Tokyo, 15 August, /AJMEDIA/
Koichi Hagiuda, the chairman of the Policy Research Council of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, on Monday visited Tokyo’s Yasukuni shrine, a site seen by Japan’s neighbors as symbolizing the nation’s past militarism.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is not likely to visit Yasukuni Monday but is expected to send an offering to the controversial shrine as the country marks the 77th anniversary of the end of World War II.
Kishida, viewed as a liberal-leaning lawmaker within the conservative LDP, has not visited the Shinto shrine since taking office last October.
Former environment minister Shinjiro Koizumi also visited the shrine in central Tokyo which honors convicted war criminals along with more than 2.4 million war dead.