日本首相高市早苗周六向东京靖国神社献上祭物，该神社被日本邻国视为该国过去军国主义的象征，当时正值其为期三天的秋季祭典开始。
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Saturday sent a ritual offering to Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, regarded by Japan’s neighbours as a symbol of the country’s past militarism, at the start of its three-day autumn festival.
高市早苗以保守派著称，在一年前担任首相之前经常参拜该神道教神社。一位知情人士表示，鉴于与中国关系紧张、与韩国关系相对稳定，她不太可能在祭典期间参拜该神社。
Takaichi, known as a conservative who routinely visited the Shinto shrine before becoming prime minister a year ago, was unlikely to visit the shrine during the festival, a source close to her said, amid strained relations with China and relatively stable ties with South Korea.
该神社供奉着二战后国际法庭判定为战犯的日本领导人，以及数百万阵亡将士，长期以来一直是日本与中国和韩国之间外交摩擦的根源。
The shrine honours Japanese leaders convicted as war criminals by a post-World War II international tribunal, along with millions of war dead, and has long been a source of diplomatic friction with China and South Korea.
担任部长期间，高市早苗曾在春秋祭典以及8月15日（日本1945年投降纪念日）参拜该神社，但自去年10月21日担任首相以来，她一直未这样做。
While serving as a minister, Takaichi had visited the shrine during its spring and autumn festivals and on August 15, the anniversary of Japan’s 1945 surrender in the war, but she has refrained from doing so since becoming prime minister on October 21 last year.
在今年的战争结束纪念日，高市早苗在抵达路对面政府主办的纪念仪式会场后，向靖国神社鞠躬两次、拍手两次、再次鞠躬一次，这看似是一次远距离的神道教崇拜行为。
During this year’s war-end anniversary, Takaichi bowed twice, clapped twice and bowed once again towards Yasukuni Shrine, in an apparent act of Shinto worship from a distance, after arriving at the venue for the government-sponsored memorial ceremony across the road.
上一位在任日本首相参拜靖国神社的是2013年12月的安倍晋三，他是高市早苗的政治导师。
The last Yasukuni visit by a sitting Japanese prime minister was in December 2013 by Shinzo Abe, Takaichi’s political mentor.
靖国神社于1978年供奉了14名甲级战犯，其中包括二战时期的首相东条英机将军，他于1948年因危害和平罪被处决。
Yasukuni enshrined 14 Class-A war criminals, including wartime prime minister General Hideki Tojo, who was executed in 1948 for crimes against peace, in 1978.
日本政客过去参拜该神社曾引发邻国亚洲国家的严厉批评。日本在二战前入侵了中国大片地区，并从1910年至1945年殖民了朝鲜半岛。
Past visits to the shrine by Japanese politicians have sparked harsh criticism from neighbouring Asian countries. Japan invaded large parts of China before World War II and colonised the Korean peninsula from 1910 to 1945.
东京与北京之间的紧张关系持续存在，此前高市早苗去年11月表示，对台湾的攻击可能促使日本自卫队采取行动支持美国。
Tensions between Tokyo and Beijing continue after Takaichi said in November last year that an attack on Taiwan could prompt Japan’s Self-Defence Forces to act in support of the United States.
北京视台湾为中国的一部分，必要时将以武力统一。大多数国家，包括美国，均不承认台湾为独立国家，但华盛顿反对任何以武力夺取该自治岛屿的企图，并致力于向其提供武器。
Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary. Most countries, including the US, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state, but Washington is opposed to any attempt to take the self-governed island by force and is committed to supplying it with weapons.
日本和韩国在就所谓的战时强迫劳动问题取得进展后，近年来关系有所改善，并于2023年恢复了领导人互访的惯例。共同社
Japan and South Korea have improved their ties in recent years following progress on the issue of alleged wartime forced labour, resuming the practice of reciprocal visits between their leaders in 2023. By Kyodo