Next PM ‘Should Not Visit Yasukuni’

Leading ‘post-Koizumi’ candidate Yasuo Fukuda, former Chief Cabinet Secretary, publicly announced his opinion that the prime minister’s successor should refrain from visits to Yasukuni shrine.

During his appearance on an NHK debate program, former secretary Fukuda talked about the deterioration of Japan’s relationship with Korea and China due to Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi’s visit to the Yasukuni shrine, and said, “We must decide for ourselves what is best for the future.”

However, he also said, “The worst thing would be to take action after being pointed out by another country,” revealing awareness that there is a need to judge the situation subjectively.

He judged Japan’s relationship with Korea and China as an, “abnormal relationship, needing improvement,” and stressed that, “To strengthen our relationship with America, we must also strengthen our ties with neighboring Asian countries.”

Another post-Koizumi candidate, Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki, said at a meeting of his faction members held at Utsunomiya that he is “making resolutions,” for the presidential elections, and that he is “hoping for everyone’s support.”

Tanigaki is the first politician to make his intentions of running for prime minister known, and the Asahi newspaper is expecting that this will cause active movement within the Liberal Democratic Party.

On problems facing the next prime minister, he said, “There is room for improvement in Japan’s diplomatic relationship with Asian countries.”

Young-A Soh sya@donga.com