Image: Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attends a news conference for delivering a statement marking the 70th anniversary of World War Two’s end, at his official residence in Tokyo August 14, 2015. REUTERS/Toru Hanai
TOKYO (Reuters) – Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, in a statement marking the 70th anniversary of World War Two’s end, acknowledged Japan had inflicted “immeasurable damage and suffering” on innocent people but said generations not involved in the conflict should not be burdened with continued apologies.
Abe’s remarks are being closely watched abroad for whether the conservative leader is watering down past apologies.
The legacy of the war still haunts relations with China and South Korea, which suffered under Japan’s sometimes brutal occupation and colonial rule before Tokyo’s defeat in 1945.
Beijing and Seoul have made clear that they want Abe, seen by many as a revisionist who wants to play down the dark side of Japan’s wartime past, to stick to a 1995 “heartfelt apology” by then-premier Tomiichi Murayama for suffering caused by Tokyo’s “colonial rule and aggression”. The United States also wants Abe to avoid inflaming tensions in the region.
(Reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka; Writing by Linda Sieg; Editing by Edmund Klamann)
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