Will express remorse over WWII: Japan PM

Shinzo Abe is readying his remarks for the 70th anniversary of the end of the war, which are expected to be released ahead of August 15, the date Japan announced its surrender to the Allies.

"I will express remorse over the past war, our post-war path as a pacifist nation, and how Japan should further contribute to the Asia-Pacific region and the world in the future," Abe told reporters.

The nationalist leader also said he would follow previous explicit prime ministerial apologies over Japan's past "as a whole". Abe has repeatedly talked of the need for what he calls a "forward-looking attitude" that concentrates on the positive role Japan has played since surrender and continues to play. That has set alarm bells ringing in China and Korea, which both suffered from Japan's imperial expansion. They say any attempt to tone down explicit apologies made by previous prime ministers should be discouraged.

"I will make an appropriate decision about the timing and how the statement will be announced after reading the report," Abe said.