A Chinese diplomat made an unprecedented appearance at the 63rd anniversary of the world's first nuclear attack in the Japanese city of Hiroshima yesterday.

Chinese ambassador to Japan Cui Tiankai attended a memorial for victims of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, 10 years after the city started inviting nuclear powers to the annual event.

The presence of the Chinese representative will help achieve the goal of abolishing atomic weapons, a spokesperson for the city of Hiroshima said before the ceremony.

"Citizens of Hiroshima heartily welcome the Chinese diplomat. We are looking forward to the complete abolition of nuclear weapons and I believe it (the attendance) is a positive step," the spokesperson was quoted by local media as saying.

Hiroshima invited 144 countries to attend its memorial this year. Fifty-five countries sent their representatives yesterday, surpassing the record number of 42 representatives who attended the memorial last year.

India and Pakistan have sent representatives to the Hiroshima memorials, while Russia has sent diplomats there for nine consecutive years.

The other nuclear powers - the US, Britain and France - have never attended the ceremony.

(China Daily August 7, 2008)