Abe-san Gives Tree to Yasukuni Shrine September 24, 2007

What does giving a a $450 sakaki tree to Yasukuni shrine mean? That yet again, the Prime Minister of Japan is going to piss off his neighbors. Not that Abe-san isn’t trying to compromise- at least he didn’t go and visit it in person like Prime Minister Koizumi-san got in so much trouble for during his tenure. But South Korea and China are still probably going to take offense. For anyone not familiar with Yasukuni Shrine it is a Shinto shrine to Japanese war heroes-including some class A war criminals who are resposible for terrible atrocities in then-Korea and China during World War II. Therefore it’s pretty clear why China and South Korea take offense to their powerful neighbor Japan acting in a way which “supports” their oppressors. Abe-san is in a bind-he is expected by his conservative base to pay respects to the ancestors of his country, but he doesn’t want South Korea and China to hate Japan any more than they already do. That being said, it would be better for his country if he sucked up his pride and did as China and South Korea wish- his replacement- Yasuo Fukuda- has already been selected to correct Abe-san’s short and often considered disastrous tenure. What people think of Abe-san is no longer relevant. But that’s Japanese politics.

For those who whish to read the source article, it can be reached at

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/08/world/asia/08japan.html?_r=1&n=Top%2FNews%2FWorld%2FCountries%20and%20Territories%2FSouth%20Korea&oref=slogin

Hello world! September 10, 2007

Welcome to my blog on Japanese relations with neighboring countries. I chose this topic because I spent a year in Japan and thus have an interest in Japan in general and also because there is always something going on over there. I will focus mainly on China and North and South Korea, but may also get into Russian relations as well. As a previous imperial power in the region there is a very complicated relationship between Japan and its neighbors often resulting in disrespect, mutual hostility, miscommunication. Thank you for reading.