Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrived in Australia for a visit Friday (Friday). Accompanied by Australian Prime Minister Morrison, Abe laid flowers in front of a monument in the northern Australian city of Darwin to mourn soldiers killed in Japanese air strikes during World War II.
Shinzo Abe is the first Japanese prime minister to visit the city since the Japanese bombed Darwin during World War II, Reuters reported Thursday. Abe and Australian Prime Minister Morrison laid a wreath in front of a memorial in Darwin and observed a minute of silence to pay tribute to the war victims. With flowers in front of the monument, Morrison knelt on his knees and Abe squatted.
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"We recognize history and we commemorate the sacrifices and losses of the war today, but it is important that the two countries further strengthen their great relationship as good friends and partners," Morrison said. Morrison said Australia, as a modern country, favours open free trade, supports democracy, and opposes protectionism.
During World War II, Darwin military base was an important strategic hub for anti-fascist allies. In February 1942, the Japanese sent 242 sorties of aircraft to carry out the largest air strike in Australian history, and the number of bomb even exceeded the "Pearl Harbor incident." The local infrastructure was destroyed.
In December 2016, Abe visited Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, to attend a World War II memorial at the outbreak of the Pacific War and stressed the importance of reconciliation between Japan and the United States. Abe is the first Japanese Prime Minister to visit Pearl Harbor.
It is worth mentioning that on June 23 this year, at a memorial service marking the 73rd anniversary of the end of the second World War Okinawa campaign, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said, "I pledge once again that the tragedy of the war will never be repeated."
