Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made a surprise visit to the war-related Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on Thursday, the first anniversary of his second stint as prime minister.
The visit worsens the odds of a summit with leaders of China and South Korea, countries that regard Yasukuni as a symbol of Japan's wartime militarism. The visit also coincided with the late Chinese Chairman Mao Zedong's 120 birthday.
Abe arrived at the shrine around 11:30 a.m. to pay his respects to the millions of war dead enshrined there. Class-A war criminals, most notably wartime Prime Minister Gen. Hideki Tojo, are also among those enshrined.