US Congressman Seeks Assurances on Yasukuni

A US congressman has urged the Japanese prime minister to swear off future visits to the Yasukuni Shrine. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi is scheduled to address a joint session of US Congress in late June, but Representative Henry Hyde, a veteran of World War II in the Pacific, wrote a letter expressing concern about visits to the site that memorializes Japanese war dead, including some labeled as war criminals. Yasukuni has become a hot issue in the Asia Pacific region, with China and South Korea vehemently opposing any official visits to the shrine. Koizumi supporters point out that the letter is but one sole criticism to emerge in the US, and that the two countries remain strong allies. Such incidents reveal how national leaders must court international audiences as well as their own citizens. – YaleGlobal