Men in the uniforms of
the Japanese Imperial Army parade in front of
the Yasukuni Shrine, in which convicted
war criminals are memorialized
with the rest of Japan's war dead. Intent on
getting out from under
constraints imposed by its post-war constitution, Prime Minister
Abe
continues to enrage Imperial Japan's former victims in China and Korea.
U.S. Plays with Fire By Coddling 'Outrageous' Shinzo Abe (Chosun Ilbo, South Korea)
"If German politicians continued to pay homage to Nazi war
criminals, including Adolf Hitler, and continued to deny their country's
offenses during World War II, what would have happened in Europe? The E.U.
would have entirely fallen apart. In that case, would the Washington urge other
European nations to join hands with Germany on regional security matters? ... Only
America can put the brakes on Abe's behavior, which is why Japan's lurch to the
right also means that the U.S. is failing to live up to its own
responsibilities. By denying WWII atrocities, Abe also insults the 300,000
Americans who were injured or killed during the Pacific War."
Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe: As friction with China and both Koreas grows, Abe, the most right-wing Japanese leader in years, wants to revise Japan's post-war constitution for the first time. In addition, Japanese school history books are being revised, and Tokyo continues to refuse to make a forthright apology for kidnapping women from across Asia to be sex slaves for Japan's Imperial Army.
At
a press conference in Washington after talks with Foreign Minister YunByung-se on Tuesday, U.S.
Secretary of State John Kerry had nothing to say about Japan's lurch to the far
right. As if anticipating that journalists would ask about Japan Prime Minister
Shinzo Abe's visit to the militarist Yasukuni
Shrine, Kerry took no questions. All he said was, "The United States
and [Korea] stand very firmly united, without an inch of daylight between
us."
Nevertheless,
in recent weeks, the focus of attention has been Abe's whitewashing of Japan's
World War II atrocities, military expansionism, and gross insensitivity to the
feelings of its neighbors who suffered so much during colonial times.
When
Abe visited Yasukuni last year, a U.S. State
Department spokesman expressed "disappointment." But other than that,
Washington's response has been perfunctory. On Monday, the U.S. State
Department said that resolving differences through dialogue "coincides
with the interests" of all countries involved.
In
his New Year's address on Monday, Abe claimed he would like to explain his
intentions to Korea and China in regard to revising Japan's pacifist
constitution, which was drafted after the country's defeat at the end of World
War II. A day later, he said it would be impossible to separate convicted war
criminals from other war dead honored at the Yasukuni
Shrine. This shows that he is dead set on pushing ahead with his plans,
regardless of opposition from Seoul or Beijing. It is a mystery how Washington might
believe Seoul and Beijing could engage in "dialogue" with such a
leader.
The
U.S. and Japan are allies - and of course it is difficult for allies to
publicly discuss problematic issues like these. Washington may be trying to
rein Abe in with more inconspicuous methods, but considering Washington's
policy of strictly separating Japan's history and security in Northeast Asia,
there is also the likelihood that the United States is choosing to look the
other way, tacitly condoning Abe's continued outrages.
Korea
suffered the more from the 1910-1945 Imperial Japanese colonization than any
other nation. That occupation led to a divided Korean Peninsula. It is
unacceptable for Korea to join hands with Japan over regional security matters while
Tokyo refuses to deny its past wrongdoing and blithely goes about its
expansionist campaign.
Posted By Worldmeets.US
If
German politicians continued to pay homage to Nazi war criminals, including
Adolf Hitler, and continued to deny their country's offenses during World War
II, what would have happened in Europe? The European Union would have entirely fallen
apart. In that case, would the Washington urge other European nations to join
hands with Germany on regional security matters?
Only
the United States can put the brakes on Abe's behavior, which is why Japan's
lurch to the right also means that the U.S. is failing to live up to its own
responsibilities. By denying World War II atrocities, Abe also insults the
300,000 Americans who were injured or killed during the Pacific War. It is
understandable that the U.S., saddled with a mounting fiscal debt, needs Japan
on its side in regional security matters. But ignoring Japan's recent actions
does not coincide with the values Americans claim to uphold.
Cooperation
between Korea, the U.S., and Japan in Northeast Asia, hinges on whether
Washington is able halt Abe's outrageous behavior. As long as the U.S. remains vague
on the issue, the conflict between Seoul and Tokyo will continue, and
eventually cause problems for the Korea-U.S. alliance. That must not be allowed
to happen. The U.S. must approach the issue of Japan's history not as an
observer, but as an affected party, and understand that past and present are
inextricably linked.
