Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Sunday sent a ritual offering to Yasukuni, a Shinto shrine in Tokyo viewed as a symbol of Japan's past militarism by its Asian neighbors.
South Korea responded by calling the tree offering disappointing and regrettable and urged Japanese leaders to squarely face history.
The masakaki tree offering was made under his name as prime minister to celebrate the shrine's biannual festival held in the spring and autumn.