Japanese cabinet minister visits Yasukuni Shrine

Japanese Cabinet minister Yoshitaka Shindo visited the war-related Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on Wednesday, in a move that is certain to fuel anger in China and South Korea, both of which suffered from Japanese wartime aggression, Japan’s News Agency (Kyodo) reported. The visit by Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Shindo on New Year’s Day came after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made a surprise visit to the Shinto shrine on Dec. 26, sparking sharp criticism from Japan’s Asian neighbors and disappointing the United States, Tokyo’s closest ally. After praying at the shrine, Shindo told reporters the visit was to allow him to pay his respects to those who lost their lives in war, and to pray for peace.