Japan marks 78 years after WW2 surrender; Kishida mum on wartime aggression

TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida renewed a peace pledge on Tuesday as Japan observed the 78th anniversary of its World War 2 defeat, but did not mention the country's wartime aggression in Asia, while three of his former and current Cabinet ministers visited a shrine seen by neighboring countries as a symbol of militarism.

Japan will "stick to our resolve to never repeat the tragedy of the war," Kishida said at a solemn ceremony in a speech that was almost identical to what he read last year.