Japan's Yasukuni Shrine to review exhibits

TOKYO, Oct 6 (Reuters) Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine, seen by critics as a symbol of Japan's past militarism, today said it would review all the exhibits at its museum, which has been criticised for a one-sided view of the country's conflicts.

Yasukuni is at the heart of strained ties between Japan and Asian neighbours China and South Korea due to annual pilgrimages by former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi -- ties that new Prime Minister Shinzo Abe hopes to mend by a visit to both nations from Sunday.

The museum has been criticised for depicting World War Two as one Japan was forced to fight in self-defence and for ignoring wartime atrocities.

According to sources close to the shrine quoted by Kyodo News Agency, the museum will change or delete claims that the United States forced Japan into the war by imposing economic embargos.

Requests that the shrine reconsider the claims have been made by US officials and Japanese historians, and some representatives of the shrine's membership have also questioned their accuracy, Kyodo said.

The shrine said in a statement that it was reviewing all the museum's exhibits in line with the fifth anniversary of its renovation and would seek the opinion of experts in various fields to do so.

''In order to make the exhibits more substantial, we will also review the historical accounts,'' it said, without giving further details.

Many in China and South Korea argued that Prime Minister Koizumi's visits to Yasukuni, where convicted war criminals are honoured with the nation's war dead, reflected Japan's failure to own up to its wartime past, and the visits became a barrier to holding leaders' summits with both nations.

Mr Abe supported Mr Koizumi's visits but has declined to say whether he will pay his respects there while in office.

An adviser to Mr Abe has said he went to Yasukuni last April, when he was a cabinet minister, but Abe has neither confirmed nor denied it.

REUTERS SHB ND1516