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The recent gesture of the Japanese prime minister allegedly worsened the already sensitive diplomatic relationship between China and Japan.
Visiting a shrine for dead World War II Japanese soldiers is considered a diplomatic taboo if done by a Japanese official, especially by a prime minister, in light of the fact that many World War II Japanese soldiers are considered war criminals.
According to a spokesperson of China's Foreign Ministry, Qin Gang, it is the Japanese prime minister who closed the door for diplomatic talks when he visited a shrine honoring war criminals. Ever since the prime minister had assumed his post, he has obviously miscalculated the fragile ties between China and Japan. He has made several mistakes since then.
It should be noted that Prime Minister Abe is the first sitting Japanese prime minister who visited a shrine for dead World War II soldiers since 2006. He might have rhetorically emphasized his desire to have good relations with China and South Korea but his actions say otherwise. Both China and Korea suffered atrocities committed by Japanese imperial forces.
An academic expert on Japanese studies from the Tsinghua University, Liu Jiangyong, has commented that the international community has frowned upon the shrine visit of Abe. The controversial action might require an apology and a promise not to do it again. This would be more sincere compared to an attempt to explain or justify the action.
