“‘Why would he need to change the words? That is why people have doubts,’ said the 78-year-old Kono. ‘He must erase those doubts and the simplest way to do so is to uphold the Murayama statement unchanged…’ Kono also said he…
A quick historical overview of international war reparations. On Japan: “Christopher Gerteis, Senior Lecturer in the History of Contemporary Japan, at the SOAS, University of London, told CNBC via email, that ‘the amounts paid, though seemingly small, were negotiated and paid…
History a battleground not just for East Asia: “The attempts to rewrite history are designed ‘to undermine the power and moral authority of modern Russia, deprive of its status of the country-winner [of World War II] with all the expected international legal consequences, as well as to…
A few voices the younger generations should listen to, remember, and pass on: “We old people are puny in influence. But we can not let the Abe administration do whatever it wants to do… I believe in a Chinese saying that…
“China is launching a nationwide investigation on the use of foreign textbooks at Chinese universities and colleges, following a previous government pledge to reject texts spreading “Western values” at the nation’s centers of higher education.”
“The North Korean leadership will come to Moscow in May for the celebration of victory in World War II, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has announced. If Kim Jong-un pays a visit in person, this would be his first foreign…
“China has told Japan it wants to examine the contents of a statement to be issued this summer by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, before deciding when to hold a…
“Rediscovered film shows attacks by US aircraft on Japanese warships, factories and military installations in dying days of WWII”
The Musashi in brief, by Reiji Yoshida: What was the Musashi? Why were such mammoth battleships planned in the first place? Did the Musashi and Yamato contribute greatly to Japan’s war effort?
“Japan is building up its military forces and strengthening alliances to counter threats from China as the country emerges from decades of isolationism following its defeat in World War II.”
“South Korea and Japan were to hold talks on Tokyo’s sexual enslavement of Korean women during World War II on Monday as the two historical rivals make efforts to improve their strained ties in a landmark year, Seoul’s foreign ministry…
“China should stop fixating on Japan’s wartime past and focus on improving future cooperation, Japan’s top government spokesman said Monday. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga was responding to a comment by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang who said yesterday that…
Commentary by Jeff Kingston, director of Asian Studies, Temple University Japan. “Next month Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will attend the 60th commemoration of the 1955 Bandung Conference of Asian and African leaders in Jakarta… There are other reasons why Abe’s participation…
Op-Ed by Wang Ping, researcher in Japan studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences: “The war anniversary is an opportunity for Abe to befriend the neighbors and the world. As much as he hates to, Abe is expected to confess…
Presumably democratic governments have at times used states of emergency or “states of exception” (see Giorgio Agamben’s work) in order to ramp up militarily assertive rhetoric, and to claim the right or necessity to suspend or modify existing legal boundaries in order to increase their power.…
“Public confidence in China’s military is higher than ever. According to a public opinion poll, an overwhelming majority of Chinese citizens think the People’s Liberation Army is capable of facing and beating the United States if it comes to that…
“Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has never used the word “apology” on the issue of the country’s sexual enslavement of women during World War II and is unlikely to do so in a statement marking the 70th anniversary of the…
“Indonesia can do much in the position of facilitator. We are trusted by the three nations. They are vital to our economy and an easing of tensions in the East China Sea will help create a similar atmosphere on the…
“Taiwan has declined China’s pitch for joint participation in activities to mark the 70th anniversary of World War II’s final year.”
“China’s planned military parade to mark the end of World War II is likely to be held at the site Japan attacked in 1937 to trigger the Second Sino-Japanese War, according to two officials with direct knowledge of the plan. The…
“With the exception of the march across the Philippine island of Luzon, the battle of Okinawa was the only major American land campaign in the Pacific during World War II…” -Christopher Dong visits war sites, museums, and memorials in Okinawa.
“The foreign ministers of China, Japan and South Korea are preparing to meet this month for their first talks in nearly three years, in a bid to resolve tension over Japan’s wartime past and discuss a three-way summit.”
“During the assault, Kim screamed a slogan in favour of reunifying the divided Korean peninsula, and later shouted his opposition to the joint US-South Korean military drills that began the same week. The annual exercises always trigger a surge in…
“The German chancellor and a retired American lawmaker are the latest to call on Tokyo to formally apologize to the now elderly women who were forced into Japanese military brothels during World War II.”