Koizumi’s insistence on paying homage to the war dead interred at Yasukuni, where convicted war criminals from World War II are among the buried, has been damaging relations with Japan’s neighbors for years. Indeed, Chinese President Hu Jintao continually affirms that he will not hold a summit with a Japanese prime minister who goes to Yasukuni, which most Chinese regard as a glorification of past Japanese aggression and colonialism.
中国和韩国又一次爆发了反对日本首相小泉纯一郎一年一度参拜靖国神社的抗议活动。小泉坚持拜祭埋葬有二战战犯的靖国神社，多年来一直损害着日本与邻国的关系。实际上，中国主席胡锦涛一直声称不与参拜靖国神社的日本首相举行首脑会谈。大部分中国人认为参拜是美化日本过去侵略和殖民历史。