Japanese Prime Minister makes offering to controversial Shinto shrine – Observer

Japan’s new Prime Minister, Shigeru Ishiba, sent an offering of flowers this Thursday to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine, considered by many to be a symbol of Japan’s militaristic past, but refrained from visiting the site.

The Shinto shrine, located in Tokyo, pays tribute to the approximately 2.5 million soldiers who died during the Japanese-led conflicts from the late 19th century until 1945, including military and political leaders convicted of war crimes by an international tribunal after World War II.

Members of the authorities regularly visit the shrine, which angers Beijing and Seoul, as China and the Korean peninsula were the scene of crimes committed by Japanese soldiers in the first half of the 20th century.

However, no sitting Japanese prime minister has visited the shrine since 2013. Shinzo Abe’s visit that year provoked fury from China and South Korea and censure from Washington, Japan’s main ally.

Ishiba, in office since early October, is also expected to refrain from visiting the shrine during the autumn festival on Saturday, Kyodo news agency reported, citing a source close to the prime minister.

Japanese Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare Takamaro Fukuoka also sent an offering, the shrine’s spokesman told news agency France-Presse.