Nuclear Weapons Have Ongoing Humanitarian and Environmental Impacts 2 NUCLEAR WEAPONS HAVE ONGOING HUMANITARIAN AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS In 1945, the US atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, killed more than 200,000 people. Those who survived have faced many difficulties. As of March 2017, there were more than 164,000 hibakusha(atomic bomb survivors) living in Japan, 1 who face elevated rates of cancer and other health problems. 2 Ionizing radiation has a disproportionate impact on women, who have also struggled with pervasive social stigma. 3 These early nuclear detonations had a global impact, as a considerable number of foreigners were also exposed to the blasts and subsequent radioactive contamination. Nota­bly, 22,000 Korean nationals(many of whom were coerced into labor and sexual slavery) died and 30,000 survived the atomic bombings. 4 There were Allied prisoners of war in both cities, including American, Australian, British, and Dutch sol­diers, as well as students from China, Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia, and other residents from Germany and Russia. 5 More than 250,000 troops from the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, India, and Nepal served in the occupation forces in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Many of these»atomic veterans« have experienced health problems attributable to exposure to ionizing radiation. 6 Box 1: States/territories where nuclear weapon detonations have taken place 7 Affected state/territory Algeria Australia China* DPRK(North Korea) French Polynesia(non-self governing territory administered by France) India Japan Kazakhstan Kiribati Marshall Islands Pakistan Russia Turkmenistan Ukraine United States Uzbekistan Total within territories controlled by states Open ocean(not under jurisdiction of any one state) TOTAL In atmosphere (tests or, where indicated, use in war) 4(by France) 12(by UK) 23 46(by France) 2(WWII atomic bombings by USA) 125(by Soviet Union; including 9 missile tests from Russia) 33(9 by UK and 24 by USA) 66(by USA; not including 1 detonation over open ocean) 88(by Soviet Union; not including launches of 9 mis­sile tests that detonated inside Kazakhstan) 113(including 12 at Johnston Atoll and the Trinity test) 512 7(by USA, 3 in South Atlantic; 4 in Pacific)** 519 Underground tests(includes »peaceful nuclear explosions«) 13(by France) 22 6 147(by France) 6 372(by Soviet Union) 6 125(by Soviet Union) 1(by Soviet Union) 2(by Soviet Union) 939(24 with UK) 2(by Soviet Union) 1,641 1,641 Total 17 12 45 6 193 6 2 497 33 66 6 213 1 2 1,052 2 2,153 7 2,160 * The three failed Chinese tests, including two in 1979(one underground, one atmospheric) and one in 1992(underground), are not included in this table. ** The 1979 ›South Atlantic Flash,‹ which some analysts believe was a South African and/or Israeli atmospheric nuclear test, is not included in this table, due to lack of confirmation. 3