South Korea protests Japanese defence chief's visit to war shrine

Record ID: 162714

  • Title: South Korea protests Japanese defence chief's visit to war shrine
  • Date: 29th December 2016
  • Summary: SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA (DECEMBER 29, 2016) (REUTERS) **** WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY **** MINISTER COUNSELLOR AND HEAD OF CHANCERY, EMBASSY OF JAPAN IN THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA, KOHEI MARUYAMA, WALKING TOWARDS ENTRANCE OF SOUTH KOREAN FOREIGN MINISTRY BUILDING MARUYAMA ENTERING AND WALKING INSIDE OF SOUTH KOREAN FOREIGN MINISTRY BUILDING SOUTH KOREAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN, CHO JUNE-HYUCK, WALKING TO NEWS BRIEFING ROOM JOURNALISTS SEATED CHO STANDING AT PODIUM (SOUNDBITE) (Korean) SOUTH KOREAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN, CHO JUNE-HYUCK, SAYING: "Our government cannot but deplore that a Japanese politician in a position of responsibility paid respects to the Yasukuni Shrine which glorifies Japan's past colonial infliction and invasive war and enshrines war criminals." JOURNALISTS SEATED (SOUNDBITE) (Korean) SOUTH KOREAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN, CHO JUNE-HYUCK, SAYING: "Our government once again points out that Japan could recover trust from its neighbours and the international society only when Japanese leaders take actions reflecting humble self-examination and sincere repentance while facing up to history correctly." NEWS BRIEFING IN PROGRESS EXTERIOR OF SOUTH KOREAN FOREIGN MINISTRY BUILDING SIGN READING (Korean and English): "MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS"
  • Embargoed: 13th January 2017 06:53
  • Keywords: japanese defence minister tomomi inada yasukuni shrine war deads south korea protest summon
  • Location: SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA
  • City: SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA
  • Country: South Korea
  • Topics: Diplomacy/Foreign Policy,Government/Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA0015EXRMMD
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:South Korea's foreign ministry summoned a Japanese envoy based in Seoul on Thursday (December 29) to protest against a visit by Japan's defence minister to Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine.
    The ministry's director general for northeast Asian affairs, Chung Byung-won, summoned the minister counsellor of the Japanese embassy to Seoul, Kohei Maruyama, to condemn the visit to the controversial war shrine, which honours Japanese who lost their lives in the country's wars, including those executed for war crimes.
    South Korea's foreign ministry called the visit "deplorable".
    "Our government cannot but deplore that a Japanese politician in a position of responsibility paid respects to the Yasukuni Shrine which glorifies Japan's past colonial infliction and invasive war and enshrines war criminals," said South Korean foreign ministry's spokesman, Cho June-hyuck, at a regular news briefing in Seoul.
    "Our government once again points out that Japan could recover trust from its neighbours and the international society only when Japanese leaders take actions reflecting humble self-examination and sincere repentance while facing up to history correctly," Cho added.
    Japanese Defence Minister Tomomi Inada on Thursday made a visit to the war shrine just after accompanying Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on a historic visit to Pearl Harbor, where Japan's attack brought the United States into World War Two.
    Visits to the shrine by prominent Japanese officials anger neighbours China and South Korea, which consider Yasukuni a symbol of Japan's militarism and a reminder of its wartime atrocities.
    Inada joined Abe and Barack Obama on Tuesday (December 27) for the first visit by a Japanese leader and a U.S. president to Pearl Harbor to commemorate the victims of the Japanese attack 75 years ago.
    It was Inada's first Yasukuni homage since the hawkish politician became defence chief in August. A regular visitor to the complex, revered by Japanese nationalists, she was visiting Japanese troops in Africa on the Aug. 15 anniversary of Japan's surrender, a key date for commemorations.
    Abe visited Yasukuni in December 2013 but has since refrained, instead sending symbolic offerings on key memorial dates.
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