Japan Marks 80th Anniversary of World War II

TOKYO, JAPAN - AUGUST 15 : People pay respects to the country's war dead at the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on August 15, 2025, as Japan marked the 80th anniversary of the World War's end. Yasukuni Shrine, founded in 1869, honors 2.46 million war dead in service to the nation. Every years on August 15, the date of Japan's surrender, Yasukuni shrine becomes a site of remembrance but also controversy, with official visits sparking domestic debate and diplomatic tensions. On this 80th anniversary, the shrine stands at the center of how Japan confronts its wartime past and passes that memory to future generations. (Photo by David Mareuil/Anadolu via Getty Images)