King Charles III leads 80th VJ Day commemorations, honouring veterans and urging peace amid today’s global conflicts. Image: Daily Mail.
(The Post News) -King Charles III led Britain’s 80th VJ Day commemorations on Friday, marking the Allied victory over Japan that brought World War II to an end. He warned that the cost of war “reaches beyond battlefields.” Speaking at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, Charles reflected on the “immense price” paid by Hiroshima and Nagasaki after the American atomic bombings of August 1945. He stressed that no nation should ever suffer such devastation again.
The King met British, Commonwealth, and Allied troops who fought in the Pacific after Europe’s war ended in May 1945. Known as the “Forgotten Army,” these veterans served alongside tens of thousands of prisoners of war and civilians. They endured “grievous hardships” under Japanese captivity.
“War’s true price strikes every corner of life,” Charles said. “In peace and in war, the most potent weapons are not the weapons you bear, but the bonds you forge.”
Charles and Queen Camilla attended the national ceremony alongside Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, the Japanese ambassador, and more than 30 veterans aged between 96 and 105. The royal couple laid wreaths, observed a two-minute silence, and watched a flypast by the RAF’s Red Arrows. Starmer praised the veterans, saying Britain was “deeply in their debt” for securing a better future.
Veterans shared moving memories of the Far East campaign. Yavar Abbas, who is 105, thanked the king after recently undergoing cancer treatment. This moment visibly moved the queen. Actress Celia Imrie read a wartime account from the Far East, while poet Sir Ben Okri honored Commonwealth soldiers who fought in Burma.
Global Commemoration
Bagpipers played at sunrise at the Cenotaph, Edinburgh Castle, and in Nepal, Brunei, New Zealand, Japan, and aboard HMS Prince of Wales. A piper also performed in a Japanese peace garden in London to commemorate reconciliation between the nations.
On Friday night, landmarks across Britain lit up in tribute. Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London, and the White Cliffs of Dover were all illuminated. Singapore’s Kranji War Memorial also glowed in remembrance.
VJ Day, observed every year on 15 August, marks Japan’s surrender in 1945. This year’s commemorations will conclude in autumn with a Windsor Castle reception for veterans.
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