“Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been formally invited to address a joint session of Congress when he travels to Washington DC this April, AFP reports.”
“The foreign ministers of South Korea and China held bilateral meetings in Seoul on Saturday, but Beijing did not bring up the controversial issue of Washington’s possible deployment of an advanced U.S. missile-defense system on Korean soil, a Seoul official…
“Corralled in an empty room, visitors observe a moment of silence before being guided through four areas with the themes memory, remembrance, healing and recording.”
“A Maryland state Senate joint resolution honoring the “comfort women” in Asia and Pacific Islands during World War II was adopted on Tuesday. The Senate Joint Resolution 3 stated that “the government of Japan, during its colonial and wartime occupation of…
“The sound of clay pots smashing against a stone floor shattered the cold spring morning. Zhang Xiantu woke. Japanese soldiers were in her home, breaking bowls as they searched for food. Zhang, 16 and just married, tried to run. But…
‘Comfort women’ issue a controversy in Canada too: “Tina Rafferty, a Japanese-Canadian resident, spoke with the NOW about the statue. ‘This proposal is against the Canadian tradition of multiculturalism,’ she said. ‘This is a country where people come from all…
“Finally, while this may not be a popular topic within the Japanese government, the most productive long-term investment for Japan could be an investment in improving its relations with Korea and China. Public diplomacy programs that foster cultural exchanges among…
“The Japan-South Korea rift has complicated U.S. efforts to forge a stronger security alliance against common foe North Korea and to U.S. strategy aimed at countering China’s rise. Japan and South Korea host 80,000 U.S. troops, the backbone of America’s…
“An organization for former U.S. prisoners of the Japanese and a Korean-American forum say Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe should only be invited to address the U.S. Congress during an expected visit if he acknowledges Japan’s World War Two past.”
“China’s foreign ministry has reproached the Japanese government for displaying a 1969 Chinese map of the Senkaku Islands that identifies the disputed territory by its Japanese name.”
“The Foreign Ministry has published on its website a map released by a Chinese government organ in 1969 calling the disputed Senkaku Islands by their Japanese name.”
“China’s air force needs better central control to avoid miscalculations as territorial tensions rise with Japan over the East China Sea, according to Australia’s air force chief.”
“For Abe and his revisionist clique of likeminded ministers, lawmakers and bureaucrats, it’s high time the severity of the situation is realized and all childish gamesmanship ceased, for the future good of the nation, stability in the region and reputation…
“‘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…
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…