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| Shinzo Abe Echoes Japan’s Past WWII Apologies but Adds None of His Own | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| TOKYO — In a keenly awaited statement on Friday to observe the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan acknowledged dark moments in his country’s past and endorsed the repeated apologies his predecessors had made for them. | TOKYO — In a keenly awaited statement on Friday to observe the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan acknowledged dark moments in his country’s past and endorsed the repeated apologies his predecessors had made for them. |
| But in what could prove to be a contentious break with previous Japanese expressions of contrition over the war, Mr. Abe did not offer a new apology of his own. | But in what could prove to be a contentious break with previous Japanese expressions of contrition over the war, Mr. Abe did not offer a new apology of his own. |
| His statement, delivered in a nationally televised address, appeared calibrated to draw a line under what Mr. Abe and other Japanese conservatives see as an endless and enfeebling cycle of official apologies for Japan’s decades-old conduct. | His statement, delivered in a nationally televised address, appeared calibrated to draw a line under what Mr. Abe and other Japanese conservatives see as an endless and enfeebling cycle of official apologies for Japan’s decades-old conduct. |
| He said Japan inflicted “immeasurable damage and suffering” when it “took the wrong course and advanced along the road to war.” But he departed from a war-anniversary formula established by two previous Japanese prime ministers, who had offered personal expressions of regret. | He said Japan inflicted “immeasurable damage and suffering” when it “took the wrong course and advanced along the road to war.” But he departed from a war-anniversary formula established by two previous Japanese prime ministers, who had offered personal expressions of regret. |
| “Japan has repeatedly expressed the feelings of deep remorse and heartfelt apology for its actions during the war,” Mr. Abe said. “Such position articulated by the previous cabinets will remain unshakable into the future.” | |
| He added, however, “We must not let our children, grandchildren and even further generations to come, who have nothing to do with that war, be predestined to apologize.” | He added, however, “We must not let our children, grandchildren and even further generations to come, who have nothing to do with that war, be predestined to apologize.” |
| Mr. Abe included a set of key words — among them acknowledgments of “colonial rule” and “aggression” by Japan — established by two of his predecessors, Tomiichi Murayama and Junichiro Koizumi, who made similar official statements on the 50th and 60th anniversaries of the end of the war. | |
| The phrases have become integral to the delicate linguistic accounting that governs efforts by Japanese leaders to reckon with their country’s militaristic past. | The phrases have become integral to the delicate linguistic accounting that governs efforts by Japanese leaders to reckon with their country’s militaristic past. |
| They have been invoked since Japan started that reckoning in earnest, in the mid-1990s, in an attempt to reset relations with neighboring countries like China and South Korea, where bitterness over Japanese rule is still widely felt. | They have been invoked since Japan started that reckoning in earnest, in the mid-1990s, in an attempt to reset relations with neighboring countries like China and South Korea, where bitterness over Japanese rule is still widely felt. |
| Yet Mr. Abe presented those phrases in a way that was both broader and less personal. | Yet Mr. Abe presented those phrases in a way that was both broader and less personal. |
| His statement was longer that his predecessors’ and contained more context, including references to Western colonialism, that appeared intended to show Japan’s behavior in a less harsh light. | His statement was longer that his predecessors’ and contained more context, including references to Western colonialism, that appeared intended to show Japan’s behavior in a less harsh light. |
| He also drew indirect but unmistakable parallels between Japan’s past as a “challenger” to “international order” and the emergence of an increasingly confident and assertive China. | He also drew indirect but unmistakable parallels between Japan’s past as a “challenger” to “international order” and the emergence of an increasingly confident and assertive China. |
| In an initial commentary published online, China’s official Xinhua news agency said that Mr. Abe’s speech “trod a fine line with linguistic tricks” and was insincere. | In an initial commentary published online, China’s official Xinhua news agency said that Mr. Abe’s speech “trod a fine line with linguistic tricks” and was insincere. |
| “Instead of offering an unambiguous apology, Abe’s statement is rife with rhetorical twists like ‘maintain our position of apology,’ dead giveaways of his deep-rooted historical revisionism, which has haunted Japan’s neighborhood relations,” it said. | “Instead of offering an unambiguous apology, Abe’s statement is rife with rhetorical twists like ‘maintain our position of apology,’ dead giveaways of his deep-rooted historical revisionism, which has haunted Japan’s neighborhood relations,” it said. |