The Wall Street Journal reports: "Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday visited a controversial Tokyo shrine seen by Asian neighbors as a symbol of the country's past militarism, in a move that quickly drew angry responses from Beijing and Seoul, and disapproval from Washington".
The visit to the Yasukuni Shrine in central Tokyo came as a surprise as Mr. Abe had so far refrained from going, stressing that he wanted to avoid turning the matter into a diplomatic issue.
"I offered my respects to those who lost their precious lives for our country, and prayed that their souls may rest in peace," he told reporters after the visit. "I have no intention at all of hurting the feelings of the Chinese or the South Korean people."
Mr. Abe had repeatedly said he regretted not visiting the shrine during his first tenure as prime minister from 2006 to 2007, and Thursday's visit, which comes exactly a year after he returned to power, is seen as a reflection of his convictions as well as a move to appeal to his conservative support base.
Wearing a formal morning coat and a silver white tie, the prime minister walked slowly up the steps leading to the shrine's main altar, led by a Shinto priest.
Many Asian nations that suffered under Japan's wartime actions see the Yasukuni, which honors convicted Class A war criminals along with Japan's war dead, as representing Tokyo's past militarism.
China's foreign ministry criticized Thursday's visit as the latest attempt by Mr. Abe to gloss over Japan's militaristic past and said it would further harm relations already tense from a dispute over contested East China Sea islands.
"Under these conditions, not only does the Japanese leader not show restraint, but instead makes things worse by manufacturing another incident over history and creating a new political obstacle to the improvement and development of relations between the two countries," spokesman Qin Gang said in a statement. "Japan must bear all the consequences arising from this."
Seoul also decried the move. "Our government cannot but deplore and express anger about Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to the Yasukuni Shrine despite concerns from neighboring countries and the international community," said Yoo Jin-ryong, a South Korean spokesman, reading from a statement.
