Japan's Ishiba Makes First Offering at Yasukuni Shrine... Also Meets Families of Abductees

Shigeru Ishiba, the Japanese Prime Minister who took office this month, offered a tribute at Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine, where Class A war criminals from the Pacific War are enshrined, on the 17th. He also met with families of Japanese victims abducted by North Korea and expressed his willingness for dialogue between the leaders of Japan and North Korea.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to local media including public broadcaster NHK, Prime Minister Ishiba, on the occasion of the autumn Reitaisai (annual grand festival) that began that day, offered a tribute called "Masakaki" in the name of "Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba." This is understood to be the first time he has offered a tribute at Yasukuni Shrine since taking office.

It is known that Ishiba will not visit Yasukuni Shrine during the Reitaisai period. This is similar to the actions of former Prime Ministers Fumio Kishida and Yoshihide Suga, who, during their terms, did not visit Yasukuni Shrine on occasions such as the Reitaisai and Japan’s defeat anniversary but instead offered tributes or tribute payments. The last sitting Japanese Prime Minister to visit Yasukuni Shrine was Shinzo Abe in 2013. Kyodo News analyzed, "It appears that Prime Minister Ishiba has followed the established response so far, considering the backlash from China and South Korea."

Yasukuni Shrine, a sacred site for Japanese right-wing groups, is a facility commemorating the spirits of approximately 2,466,000 people who died in civil wars around the Meiji Restoration and numerous wars waged by Imperial Japan. Fourteen Class A war criminals from the Pacific War, including former Prime Minister Hideki Tojo who was executed following the International Military Tribunal for the Far East (Tokyo Trials), are also enshrined there.

On the 17th, offerings donated by Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba were placed at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, Japan. [Image source=Yonhap News]

On the same day, Ishiba met for the first time since taking office with families of Japanese victims abducted by North Korea, including the mother of Megumi Yokota, a symbolic figure among the abductees, at his official residence. He said, "The government shares the determination to resolve this issue by any means and will do its best," adding, "It is very important for the leaders to have a broad judgment and to honestly discuss their thoughts with each other." This was interpreted as expressing his willingness for a summit with North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong Un. However, his predecessor, Prime Minister Kishida, also attempted to hold talks with Chairman Kim but failed to achieve results.

At this meeting, Sakie Yokota, Megumi’s mother, also requested an early summit between Japan and North Korea. Takuya Yokota, Megumi’s younger brother and representative of the "Association of Families of Victims Kidnapped by North Korea," expressed opposition to Ishiba’s campaign promise to establish mutual liaison offices between the two countries, saying it would only waste time.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.