US President Barack Obama and Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wave upon arrival at the North Portico of the White House on April 28, 2015. (Agence France-Presse)
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited Washington's World War II memorial today, hoping to appease criticism of his stance on his country's brutal past ahead of a landmark speech to Congress.
Abe toured the monument on Washington's National Mall, which honors hundreds of thousands of Americans who died during the conflict, many at the hands of Japanese forces.
He laid a flower wreath at the Freedom Wall, shortly before he was due to become the first Japanese prime minister in history to address a joint meeting of the US Congress.
News of his address has been greeted by calls for a full apology for Japan's treatment of an estimated 200,000 mostly Chinese and Korea women forced into sexual slavery by the Imperial armed forces.
Abe has said he is "deeply pained" to think about what the so-called "comfort women" were subjected to, but has stopped short of a full apology.
In Congress, Abe will come face to face with Lee Yong-Soo, one of those forced into sexual slavery.
She is attending at the invitation of Representative Mike Honda, a fierce critic of Abe, who is accused of embracing a "revisionist" account of events.
On the eve of the speech, Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio also piled the pressure on Abe.
"For the interest of geopolitical stability, not to mention for historical accuracy, I think it's important for the government of Japan to be more forward-leaning in the pronouncements they're making," Rubio said in Los Angeles, the LA Times reported.
"I hope the prime minister will do that tomorrow when he addresses a joint session of Congress."
If Abe does not go far enough, it could present an obstacle to a trade pact involving Japan and the United
But Tokyo hopes the trip to the World War II memorial in Washington will demonstrate Abe's intent.
The visit may take on added significance as it was Abe's visit to Japan's controversial Yasukuni war shrine in December 2013 that did much to kindled anger about his views.
The shrine honors those who fought and died for Japan, but also includes a number of senior military and political figures convicted of the most serious war crimes.
This year is the 70th anniversary of Japan's surrender that ended World War II.
Abe is expected to give a major speech in August to mark that event.