Japan's Prime Minister Omits Remorse From Her First War Memorial Address as South Korea Offers Cooperation

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi delivered her first address at Japan's annual war memorial ceremony on Saturday without using the word "remorse," a term her predecessor Shigeru Ishiba included, The Japan Times reported. She used the phrase "Indo-Pacific" instead, which sets her foreign policy frame. Jiji Press reported that her wording left the subject of the war unclear, avoiding a direct statement of who caused it.

Takaichi did not visit the Yasukuni shrine, which honours Japan's war dead including men convicted as war criminals, and sent a ritual offering instead. Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi visited in person along with senior members of the governing Liberal Democratic Party, according to The Japan Times, and Jiji reported that about 90 lawmakers from across parties also attended.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung took the opposite approach in his Liberation Day speech, pledging to broaden cooperation with Japan for mutual benefit while urging Tokyo to address historical issues. Seoul is separating economic and security cooperation from the historical dispute, a division that previous South Korean governments found difficult to sustain domestically.

Beijing and Seoul both treat the language used on 15 August as an indicator of Japanese intentions, and Takaichi's omission arrives while Japan expands defence spending and moves toward exporting missiles. The two developments will be read together in both capitals.