ABSTRACT
As with China, overall the Japanese government sincerely sought to address pre-war issues and achieve reconciliation with Korea in the 1990s, which was hampered by the substantial psychological gap in memories of Japanese colonial rule. Koizumi Junichiro policy towards China was friendly rather than antagonistic, and his assertion that Japan should view China's rise as an opportunity instead of a threat was initially received well by the Chinese leadership. However, Koizumi did insist on visiting the Yasukuni Shrine, a position he had made clear during his election campaign. The Senkaku dispute was transformed into a contentious issue of colliding claims, history wars and national identity. The Senkaku dispute was transformed into a contentious issue of colliding claims, history wars and national identity. When Abe Shinzo became Prime Minister for the second time in 2012, he inherited this complicated Senkaku situation. The territorial disputes over the Senkaku had become an issue of historical justice.
