New Japan PM Shigeru Ishiba sends offering to Yasukuni war shrine

Japanese Shinto priests attend a ritual during an autumn festival at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, Japan, October 17, 2024. | Photo Credit: Reuters

Japan’s new Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Thursday (October 17, 2024) sent a ritual offering to a shrine honouring the country’s war dead that has long angered neighbouring countries, a spokesperson for the site said.

Seoul expressed “deep disappointment that responsible leaders in Japan have once again offered tribute to the Yasukuni Shrine”.

No Japanese premier has visited Yasukuni Shrine since 2013 and Ishiba's predecessor Fumio Kishida would also regularly send offerings for its biannual spring and autumn festivals.

Yasukuni in central Tokyo is dedicated to 2.5 million war dead, mostly Japanese, who have perished in conflicts since the late 19th century.

But this includes senior military and political figures convicted by an international tribunal of war crimes prior to and during World War II.

Every year, dozens of lawmakers pay their respects during the spring and autumn festival and in August for the anniversary of the emperor announcing Japan's surrender in 1945.