Tokyo, Aug 9 (IANS): Japan marked the 79th anniversary of the atomic bombing of its western city of Nagasaki on Friday, with the city mayor calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons.

Nagasaki Mayor Shiro Suzuki delivered a peace declaration during the annual event, Xinhua news agency reported.

A moment of silence was held at 11.02 a.m. local time, as this was the time when a US B-29 bomber dropped a plutonium-core atomic bomb, nicknamed Fat Man, on August 9, 1945, killing around 74,000 people in Nagasaki by the end of that year.

The port city remains the last place in the world to have suffered an atomic bomb attack.

"We also call for your dialogue and diplomatic efforts to explore a path toward peaceful solutions, no matter how difficult the path is, instead of choosing a path toward arms expansion or threats of force," Suzuki added.

Suzuki also demanded that the Japanese government sign and ratify a UN treaty banning nuclear weapons, and called for Japan to lead discussions to ease tensions and advance disarmament in Northeast Asia.

The ceremony at the Nagasaki Peace Park was attended by some 2,300 participants, including representatives from some 100 countries, according to the city government.

The atomic bombing of Nagasaki followed the one dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, with both bombings a means of accelerating the end of World War II and forcing Japan to surrender.

Japan brutally invaded and occupied many parts of Asia before and during World War II, inflicting untold suffering and heavy casualties on millions of innocent victims.