Japanese PM's Yasukuni visit could jeopardize regional harmony: FO
Japanese Prime Minister's visit to Yusukuni shrine drew criticism from China and South Korea.
(Web Desk) - Responding to a question regarding the visit by the Japanese Prime Minister to Yasukuni, the Spokesperson stated that countries should refrain from actions that hurt the sentiments of other countries in the region and evoke reactions that could jeopardize regional harmony.
The Foreign Office spokesperson stated that “It is our hope that issues of the past that create tensions would not be resurrected and spirit of cooperation will prevail.”
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe paid his respects on Thursday at a shrine honoruing Japan’s war dead in a move that drew sharp rebukes from China and South Korea who warned that the visit celebrates his country’s militaristic past and threatens to further sour already bad relations.
Visits to Yasukuni by Japanese politicians have long been a point of friction with China and South Korea, because the 2.5 million war dead enshrined there include 14 class A war criminals from World War II — national leaders who were either executed or died in prison or during their trials.
Abe, a nationalist who advocates revising Japan’s pacifist constitution, has always wanted to visit Yasukuni as prime minister, but his visit still surprised some analysts, who thought he might take a pragmatic approach to leadership that focused on reviving the economy and trying to avoid alienating neighbours.
It was the first visit by a sitting prime minister since Junichiro Koizumi went to mark the end of World War II in 2006.
