Atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki expressed concern Friday about reports that the United States plans to withdraw from a 1987 bilateral nuclear arms control treaty it inked with Russia.

"While demanding denuclearization of North Korea, the United States itself is going against the move toward nuclear disarmament. It lacks coherence," said Junji Maki, 88, a survivor of the 1945 U.S. bombing who lives in Hiroshima.

(Photo taken Dec. 14, 2018, shows the cenotaph for victims of the 1945 Hiroshima atomic bombing, with Atomic Bomb Dome in the background in Hiroshima.)

"The withdrawal is very worrying. A country with nuclear weapons should show discipline and work toward their abolishment," Maki said. "I want to believe in the power of sensible people in the United States."

After announcing the policy shift, Washington is planning to start Saturday a six-month process to withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. The decision to pull out is in response to alleged violations of the pact by Moscow, according to U.S. media reports.

"The pact should have been maintained. I fear this decision would affect not only the United States and Russia, but also prompt other nuclear powers to move toward nuclear proliferation," said Kunihiko Sakuma, 74, who heads a Hiroshima chapter of Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations.

"It's an unforgivable act that runs counter to the growing international momentum toward nuclear disarmament," said Miyako Jodai, 79, an A-bomb survivor in Nagasaki.

"The Japanese government should make a serious protest as the only country to have suffered nuclear attacks and warn about the misery caused by nuclear arms," she said.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki were attacked by U.S. atomic bombs on Aug. 6 and 9, 1945, respectively, in the final stages of World War II.

The United States has long contended that Russia has been in violation of the INF treaty by deploying a range of tactical nuclear weapons to intimidate former Soviet states that have aligned with the West. Russia, however, denies violating the accord.