Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe never promised to repeat “the tragedy of war” as commemorations marking the start of VJ Day – the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II in Asia – on Saturday.
With many events muted this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, a gloomy Abe wore a face mask when he told the scaling-up crowd gathered at a ceremony at Nippon Budokan Hall in Tokyo’s capital , that Japan “would continue to commit itself to continuing this decisive promise,” although he briefly stopped any apology.
The Emperor of Japan, Naruhito, also expressed his “deep remorse” over the war past, which still haunts East Asia.
Abe also sent a ritual offering to Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine for the dead of the war, but he avoided a personal visit that angered China and South Korea. The shrine is seen by Beijing and Seoul as a symbol of Japan’s past military aggression.
But a handful of Japanese ministers along with thousands of their compatriots brought burning heat and the COVID-19 pandemic to pay their respects to Yasukuni.
VJ Day, as Victory over Japan day, comes three months after Nazi Germany surrendered in Europe, and generally receives less attention than Victory in Europe, or VE Day, on May 8.
But more than 30 million soldiers and civilians were killed in the Pacific theater during the war, compared to the 15 million to 20 million who died in Europe.
Japan surrendered on August 15, 1945, after the US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, killing 100,000 to 200,000 people.
Koreans, who mark the date as National Liberation Day, oppose Japan’s colonization of the peninsula. Relationships are particularly strained over so-called ‘comfort women’, Korean women made at the time in Japanese military brothels.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in said on Saturday that Seoul was always ready to discuss talks with Tokyo.
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China also has bitter memories of occupying parts of the country from 1931 to 1945 and thousands chose to mark the 75th anniversary by streaming to the cinema after Friday afternoon to watch “The Aight Hundred”, according to state-run newspaper Global Times.
The film tells the story of the defense of Chinese soldiers from a warehouse against the Japanese army during the Battle of Shanghai in 1937 and the often Hawkish tabloid said that the film served as a reminder to China that Japan “had historically great misery for the Chinese brought people ”and that both countries should learn from history.
Australians also commemorate the day, in socially distant ceremonies.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison laid a wreath at the Australian War Monument in Canberra, accompanied by a small group of veterans.
Also in Britain, Queen Elizabeth and the royal family marked the anniversary. Prince Philip served in the Royal Navy in Tokyo Bay when the Japanese surrender was signed in 1945.
“Those of us who remember the conclusion of the Far East campaign, or in active service abroad, when waiting at home for news, will never forget the jubilant scenes and over the intense sense of relief,” he said. the queen in a statement.
“Under the joy at the end of the conflict, we remember, as we do today, also the terrible destruction it brought, and the cost that was borne by so many.”
Reuters contributed to this report.
