80.9k views
4 votes
Why did President Harry Truman decide to hit the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki with two atomic bombs in 1945?

2 Answers

3 votes
He wanted the Japanese to surrender unconditionally. He dropped 2 because he thought that if he only dropped 1 bomb psychologically the Japanese would not surrender. So 2 would make them think that we have more and will keep dropping them.
User Wander Nauta
by
7.9k points
6 votes
He believed that if he attacked first he would save thousands of American lives if he scared the Japanese into surrendering
User Mindparse
by
8.6k points
Welcome to QAmmunity.org, where you can ask questions and receive answers from other members of our community.