Japan marks WWII defeat anniversary with controversial shrine visits
Japan marked the 80th anniversary of its World War Two surrender on Friday, with Agriculture Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and other lawmakers visiting Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine — a site that honours 2.5 million war dead, including 14 convicted Class-A war criminals.
The visits, seen by China and South Korea as symbols of Japan’s wartime aggression, came as Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba attended a separate memorial alongside Emperor Naruhito, sending an offering to the shrine but avoiding a personal appearance, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
Former economic security ministers Sanae Takaichi and Takayuki Kobayashi, as well as dozens of members of the far-right Sanseito Party, also visited.
The anniversary falls ahead of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s planned visit to Japan next week for talks on regional security, as the two nations strengthen cooperation against shared threats from China’s assertiveness and North Korea’s nuclear program.
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