Original source URL: http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/003200608231423.htm Japan's FM vows to mend ties with China, S.Korea if he wins premiership Tokyo, Aug. 23 (AP): Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has damaged Japan's ties with the rest of Asia by visiting a Tokyo war shrine, and the next prime minister should urgently repair relations with its neighbors, a candidate to replace Koizumi said on Wednesday. Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki, who is running to lead the ruling party _ and therefore the nation _ in elections next month, reiterated his vow not to continue Koizumi's annual trips to the Yasukuni war shrine if elected. ``Yasukuni is a major obstacle in the way to develop ties with Asian nations,'' Tanigaki said. ``The next Prime Minister should not damage Japan's ties with Asia or weaken its leadership in the region by visiting the shrine.'' Yasukuni honors Japan's 2.5 million war dead, including war criminals from World War II, and is accused of glorifying the country's militarist past. China and South Korea have refused to hold summits with Koizumi over the visits. Tanigaki said that as Prime Minister, he would push for annual three-way summits among the leaders of Japan, China and South Korea, and install an ``Asian hot line'' for quick and easy communications between them. ``We must urgently resolve this abnormal situation, and the three leaders should reaffirm that we are indispensable partners,'' Tanigaki said. ``I will put Japan's Asian diplomacy back to normal and contribute to regional prosperity.'' In recent public polls, Tanigaki has lagged far behind Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe, the front-runner in the race, and has been polled just above another contender, Foreign Minister Taro Aso, who officially announced his candidacy on Monday. Abe is expected to make a policy speech early next month in which he is likely to officially announce his candidacy. Abe, a hawkish lawmaker, has staunchly backed Koizumi's shrine visits and reportedly secretly worshipped at the shrine in April. He did not deny the report, in a sign that he may follow Koizumi's path if he becomes prime minister. Aso, meanwhile, takes a more cautious stance. He proposed making the shrine a secular institution and putting it under the control of the state, allowing Parliament to decide who is honoured there. -- -------------------------------------------------------- Escaping the Matrix website http://escapingthematrix.org/ cyberjournal website http://cyberjournal.org subscribe cyberjournal list mailto:•••@••.••• Posting archives http://cyberjournal.org/show_archives/ Blogs: cyberjournal forum http://cyberjournal-rkm.blogspot.com/ Achieving real democracy http://harmonization.blogspot.com/ for readers of ETM http://matrixreaders.blogspot.com/ Community Empowerment http://empowermentinitiatives.blogspot.com/ Blogger made easy http://quaylargo.com/help/ezblogger.html
