- curity. Putin arrived in Ath- ens on a two-day visit and emerged from talks with the Greek government to lash the United States and NATO allies, also accusing them of stifling trade and energy cooperation with Russia. Earlier this month, the U.S. program was declared operation at a site in Roma- nia, drawing an angry re- action from Russia. NATO says the system is purely de- fensive and a response to a growing capability of ballis- tic missiles globally. "We keep hearing that it's not a threat against Russia, that it's not aimed at Russia," Putin said late Friday. "Of course it's a threat to us. It can easily be modi- fied to have an aggres- sive capability ... We are obliged to take action in response to guarantee our security," he said, without elaborating. Putin has made only a handful of visits to EU countries since sanctions were imposed on Moscow two years ago in response to the Ukraine crisis and Rus- sia's annexation of Crimea following an internationally disputed referendum. "The issue of Crimea is over forever, based on the will of the people who live there. Russia will never ne- gotiate on this issue," Pu- tin said. Athens is keen to main- tain its traditionally close ties with post-Soviet Rus- sia, despite its participa- tion in EU sanctions against Moscow, and a gas pipeline project designed to limit Russia's regional energy dominance. Russia is one of Greece's main trading partners, but business has been hit by the sanctions and a drop in commodity prices. Greece is also keen to re- verse a slump in tourist ar- rivals from Russia last year, and attract interest from Russian companies in the planned privatization of rail and other transport services. Alexis Tsipras, the Greek prime minister, noted that Putin's visit comes just days after Athens reached a deal with eurozone bailout cred- itors to continue rescue loans, under a deal that expands power of a state privatization committee. "Improving relations with Russia on multiple levels is a strategic choice," Tsipras said. "Of course ... when the disagreements ex- ceed our powers, we can act a positive influence within the EU and NATO." Putin traveled to Greece with Russian Foreign Min- ister Sergey Lavrov and top executives from state oil and gas companies. Amid heavy security at Athens Airport, air force F-16s buzzed overhead as part of a welcoming ceremony. "This will be the first time Putin has visited an EU country in the past six months and Russia-EU re- lations will be definitely on the agenda," said Alexander Kokcharov of the U.S.-based IHS Country Risk group. "Putin is likely to of- fer investment projects in Greece, most likely in en- ergy and transport sectors. However, we do not ex- pect that Greece would go against the EU consensus." GREECE Putin blasts West on first trip to EU country this year InPrintEveryTuesday-Thursday-Saturday Online:Publishes24/7 www.redbluffdailynews.com Threeadditionalonline locations at no extra cost! 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