French nationalist Jean-Marie Le Pen and other European right-wing politicians paid a visit yesterday to a Japanese shrine that has drawn outrage for honoring war criminals.
Le Pen, leader of the far-right French National Front and Adam Walker of the British National Party said they were making the visit, which comes a day ahead of the 65th anniversary of the end of World War II, to pay respect to those who died in war.
“What counts is the will that we had to honor those who have fallen for defending their country, whether they are Japanese, or any soldiers of the world, we have the same respect for them,” Le Pen told reporters.
PHOTO: EPA
Le Pen is known for his anti-immigrant and extremist views. He shocked France when he qualified for the second round of the 2002 presidential race, which Jacques Chirac eventually won.
The visit to Yasukuni, an ornate Shinto shrine in downtown Tokyo, was arranged by the International Conference of Patriotic Organisations, which brought together right-wing parties from eight European countries with members of a Japanese ultranationalist group called the Issuikai.
Yasukuni honors Japan’s war dead, including convicted war criminals. Pacifists and victims of Japanese aggression, such as China and the Koreas, say it glorifies Japan’s past militarism.
The visit by Le Pen and others may also anger some former prisoners of war in those countries being represented by the right-wing groups.
Tens of thousands of British, Dutch and other European soldiers and civilians were captured by the Japanese Imperial Army as it swept across Europe’s former Asian colonies at the beginning of World War II. Thousands were executed, tortured and starved to death in Japanese prisoner-of-war camps.
When asked about his visit, Walker said: “I’m honoring the dead. I am here to honor the dead — heroes that have died for their country.”
In the past, visits to Yasukuni by Japanese politicians have provoked outrage from China, South Korea and neighboring Asian countries.
Some lawmakers, as well as hundreds of regular Japanese whose relatives and friends died as soldiers in World War II, are expected to visit Yasukuni today to mark the end of World War II.
However, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan and his ministers are expected to shun the visit — the first time all members of a Japanese Cabinet will stay away.
Kan’s liberal Democratic Party defeated the long-reigning conservative Liberal Democrats for the first time in decades in last year’s parliamentary elections.
Earlier this week, Kan apologized to South Korea for its colonial rule and the suffering Japan caused the Korean people, and expressed hopes for a partnership.
Japanese leaders have repeatedly apologized for wartime aggression against its Asian neighbors, including a 1995 apology from a leftist-leaning prime minister that marked the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II.
Conflict with Taiwan could leave China with “massive economic disruption, catastrophic military losses, significant social unrest, and devastating sanctions,” a US think tank said in a report released on Monday. The German Marshall Fund released a report titled If China Attacks Taiwan: The Consequences for China of “Minor Conflict” and “Major War” Scenarios. The report details the “massive” economic, military, social and international costs to China in the event of a minor conflict or major war with Taiwan, estimating that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) could sustain losses of more than half of its active-duty ground forces, including 100,000 troops. Understanding Chinese
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said it is closely monitoring developments in Venezuela, and would continue to cooperate with democratic allies and work together for regional and global security, stability, and prosperity. The remarks came after the US on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who was later flown to New York along with his wife. The pair face US charges related to drug trafficking and alleged cooperation with gangs designated as terrorist organizations. Maduro has denied the allegations. The ministry said that it is closely monitoring the political and economic situation
UNRELENTING: China attempted cyberattacks on Taiwan’s critical infrastructure 2.63 million times per day last year, up from 1.23 million in 2023, the NSB said China’s cyberarmy has long engaged in cyberattacks against Taiwan’s critical infrastructure, employing diverse and evolving tactics, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said yesterday, adding that cyberattacks on critical energy infrastructure last year increased 10-fold compared with the previous year. The NSB yesterday released a report titled Analysis on China’s Cyber Threats to Taiwan’s Critical Infrastructure in 2025, outlining the number of cyberattacks, major tactics and hacker groups. Taiwan’s national intelligence community identified a large number of cybersecurity incidents last year, the bureau said in a statement. China’s cyberarmy last year launched an average of 2.63 million intrusion attempts per day targeting Taiwan’s critical
‘SLICING METHOD’: In the event of a blockade, the China Coast Guard would intercept Taiwanese ships while its navy would seek to deter foreign intervention China’s military drills around Taiwan this week signaled potential strategies to cut the nation off from energy supplies and foreign military assistance, a US think tank report said. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted what it called “Justice Mission 2025” exercises from Monday to Tuesday in five maritime zones and airspace around Taiwan, calling them a warning to “Taiwanese independence” forces. In a report released on Wednesday, the Institute for the Study of War said the exercises effectively simulated blocking shipping routes to major port cities, including Kaohsiung, Keelung and Hualien. Taiwan would be highly vulnerable under such a blockade, because it
RSS