In a letter addressed to Japanese Ambassador to Washington Ryozo Kato on Thursday, Hyde said the Yasukuni Shrine not only honors the solders killed but also the war criminals who triggered the Pacific War, including then Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tojo. "The shrine, thus, has become a symbol throughout Asia and the rest of the world of unresolved history from the Second World War and of those militaristic attitudes which spawned the War in the Pacific," wrote Hyde.

Hyde said it was urgent for a fresh round of six-party talks on North Korea’s nuclear program slated for November that the U.S. and Japan, as close allies, cooperate on key issues. "While the truth of what occurred in World War II must and will prevail, I am concerned that a renewed discussion of history at this critical juncture will distract nations in the region from carrying out a constructive dialogue on the issues at hand," he said. "Such a result will not serve the national interest of either of our nations."

Hyde said the war crimes tribunal in Tokyo, just like the judgment at Nuremberg, was not victor’s justice but true justice.

The obstinate visits to the shrine by lawmakers and Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi have angered former victims of Japanese aggression Korea and China.

(englishnews@chosun.com )