Shanghai robot show hints at regional tensions as android Shinzo Abe bows to the masses

Photos of a robot designed in the image of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe have gone viral on social media in China and Japan after the humanoid was made to bow, as though apologetically, at the China International Robot Show (CIRS) in Shanghai last week.

It has subsequently picked up the moniker 'Apologising Abe' and sparked debate as to whether it is poking fun at the Japanese leader for his country's wartime actions and refusal to apologise to its Asian neighbours for its expansionist moves during the second world war.

Tensions between China and Japan have been running high this year, which marks the 70th commemoration of the end of the war.

Abe has yet to officially reply, but he told his aides that he was willing to accept the offer, Japan’s Asahi newspaper reported.