Japanese Leader Abe To Visit Pearl Harbor With Obama
WASHINGTON (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Japan's leader says he will visit Pearl Harbor with President Barack Obama at the end of this month.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Monday he will visit Hawaii in late December and hold a final summit meeting there with Obama before he leaves office.
"The meeting will be an opportunity for the two leaders to review our joint efforts over the past four years to strengthen the U.S.-Japan alliance, including our close cooperation on a number of security, economic, and global challenges," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.
No serving Japanese prime minister has ever visited the U.S. Naval base in Hawaii that was attacked by Japan in 1941, propelling the United States into World War II.
"The two leaders' visit will showcase the power of reconciliation that has turned former adversaries into the closest of allies, united by common interests and shared values," Earnest said.
Earlier this year, Obama became the first sitting U.S. president to visit the memorial to victims of the U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima at the end of the war.
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