Takaichi makes ritual offering to Yasukuni Shrine
The prime minister is expected to skip a visit to the Shinto shrine during the three-day festival, which runs through Monday.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi performed a ritual offering at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on Saturday, marking the beginning of the shrine's autumn festival. The offering, made in her official capacity, was a masakaki tree stand. Takaichi is anticipated to refrain from visiting Yasukuni Shrine during the three-day festival, which concludes on Monday.
She had previously skipped visiting the shrine during its spring festival in April and the August 15 anniversary of Japan's World War II surrender. Yasukuni Shrine is viewed by nations like China and South Korea as a symbol of Japan's wartime militarism, as it commemorates Class-A war criminals in addition to the country's war dead.
Among her cabinet members, Minoru Kiuchi, who oversees growth strategy, visited the shrine on Saturday. Additionally, Lower House speaker Eisuke Mori, Senate President Masakazu Sekiguchi, and Health Minister Kenichiro Ueno also made masakaki offerings. Takaichi had previously visited the shrine during its festivals, including while serving as a cabinet minister.
However, she has not done so since the autumn festival in October of last year, shortly before assuming the prime minister role. Her decision to skip the shrine visit is believed to prioritize diplomatic relations with China, which have been tense due to her comments about a potential contingency involving Taiwan. Relations with South Korea have been improving, however.
On August 15, Takaichi prayed toward Yasukuni Shrine from the parking area of the Nippon Budokan hall, where she participated in a national war anniversary ceremony.
Written by urgent.news from Japan Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
