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China and South Korea, because the 2.5 million war dead enshrined there include 14 class A war criminals from World War II -- national leaders who were either executed or died in prison or during their trials.
• Japan colonized Korea and occupied parts of China, often brutally, before and during World War II.
• Abe, a nationalist who advocates revising Japan's pacifist constitution, has always wanted to visit Yasukuni as prime minister, but his visit still surprised some analysts, who thought he might take a pragmatic approach to leadership that focused on reviving the economy and trying to avoid alienating neighbors.
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Thailand's election commission urges government to delay polls after clashes kill at least 1
• BANGKOK (AP) -- Thailand's election commission on Thursday urged the government to delay upcoming polls as clashes between security forces and anti-government protesters killed a police officer and injured nearly 100 people, adding to political turmoil threatening to tear apart the country.
• The hours-long unrest took place outside a Bangkok sports stadium where election candidates were gathering to draw lots for their positions on the ballot. Protesters threw rocks as they tried to break into the building to halt the process, while police fired tear gas and rubber bullets.
• Four election commissioners left the stadium on a helicopter to escape the violence -- some of the fiercest since a long-running dispute between Thailand's bitterly divided political factions flared anew two months ago.
• Protesters seeking to oust Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra are demanding that the Feb. 2 elections be delayed until she leaves office and reforms are implemented, and have vowed to disrupt the polls if they go ahead. Yingluck has insisted that the elections should go ahead, in the knowledge that her party is likely win.
• The election commission said in a statement that it was urging the government to consider "postponing the elections," citing the security situation. Commission head Somchai Srisutthiyakorn denied the body was "involving itself in politics" by urging a delay in the polls.
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