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.”
““Teikoku no Ianfu” (Comfort women of the empire) is an ambitious piece of work that has received praise by some but also been so reviled by others that the author faces legal action in South Korea.”
“A Japanese vice foreign minister told a U.N. meeting on the status of women on Tuesday that Japan is taking a sincere approach to the issue of “comfort women,” referring to violence against females involving the Japanese military during World…
“U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed his hope of seeing “a forward-looking, future-oriented vision” in a statement Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will issue this summer to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II.”
“Two groups related to South Korea and China are jointly planning to put up statues of girls as symbols of “comfort women” who were forced to work at wartime Japanese military brothels, sources said Thursday.”
“China wants Taiwan to participate in commemorations later this year to mark the end of World War II, and also plans events commemorating the end of Japanese rule over the island, a Chinese government spokesman said on Wednesday.”
“In a new documentary, Russian journalist and television presenter Sergei Brilyov gives evidence that in August 1945, Soviet troops liberated the entire Korean peninsula, not just the North as previously thought.”
“North Korea has declared 2015 a “year of friendship” with Russia amid efforts to boost ties and cultural exchange as the countries mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, North Korea’s official news agency was quoted…
“The ROC government is set to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II with a series of commemorative events, according to Cabinet spokesman Sun Lih-chyun March 9. A total of 16 activities will be held July 7…
“Shinichi Kitaoka, president of International University of Japan and an expert on Japanese diplomatic and political history, wants Abe to acknowledge what the nationalist leader apparently does not want to clearly admit in public: that Japan fought “a war of…
“Japan on Tuesday marked the 70th anniversary of the U.S. firebombing of Tokyo during World War II in which a frenzied night raid saw 100,000 lives lost… Prime Minister Shinzo Abe… pledged in the ceremony to ‘contribute as much as possible…
“Japan and South Korea share values,” Merkel reportedly told Okada. “It’s better to resolve the . . . issue properly.”
“German Chancellor Angela Merkel paid a courtesy call March 9 on Emperor Akihito, during which they talked about topics related to the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II.”