Japanese prime minister is accused of trying to overshadow China's successful space venture
Mainland analysts have accused Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of deliberately timing yesterday's visit to the Yasukuni Shrine to overshadow the return of the Shenzhou VI.
They echo the complaints of Wang Yi, China's ambassador to Japan, who 'strongly criticised' Mr Koizumi's fifth visit to the shrine since taking office in 2001, taking particular offence at the timing of the visit on the day of the spacecraft's 'victorious return'.
Guo Longlong, a Sino-Japanese affairs expert with the Shanghai Institute of International Studies, said he believed Mr Koizumi's visit was intended to distract the world media's spotlight from China.
'He wanted to shift the global attention away from China as the world is watching closely the successful return of Shenzhou VI to Earth, which comes right after China's successful hosting of the Group of 20 meeting and the closing of the Communist Party's plenum, which set a road map for China's development in the next five years,' he said.
Professor Guo said the visit was also intended as a form of retaliation towards China after it opposed Tokyo's recent efforts to win permanent membership on the UN Security Council.
Sino-Japanese relations have already been marred by a series of incidents this year.
