All Core Executives of Japan's Ruling LDP Complete Yasukuni Shrine Visits

Move Seen as Laying the Groundwork for Prime Minister Takaichi's Future Visit

All of the core executives of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party have completed visits to the Yasukuni Shrine, where Class-A war criminals from the Pacific War are enshrined.

It is considered unusual for all the party's top executives to visit the shrine together, especially as Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi herself deferred her own visit. Some analysts suggest this may be a form of "advance groundwork" ahead of a possible future visit by Prime Minister Takaichi.

According to Kyodo News on August 16, Takayuki Kobayashi, Policy Research Council Chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party, visited the Yasukuni Shrine that morning and personally paid out of pocket for an offering known as "tamagushi."

After the visit, he told reporters that his grandfather died in the war and said, "I made the visit as a bereaved family member."

Takayuki Kobayashi, Policy Research Council Chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party. Photo by Yonhap News

With Kobayashi, who had remained in Chiba Prefecture the previous day due to response efforts after Japan's defeat in the war, completing his visit belatedly, all four core executives of the Liberal Democratic Party have now completed their visits to the Yasukuni Shrine.

Although it was not uncommon for senior party members to visit the shrine in a personal capacity or as part of the "Group of Lawmakers Visiting Yasukuni Shrine Together," the fact that the party's top executives have made the visit together is drawing attention within Japan itself.

There is speculation that this move is intended to provide justification for a future visit by Prime Minister Takaichi, who refrained from visiting in person due to strong opposition from neighboring countries.

On the anniversary of Japan's defeat in World War II, Prime Minister Takaichi, instead of visiting the shrine directly, paid respects at a spot several hundred meters away by bowing towards the shrine, a practice known as "yohai."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.