Abe Apologizes for American War Deaths

Japan's Prime Minister spoke before a joint session of Congress. In his speech, he brought up the big elephant in the room by offering his eternal condolences for American War Dead. “On behalf of Japan and the Japanese people, I offer with profound respect my eternal condolences to the souls of all American people that were lost during World War II,” he said to rousing applause from U.S. lawmakers. Abe went one step further acknowledging that Japan's actions against it's Asian neighbors caused great suffering. While most applauded this historic acknowledgement of Japan's wartime misdeeds, lawmakers like Democrat Mike Honda who invited a former Korean Sex Slave felt he did not go far enough. Of course no speech from a Japanese PM will ever satisfy critics in China and Korea. But as Abe said, what is done can not be undone. For this reason Abe's government is trying to spare no effort to help its neighbors where it can. Moving back to the war, in the gallery sat a former LT General Snowden who fought in the Battle of Iwo Jima. He sat next to the grandson of the Islands garrison commander Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi. The two men stood together and shook hands symbolizing just how far we have come since those dark days of WWII. We at American Mishima believe there is still much that Japan must own up to for the war but at the same time appreciate these heartfelt apologies and continued efforts to right the wrongs of the past. All things takes time and we believe Japan will get there. But don't take our word for it. Watch the speech here: