TOKYO—Japan's new Prime Minister Taro Aso on Thursday vowed to watch his language and apologized for making unguarded remarks in the past in an apparent reference to previous controversial comments on wartime history.
Aso, known for his plain-talking approach, also said in parliament he would stand by a 1995 statement by then prime minister Tomiichi Murayama which apologized for Japan's past aggression and colonial rule in Asia.
"I'd like to offer my apology for causing unpleasant feelings among people concerned by making indiscreet remarks in the past," the premier told a full session in the House of Representatives, according to Jiji Press news agency.
"As prime minister, I would like to make remarks by bearing in mind the weight of words hereafter," Aso said in reply a question from a socialist lawmaker.
It was not clear which remarks Aso had in mind. But he has a record of drawing controversy for insisting Japan's colonialism had positive aspects.
In 2003, Aso said that Koreans willingly adopted Japanese names during Japan's 1910-1945 colonial rule of the Korean peninsula as it was advantageous for them in doing business.
He also said in 2006 that Japanese colonizers helped raise the level of education in Taiwan when they occupied the island from 1895 to 1945.
About the Murayama statement, Aso said: "It represented a government's understanding of the past world war and my government too will carry it on."
The statement was issued by Murayama, a socialist leader who was elected premier in a broad coalition led by the conservative Liberal Democratic Party, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II.
It acknowledged that Japan through its colonial rule and aggression "caused tremendous damage and suffering to the people of many countries, particularly to those of Asian nations."
It also expressed Murayama's "feelings of deep remorse and state my heartfelt apology."
Successive prime ministers since Murayama, all from the LDP, have stood by the statement with varying degrees of commitment while Asian neighbors watched out for any signs of Japan's return to militarism.
