Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's visits to Yasukuni Shrine have unduly been compounded as a diplomatic issue in Japan's relations with China and South Korea. It seems that Chinese and Korean leaders consider the visits supportive of moves by some Japanese to "legitimize the wrongs of the past."

The prime minister insists that each visit is intended as a way to pray for peace and to placate the souls of those who perished in the last war. Since most people are naturally comfortable with the "politically correct" pronouncements of their respective national leaders, there appears to be little room for compromise. With both sides loath to lose "face," our bilateral relations with these countries threaten to reach a total impasse.

I can imagine the many frowns that must follow when a former diplomat like myself says "something must be done about it. Japan should take the initiative for a solution." I may be blamed for yet another show of the bad habit in which Japanese weak-kneed diplomats seem to give preference to the views of the other side over their own. It is necessary for us, however, to free ourselves from "politically correct" views and see things open-mindedly as they really are.