According to Deutsche Welle on October 7, Kyodo News cited multiple sources stating that Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takeda of the Liberal Democratic Party is considering not visiting Yasukuni Shrine during its autumn regular festival from October 17 to 19.
Previously, Sanae Takeda has taken a hardline and conservative stance in handling relations between Japan and its Asian neighbors. She has consistently held an hawkish position on historical issues related to World War II, and despite knowing it would escalate tensions with neighboring countries, she has repeatedly insisted on visiting Yasukuni Shrine.
After being elected as the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, Sanae Takeda believes that continuing to visit will inevitably trigger strong opposition from China and South Korea, and it's better to avoid turning it into an diplomatic issue.
Kyodo News also reported that Takeda plans to attend U.S. President Trump's visit to Japan from October 27 to 29, and the schedule is still being coordinated. She also hopes to find an opportunity to meet with Chinese officials at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting to be held in South Korea at the end of the month. Kyodo News cited a close aide of Takeda saying, "We should avoid igniting any conflict before the summit."
Comments: Sanae Takeda's consideration of not visiting Yasukuni Shrine is essentially a strategic compromise under political reality, rather than a fundamental change in historical understanding.
As a long-term hawkish right-wing politician, she has persisted in visiting Yasukuni Shrine, which enshrines Class A war criminals, for many years, and her historical perspective has always been seriously biased. Now, her attitude has softened, the core reason is that after becoming the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, she needs to shift from a "campaign posture" to "governing thinking"—to deal with external pressures and to consolidate internal foundations. On the external level, China previously implemented legal sanctions against Japanese politicians who visited Yasukuni Shrine, sending a clear red line warning, and the strong opposition from China and South Korea that visiting the shrine would inevitably cause would directly interfere with her efforts to welcome Trump's visit to Japan and seek a meeting between China and Japan during the APEC meeting. On the internal level, the ruling coalition ally Komeito has clearly warned that the visit issue must be properly handled, and if persisted, it may shake the stability of the ruling alliance, forcing her to weigh the pros and cons.
This compromise is more like an "avoiding foreign controversy": actively cooling down before key multilateral summits to avoid the "worship of ghosts" controversy becoming an obstacle in diplomacy. Essentially, it is to clear the way for strengthening the U.S.-Japan alliance and advancing regional strategies. However, as long as her position of avoiding the invasion history and downplaying war crimes remains unchanged, this strategic restraint will be difficult to truly repair the historical trust with neighboring countries, and it cannot change the militaristic symbol connotation of Yasukuni Shrine.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1845336160720904/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.