The Chinese government has lodged a formal diplomatic protest with Japan after a Japanese cabinet minister made offerings to the Yasukuni Shrine, a site that China and other neighboring countries view as a symbol of Japan’s past militarism. The actions by Sanae Takaichi, Japan’s Minister for Economic Security, occurred during the shrine’s biannual autumn festival.
According to reports from Japanese media, Takaichi sent a “masakaki” ritual tree offering to the Tokyo shrine on Saturday and made a monetary offering on Monday. During the same festival period, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also sent a “masakaki” offering but did not visit the shrine in person. Several other Japanese lawmakers reportedly visited the shrine.
In response, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, addressed the matter during a regular press briefing in Beijing. Mao stated that China firmly opposes the offerings and has made “solemn representations” to the Japanese side. The spokesperson urged Japan to “reflect on its history of aggression” and “make a clean break with militarism.”
The Yasukuni Shrine honors approximately 2.5 million Japanese war dead. The site is a point of recurring diplomatic friction in East Asia because among those honored are 14 individuals convicted as Class-A war criminals by an Allied tribunal after World War II.
Visits and offerings to the shrine by Japanese government officials have consistently drawn official condemnation from China and South Korea. Both nations were subjected to Japanese aggression and colonial rule in the first half of the 20th century. Governments in Beijing and Seoul have repeatedly stated that they consider such actions an attempt to glorify Japan’s wartime history.
The Japanese government has consistently maintained that visits to the shrine by officials are often made in a private capacity. Japanese officials have stated the purpose is to pay respects to those who died in service of their country and to pray for peace, not to honor war criminals. Following past protests, Japan’s Foreign Ministry has typically reiterated the country’s remorse for its wartime actions and its commitment to peace since the end of World War II.
