A ceremony in the Marshall Islands has marked 70 years since a US hydrogen bomb test at Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean.

Many islanders and crewmembers of the Daigo Fukuryu Maru from the central Japanese city of Yaizu and fishing boats from Kochi Prefecture, southwestern Japan, were exposed to radiation when the test was conducted on March 1, 1954.

A number of Japanese, including a relative of a crewmember from Kochi, attended the event in the capital, Majuro, on Friday. They called for the abolition of nuclear weapons.

A representative of the islanders who were forced to relocate from Bikini Atoll said in a speech that their sacrifice and suffering must never be forgotten. Some people wiped tears from their eyes.

Marshall Islands President Hilda Heine pledged to continue negotiations to seek compensation from the US government. She said moving forward means squarely facing the damage caused to people in the past, present and future, as well as to the environment.

The United States conducted 67 nuclear tests in the Marshall Islands through 1958.

Islanders who were exposed to radiation are suffering from health problems. Residents who had been forced to relocate and have not been able to return to their homeland are calling for compensation and support.

Shimomoto Setsuko traveled from Japan to attend the ceremony for the first time. Her father was on one of the vessels and died of cancer.

Shimomoto said she was glad to take part in the event. She added that she wants to share her anger at nuclear tests with other Japanese people.