Taiwan's Lee defends Tokyo war shrine visit

TOKYO, June 9 (Reuters) Former Taiwan president Lee Teng-hui strongly defended his visit to a Tokyo war shrine that had angered Beijing and clouded Sino-Japanese ties, and repeated his view that the self-ruled island was independent.

Wrapping up a trip to Japan that had threatened to chill an emerging thaw in Tokyo's relations with Beijing, Lee on Saturday dismissed China's criticism of his pilgrimage to Yasukuni Shrine, seen by many in Asia as a symbol of Japan's past militarism.

''The Yasukuni problem has arisen because China and Korea have their own problems that they can't solve,'' Lee, speaking in Japanese, told a news conference. ''There is no reason for foreign governments to make criticisms regarding Yasukuni.'' The 84-year-old Lee, despised by Beijing for asserting self-ruled Taiwan's sovereignty, also reiterated his view that the island is independent.

''I think Taiwan is already an independent, free, peaceful and democratic country,'' he said, adding that the people of Taiwan should pay no heed to what Beijing says.

''China may talk about Taiwan, but I don't care, and I would encourage the people of Taiwan not to care either,'' he said.

Visit to Tokyo's Yasukuni by Japanese leaders have long been a flashpoint in Japan's ties with China.

The shrine honours millions of Japanese war dead -- among them soldiers from Taiwan and Korea who fought for Japan, their colonial ruler at the time -- but also some convicted war criminals, including wartime prime minister Hideki Tojo.

Lee insisted his visit to the shrine was personal and intended to pay respects to his elder brother, who died fighting for Japan in World War Two, when Taiwan was a Japanese colony.

''We have no bones, no ashes, no funeral tablet to remind us of my brother,'' he said.

Beijing has claimed sovereignty over Taiwan since 1949, when China's Nationalist forces fled to the island after losing power on the mainland to Mao Zedong's Communists.

China had expressed dissatisfaction with Japan for allowing Lee's 11-day visit, but yesterday the leaders of the two countries stressed their friendly ties at bilateral talks on the sidelines of the Group of Eight summit at Heiligendamm, Germany.

Chinese President Hu Jintao expressed gratitude to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for his efforts to improve previously frosty relations between the two countries.

Analysts have said any damage to the fragile rapprochement between Tokyo and Beijing that began after Abe took office last year was likely to be limited.

Abe moved quickly to repair ties that deteriorated to their worst state in decades under his predecessor Junichiro Koizumi by visiting China weeks after taking office in September. China had been offended by Koizumi's annual visits to Yasukuni.

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