Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has decided to cancel his visit to Yasukuni Shrine this spring. Abe is scheduled to visit the controversial shrine at 21st this month.
The shrine was a symbol of Japan's wartime militarism as 14 class-A war criminals were enshrined there, who were convicted by an Allied tribunal after the war. The previous visits by Abe have triggered strong opposition from neighboring countries, such as China and South Korean, who suffered from Japan's brutal aggression into the two countries during the World War II. Analyst believe the cancellation of the visit is due to Shinzo Abe's concerns over his upcoming visit to the US, as well as concerns over its possible damage to Japan's just warming-up ties with China and South Korea.