They would solve the issue only if the language itself forbid the programmer from creating cyclic strong references. If that's the case, then I was wrong in my

They would solve the issue only if the language itself forbid the programmer from creating cyclic strong references. If that's the case, then I was wrong in my original comment. Although the thought of forbidding arbitrary references feels a little restrictive to me - it would be placing the burden of keeping a tree of references onto the programmer. I don't know how well that works in practice. Perhaps trying out some of the mentioned languages would be insightful.