TOKYO Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori has decided not to make an official visit to Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine, dedicated to Japan's war dead, because he does not want to upset Japan's Asian neighbors, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hidenao Nakagawa said on Monday.
Yasukuni Shrine is dedicated to the 2.4 million Japanese who have died in wars since the 19th century.
Several Class-A war criminals, such as the wartime prime minister, General Hideki Tojo, are enshrined there.
Mori "fully understands the feelings of the bereaved families (that want him to make the visit), but as the prime minister, he also has to cope with the feelings of the people of neighboring nations," the top government spokesman said at a Tokyo news conference.
Mori said on Sunday that he will not make an official visit to the shrine on the August 15 anniversary of Japan's surrender to Allied Powers during World War II. But he also held out the possibility of visiting the shrine in a private capacity.
Two prime ministers have so far paid homage while in office to mark the end of the war Yasuhiro Nakasone in 1985 and Ryutaro Hashimoto in 1996. The visits drew immediate criticism from China and other Asian nations invaded by Japanese troops.
Nakasone made an official August 15 visit, but Hashimoto visited the shrine as a private citizen in July.
The top government spokesman Nakagawa said the premier will make a decision by August 15 on whether to make a private visit.
(DPA)