Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Speaks At USS Arizona Memorial [Live]

Pearl Harbor Memorial.

It has been 75 years since the Japanese Navy attacked Pearl Harbor and took the lives of over 2,000 American sailors. December 7th became a day that will live in infamy and threw the United States into WWII. The war was fought against the Japanese and ultimately won by the United States.

The two nations worked towards peace after the war, yet Pearl Harbor has remained a controversial location for the Japan’s leadership. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe makes his first visit the USS Arizona Memorial in a move that is meant to shift toward forgiveness.

“This visit and the president’s visit to Hiroshima earlier this year would not have been possible eight years ago. That we are here today is the result of years of efforts at all levels of our government and societies, which has allowed us to jointly and directly deal with even the most sensitive aspects of our shared history.”

– Daniel Kritenbrink (White House Asia Advisor)

Last May, Barack Obama recently became the first sitting President to visit the bombing site at Hiroshima. No longer shying away from controversy, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is speaking live at the USS Arizona Memorial with President Obama beginning at 2:00 PM Pacific Standard Time.