安倍晋三参拜有争议的靖国神社

Japan's Abe Visits Controversial War Shrine

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has paid respects at a Tokyo war shrine that many of Japan's neighbors see as a symbol of its militaristic past.

The visit to the Yasukuni Shrine, the first by a sitting Japanese prime minister since 2006, was quickly condemned by South Korea and China, both victims of imperialist Japan's aggression.

Mr. Abe downplayed the political impact of the Thursday visit, saying it was not meant to hurt the feelings of Japan's neighbors, but was a sign of respect for his country's war dead.

The Shinto shrine honors Japan's nearly 2.5 million war dead, including 14 convicted World War II war criminals.

China's foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang immediately slammed Mr. Abe's visit as "absolutely unacceptable to the Chinese people" and demanded Tokyo "reflect on its history of aggression."

The Xinhua news agency also said China will "make solemn representations" in Beijing and Tokyo on Thursday to protest the visit.

South Korea's minister of culture, sports and tourism, Yoo Jinryong, labeled the move as "anachronistic" and said it will hurt South Korea-Japan ties.

The U.S., a strong ally of Tokyo, said in a statement via its embassy in Japan that it is "disappointed" the country's leaders have undertaken an action that will "exacerbate tensions" with its neighbors.日本首相安倍晋三参拜了靖国神社，而日本的很多邻国将靖国神社视为日本军国主义历史的象征。

中国和韩国立即对安倍参拜靖国神社的做法予以谴责。中韩两国都是日本帝国主义侵略的受害者。自2006年以来，这是日本现任首相首次参拜靖国神社。

安倍晋三对星期四参拜靖国神社的政治含义进行淡化处理，声称此举并非有意伤害邻国的感情，而是对战争死难者表示敬意。

靖国神社供奉着将近250万日本战争亡灵牌位，其中包括14名二战战犯。

中国外交部发言人秦刚立即表示，中国人民完全不能接受安倍参拜靖国神社的做法，并要求东京“对自己的侵略历史进行反思”。

中国官方的新华社说，中国星期四将在北京和东京对安倍参拜靖国神社表示严正抗议。

韩国文化体育观光部长官刘震龙说，安倍参拜靖国神社是“不合时宜”的，并表示此举将损害韩日关系。

美国通过驻日使馆发表声明，对日本领导人采取这一举动表示“失望”，并说这种做法将加剧日本与邻国之间的紧张关系。