The Japanese Prime Minister today visited the controversial Yasukuni shrine dedicated to Japan's war dead, including convicted war criminals.
In visiting the shrine in central Tokyo, Mr Junichiro Koizumi again provoked protests from neighbours victimised by Japanese colonial aggression.
Dressed formally Mr Koizumi spent just one minute paying his respects out of sight of the media.
Honouring 2.5 million Japanese war dead, Yasukuni is widely seen as a symbol of Japan's former militarism, particularly since 1978 when it enshrined 14 Class-A war criminals including wartime prime minister Gen Hideki Tojo.
Mr Koizumi is only the third prime minister to visit the shrine since 1978. Mr Koizumi's pilgrimage came amid efforts for closer co-operation with Beijing and Seoul to confront the North Korean nuclear crisis. But he insisted such tributes to Japan's war dead would have no effect on the country's ties with its neighbours.
But China and South Korea were angry at the visit, Mr Koizumi's third since becoming prime minister. "The erroneous move by the Japanese prime minister seriously damages the political foundation of Sino-Japanese relations," a Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman said.
Chinese President Jiang Zemin had already warned his Japanese counterpart against further trips to Yasukuni.
AFP